Archive of Our Own

Shadow Milk slipped his boots on, before checking himself out in the mirror.

Hot, as always.

He whistled a small tune to himself, straightening up his sleeves as he crossed the room.

What about Pure Vanilla? How would he look today? Would he be wearing the outfit that he gave him?

He felt a little giddy at the thought, opening the door as he went to get completely ready for the day. Black Sapphire had taken care of all the planning, so now he just got to sit back and enjoy himself. Actually, he had no clue what was in store for today- but surprises were always fun.

As he walked through the hallway, confusion crossed his face as small muttering could be heard from the reception area.

Hmm? The guests were usually out at this time…

He stopped, shamelessly leaning against the wall to eavesdrop- when his expression suddenly dropped from shock.

No…

A deep, accented voice sounded extremely muffled. Was that…?

No. No way.

That familiar voice was muted by the wall- or was it by that dark bandana he always kept covering his face? Silent Salt? Why the hell is he here?

He quickened his pace, basically stomping into the reception as he spotted Black Sapphire casually leaning against the reception desk, and that motherfucker in his rocking chair.

The two stopped, Black Sapphire giving him a friendly smile and wave, while Silent Salt had the audacity to just lift his hand up in casual greeting.

“Nuh-uh, cut the bullshit. Black Sapphire, what is he doing here?!”

A snicker came from the darkly dressed- uh, well, a snicker came from Black Sapphire as he cleared his throat.

“Good morning to you, too. We’re lucky someone was able to watch the inn while we’re out with ‘Nilly.” His smug grin widened. “Anyways, drop that tone. Wouldn’t it be nice if you two could finally hash it out and be friends again? I’d certainly benefit by extension.”

Shadow Milk stared in disbelief, jaw widening slightly as Black Sapphire proceeded to stand up fully from the wall he was leaning on, walking past him and nearly entering the hallway.

“Well, I’ve got a picnic to plan- he will be here any minute~.”

“Sapphy, that doesn’t explain why-“

Black Sapphire was gone, leaving a furious Shadow Milk standing in shock and infuriatingly nonchalant Silent Salt merely folding his hands in his lap as he presumably stared at the other.

Presumably. You could never tell through the tiny slit that was between his dark bandana and his wide-rimmed cowboy hat.

“Well met, Shadow Milk. How have you faired?”

The man leaned forward, standing up and approaching him and- good lord he’s large.

Silent Salt stood over a head taller than the already-tall Shadow Milk, his broad build making him an opponent that only a fool would take in a fight. The man barely even used his gun, his mere presence settled conflicts before they began.

Funny, given how he still hasn’t solved this conflict.

A hand was presented in an offered handshake, Shadow Milk opting to slap it away.

“Yup. So we’re just forgetting all of that happened, huh.”

“No, I’m not forgetting. I only consider your damage paid for. Unless you have chosen not to change your ways, of course.”

“Oh, no~! please, redeeming is long done and dusted. Don’t even worry about checking my wardrobe again. Now, why in the name of the gods are you here right now?”

“I was shopping in the area, and happened by Black Sapphire. He said he would appreciate if I could watch the inn for the day.”

If Shadow Milk was drinking, he would have spat it out.

“B-Black Sapphire asked you?!”

“Yes. He said that he was in need of a favour. I am not one to deny another over any bad blood they are not a part of. Now I am here.”

“Oh, that motherfu-“

“Please refrain from such profanities. Candy Apple is still adolescent, and I do not think she should be exposed to such foul language while her speech habits are developing.”

“She isn’t even home?!”

“You should learn to keep your own language tame even in her absence, lest you mess up when she is present.”

“Oh my god…” Shadow Milk ran a hand over his face. “You know what? Just- just leave! I don’t care about any of this, I don’t want to see your face!”

“You can’t even see my face.”

“Oh. My. God!”

A gentle knock sounded at the front door, followed by a gentle squeaking of the front doors opening.

Shadow Milk straightened out, putting on a smile and turning to the source.

Pure Vanilla opened the door only slightly, poking his head in.

“Sorry, I heard noise- did I pick a bad time?”

Shadow Milk scurried over, widening his smile a fraction.

“No, no! Never a bad time with you, Nilly. Come in!”

He opened the door wider for him, putting a hand behind his back and nudging him inside.

Pure Vanilla quickly saw the other figure in the room, craning his neck up to make eye contact with this impossibly tall figure. Or, well, try to make eye contact, anyways.

“Oh- who might you be?”

Pure Vanilla held his hand out politely, with a small smile on his face. The man in front of him slowly raised a gloved hand to meet his, before it was intercepted by Shadow Milk.

“Woah, need to wash your hands first, Nilly! Haven’t you just been outside? Now come on in and just let the quiet man be in peace!”

“Oh- I just sanitised them, so it’s fine…”

“Oh, you have, too! Positively sparkling! Let’s not get them dirty again, agreed?”

Shadow Milk started ushering Pure Vanilla into the kitchen, to which he hesitantly complied, before a broad arm reached out in front of the two to block their path.

Shadow Milk grimaced.

“Hey, big guy, kind of in the way over here. Mind letting us through?”

“I haven’t greeted… ‘Nilly’ yet.”

“You- you can’t call him that…” Shadow milk seethed, restraining his tone through his teeth.

The large man walked in front of Pure Vanilla, extending his hand to him in greeting. This time, Pure Vanilla was able to shake his hand. Despite the firm grip, he did not feel a harsh tug as he did when he met Shadow Milk.

“Usually, it is proper to introduce oneself first before asking the other for their name. But, as I assume you are not from here, I will gladly lead. I go by Silent Salt.”

Pure Vanilla was briefly taken aback, before chuckling.

“My name is Pure Vanilla. Actually, I think Shadow Milk said the same thing when we first met- I suppose I really ought to sort my manners out.”

“Do not be too concerned, so far, your manners are rather proper compared to some people in this town.”

Shadow Milk could’ve sworn that the other made eye contact with him while saying that, yet couldn’t prove anything behind that bandana.

Pure Vanilla giggled, pulling his hand back and putting it against his chest.

“You flatter me. May I ask- are you friends of Shadow Milk and Black Sapphire? What brings you to the inn?”

Silent Salt made his way to the back wall, leaning back on it before folding his arms.

“Black Sapphire requested I watch the inn, so that he may join you on an outing.”

“Oh, how kind!”

He really did seem kind, Pure Vanilla thought, surely giving up the whole day was no small favour for even people all the way out here. Shadow Milk’s snarl only grew.

“Yes, yes- very kind. Now Nilly, come down the hall and lets just go lock a few doors…”

“And what are you hiding this time? Haven’t quite stopped your ways, I see…”

“Oh, no! Salty, don’t even worry about it. Just enjoy yourself in the lobby- reception- whatever its called. So much to do-! Black Sapphire can tell you all about it.”

Some steps sounded from the kitchen, Black Sapphire popping his head into the reception.

“I heard my name?”

Shadow Milk rolled his eyes, muttering ‘speak of the devil and he shall appear’ under his breath.

“Yes, we were just talking about you. Now go away, you can’t talk shit about someone while they’re present.”

“Aw, I’m flattered. Anyways, Pure Vanilla, could I steal you for a second?”

Pure Vanilla turned around, slightly surprised.

“Well, sure. What do you want?”

“Help in getting ready for afternoon tea- there’s a lot of stuff I need to take care of.”

A smile lit up his face, making his way over to Black Sapphire.

“Sure! I’d love to make myself useful in some way.”

Shadow Milk grimaced, now left alone with Silent Salt.

“Just for the record, you are tasked with watching over the reception, not going through my personal belongings.”

“I was not aware anything you owned was ‘yours’ in the first place.”

“Oh my god! Would it just kill you to-“

A large bang on the kitchen door cut him off, followed by a frustrated tone in Black Sapphire’s voice.

“Do I have to come out there and babysit you? Gods, I just left you two alone! Keep it down!”

“Sorry…”

“Apologies.”

Shadow Milk groaned, dramatically flopping onto his rocking chair and glaring at Silent Salt through the corner of his eye.

He hated how the other could be glaring at him too, and he wouldn’t know. If he was going to stare, he had the decency to at least make it obvious.

“Are you finally capable of discussing this calmly, as adults do? I hardly wish to maintain this unpleasant atmosphere.”

Shadow Milk opened his mouth to let out a profanity, but quickly shut it and blew a silent raspberry instead.

Silent salt rubbed the bridge of his nose through his bandana, shaking his head slightly.

“…I can’t believe you are actually raising a child…”

“Hey-!”

Black Sapphire shut the door, Pure Vanilla taking a quick look around the kitchen.

“I’m so sorry about them- I would’ve rather invited someone else to take care of the inn, but he was the only person available and ready to accept- despite his terms with Shadow Milk.”

Pure Vanilla bit his lip lightly.

Despite his terms with Shadow Milk…

Was this… He’s heard of him before- back at the markets.

“…Is this that same friend who chose to donate Shadow Milk’s stolen clothes?”

Black Sapphire chuckled, walking over to the pantry.

“Yes, this is that same friend. They still haven’t gotten past that yet- and I don’t think they ever will.” He emerged from the pantry, carrying a large paper bag in both arms. “But tell me Pure Vanilla, do you think that Silent Salt was justified?”

Pure Vanilla blinked, surprised by the question.

It was… actually a very good question. In his consideration, he walked over to the counter beside Black Sapphire, opening the now set-down paper bag in mild curiosity while he began to speak.

“I think that I understand where Silent Salt comes from, and I think that his cause is noble- one could say he is justified in his reasoning…” Black Sapphire began pulling contents out of the bag, before pulling out a chopping board from the drawer and setting out vegetables from the board. “…But I think that Shadow Milk’s anger is not unjustified, either... Those clothes clearly meant a lot to him and a real friend would care about their companions’ feelings enough to at least talk to him about the situation, rather than take the initiative in righting a wrong.”

“So, they are both in the wrong?”

“Hmm, I’d say so. But they’re also both in the right, in some ways.”

Black Sapphire grinned, taking a knife out to peel the skins off of the carrots.

“So, how do you think this friendship would be resolved?”

Pure Vanilla watched Black Sapphire, deciding to take another knife out of the same drawer and helping with cutting the vegetables while he pondered his response.

“…I don’t know. For me, I suppose I’ve never really encountered a scenario where I’ve wronged someone- or they’ve wronged me- but I guess I’d apologize, even if so just to keep the peace.” He finished the carrots, sweeping them to the edge of the board. “But in the case of-“ He took a corn, staring at it blankly for a moment before turning to Black Sapphire. “Sorry, could you get some water on?”

“Of course- do continue, though.”

Some water was placed on the stove, the hearth lit shortly after.

“In the case of those two, I don’t know them enough to assume that one of them would take the blame for the sake of their friendship. If this has already been unresolved for a while, could we even assume that one of them will ever take the initiative to apologize…?”

A small hum sounded from Black Sapphire, taking the corn and placing it into the pot of water. He leaned against the bench, looking at the ceiling in his thoughts.

“An interesting answer, I’ll start there… But I find it more interesting your statement on ‘never being wronged’. Last I checked, we never had a talk about the kidnapping, nor have Shadow Milk or I properly apologised.”

“Oh, that?”

Pure Vanilla scratched his cheek with his index.

“…I guess I didn’t really care enough to let it get in the way of our friendship? I mean, thinking back on it, it does seem rather significant…”

“So, you saw it as water under the bridge?” Black Sapphire hummed again, considering. “Isn’t it ironic, that some stolen clothes were enough to end a long-term friendship, but a kidnapping wasn’t enough in your case?”

“You make a good point… Maybe, their friendship isn’t salvageable, if neither party is willing to apologise or let it become… ‘water under the bridge’, as you put it.”

“Yes, that is exactly as I see it. They were never compatible as friends to begin with.”

“How… sad.”

For a friendship to simply not be possible…

Quiet took over for a few minutes, before Black Sapphire stood to take the corn out of the pots. Using a kitchen towel, they were wrapped up. The other sliced vegetables followed suit, getting wrapped in their own towel. He reached into the bag yet again, removing a small box of tea leaves and a bread bag, handing them into Pure Vanilla’s arms. He went over to the drawers, taking some mugs and equipment Pure Vanilla did not recognise into his own arms.

“Would you mind helping me pack up the horses? It goes faster with two pairs of hands.”

Pure Vanilla nodded, watching as Black Sapphire gathered up the bundles of vegetables and removed the tablecloth from the small dining table across the room, adding it to the pile.

The two exited the kitchen, wandering into the reception, immediately met with the scene that they had earlier left behind.

“Stop comparing me to her! Sugar only wouldn’t because she doesn’t do anything! I’m industrious, so any comparisons are moot!”

Black Sapphire sighed, choosing to walk through the clearly monologue-ish argument. As he was about to leave, Shadow Milk interrupted.

“Wait, Sapphy, are you going to pack the horses? Candy Apple is out. We only have one horse.”

“We only have one horse?” Black Sapphire groaned, rolling his eyes. “Well, the hell do we do? Three don’t go on one saddle.”

“We’d- ugh. I’m not walking in this heat, so we need another-” Like a flash of beautiful light, a sudden idea birthed itself within Shadow Milk’s mind like an epiphany. Slowly, he turned around to the Silent Salt, letting a overdone grin split his face.

“Salty~!”

“Do not call me that.”

“Aww, ok, ok… But I’m sure I don’t need to relay the little convo me and Sapphy had just then, so surely you would understand that we are in a bit of a need for another horse…”

“I’m inn-sitting, how does this effect me.”

“Well, I know we may have just gotten off of some friendly banter- maybe it got a liiiittle heated, but…!”

“Get to the point already…”

“Could we maybe possible pretty please borrow Nox?”

“Absolutely not.”

“Please?”

“No.”

“Even if-“

“Enough of that.”

Shadow Milk pouted, folding his arms and tapping a foot to the ground.

Silent Salt turned to Black Sapphire, who just shrugged before that deep voice was heard again.

“May I speak to you for a second.”

“Sure, just come outside with Pure Vanilla and I.”

“Very well. Should I carry something?”

“No, it’s quite alright- maybe just get the door?”

Silent Salt held the door open, stepping aside for Pure Vanilla and Black Sapphire to leave the inn.

Shadow Milk watched as an annoyance began to cross his features.

“Wait, am I literally the only person not apart of this?”

Black Sapphire nearly sighed, turning to him.

“You’re literally the only person who would make it worse. Please, just stay inside for two minutes.”

The door was closed, leaving Shadow Milk by himself. He flopped back onto the rocking chair in annoyance, thumbing a harness strap in boredom.

Staring out the window, he tried to watch- or hear- the others. Unfortunately, the walls were too thick- and the window buffered most noise.

The window…

He traced a finger at the window frame, he didn’t usually think about it, but it was impressive how they managed to replace the window so cleanly. One wouldn’t even guess that it wasn’t apart of the original architecture. That the window was once another, one that broke that day.

It was broken by a bullet meant for him, shot by someone who could never be brought back.

He began to feel a bit sick, a sense of dread pooling in his gut. Quickly, he tried to snap out of it, blinking rapidly and groaning back into his chair- now wasn’t the time for thoughts like that.

“He is beautiful, isn’t he.”

Silent Salt’s gloved hand trailed over the muzzle of his dark steed, slowly gliding over the hair of the stallion.

“I must agree… I apologize for Shadow Milk’s tact in approaching the matter. I completely understand why you wouldn’t feel comfortable lending a horse to him on your current terms.”

“I fear he might donate him as some form of revenge for what I did to his clothes.”

“Pfft- I don’t think he’d ever let Nox get involved in human drama.”

Silent Salt trailed around Nox, threading his fingers through the well-kept main of his beast.

“Although I am not unsensitive enough to not understand your plight.”

Black Sapphire nearly opened his mouth to speak, yet allowed the other to continue with his own solution.

“If it were you to ride Nox, I would allow it. But under no circumstances do I wish to see so much as a single blue hair on my steed.”

Black Sapphire smiled, not even needing to barter or compromise with the other. A reasonable solution was easily provided which satisfied both parties.

“Sometimes, I wonder how Shadow Milk could possibly still fight with you- you truly are a man of reason.”

Underneath his bandana, Silent Salt secretly adopted an expression of guilt.

“My reason can tend to be somewhat… lost in his presence.”

Pure Vanilla, who had remained silent by Black Sapphire’s side until now, failed to stifle a laugh. Black Sapphire nearly joined him, yet his focus was brought back to the horses, and the man so enchanted by his own.

“Well, I must thank you yet again for doing so much for us. Again, I must apologize on Shadow Milk’s behalf.”

“I thank you for your initiative, yet I will only accept an apology from his own mouth. As for now, I will go back and get Shadow Milk for you.”

“Of course.”

Silent Salt patted the shoulder of his steed, before wordlessly returning back inside.

Black Sapphire looked over at Pure Vanilla, who was staring in shock at the absolutely mammoth steed in front of him.

“Surprised by his size?” Black Sapphire mused aloud.

“…I shouldn’t be, I suppose. I don’t know why I imagined an average horse to support Silent Salt’s frame.”

Black Sapphire opened a large wooden chest by a pillar supporting the awning, taking out the saddle equipment for their own horse and saddling it up. Pure Vanilla watched, observing the process.

After a minute, Black Sapphire gave his delayed response.

“He is fortunate to have such an incredible steed. Anyone with an eye for horses would envy him for owning such a strong, beautiful Percheron. Sometimes I believe that he almost envies himself.”

The other, smaller horse was saddled up- before saddlebags were attached behind the saddle.

Black Sapphire walked over to where Pure Vanilla was standing, taking some of the items from the awkward stack of prepared food and placing the bundles into the saddlebags of their own horse.

Pure Vanilla followed, glad to be of some small amount of help through packing up their items even a bit.

“Well, I am a bit concerned as to what is holding Shadow Milk up…” Black Sapphire commented, peering out of the mini-stable to watch the entrance to the inn.

He was immediately answered, the front door bursting with two figures exiting- Shadow Milk quite literally dangling by his scruff in the large grip of Silent Salt. His legs tried kicking in protest, but only bounced off the giant, who slowly tread towards the mini stable with only one arm extended to hold Shadow Milk away from him.

“Stop! Unhand me! I wasn’t serious! I wasn’t actually trying to-“

Silent Salt immediately ‘unhanded’ him, dropping him unceremoniously onto the gravel below.

A muffled ‘uffghh-‘ sounded from his collapsed form, quickly trying to scrabble up to his legs.

“YOU-!”

A finger jabbed itself into Silent Salt’s chest. He was instantly swatted away, a single motion from the others hand knocking him off his balance- nearly sending him into the dirt again before he caught himself.

“I am not dealing with you right now. I need a …’moment to myself’.”

Shadow Milk’s eyes widened, his muscles tightening as he began to storm over to the man who was already trying to go back inside- before said man stopped in his tracks, letting out a deep, exhausted sigh.

He turned around, and that tiny slit between his bandana and his hat showed the tiniest, tiniest glimpse of the unadulterated fury in the others eyes in this moment.

Shadow Milk bristled, taking a step back.

“I am not dealing with your bullshit. Leave me be.”

And with that, the door was slammed, leaving Shadow Milk outside with the others.

He turned around, his eyes widened and an audible gulp came from his throat.

“…He swore.”

A giant smile split his face, an ugly laugh tearing from his throat as he opened the door just a crack, shoving his face in briefly. “I heard that! You said ‘bullshit’! That’s bad word~! Ahahah-!” And just as quickly as the door was opened, he quickly slammed it shut just as a fist landed on the other side of the wooden door- right where his face just was.

“Woah, ok, let’s us just get going~…”

He ran over to his horse, jumping on and turning out to the path.

Black Sapphire looked over at Pure Vanilla, before a small smile graced his face- holding out a hand for the other to accept.

Gently, Pure Vanilla put his hand in Black Sapphire’s as he guided him to the side of the large, black steed before them.

“It will be quite difficult to mount something so large- is it your first time riding?”

Pure Vanilla smiled, a small exhale escaping him. “My first time riding a horse was the night I got drugged and taken to your basement.”

“Oh.”

After a brief moment, both of them snorted together, before Black Sapphire released his hand and placed both of his own hands on Pure Vanilla’s waist. Pure Vanilla was guided to step up on the ready mounting block.

“Well, try to swing your legs over- but don’t fall. It’s hard to describe, but you should be fine.”

“I’ll try my best.”

Pure Vanilla raised his hands slightly, and placed them on the saddle as Black Sapphire lifted him- guiding the momentum as he tried to scale the large beast.

He nearly fell from how large the animal was, but he was able to learn forward and slightly scramble up the saddle. Black Sapphire followed with ease, settling in front of him as he took the reigns.

“We won’t be going at fast speeds, but should we take it up, do try to almost bounce alongside the saddle- otherwise it will be quite jarring. Meanwhile, you may place your hands around my waist for support.”

Pure Vanilla followed, lightly hugging Black Sapphire from behind as they began to walk. They caught up to a waiting Shadow Milk, who was impatiently bouncing his foot in the stirrup- which was probably a bit confusing for the horse, but it was surely used to such uncontrolled mannerisms from its rider.

“Damn, I always forget how big his horse is.”

Shadow Milk whistled low, before turning to continue the walk down the road.

“And I always forget how discourteous you are. That was disgraceful.”

“Lose it! It’s between him and I.”

“No, this is no longer just your problem, Shadow Milk. Because when it starts to concern the inn, and how often I get to go on holiday, it concerns me too. But I don’t really want to spoil this otherwise lovely day, so let’s discuss this another time.”

“Sure, agreed. Anyways, I have barely even spoken with our guest! How are you, Nilly?”

Pure Vanilla turned to face Shadow Milk, raising his cheek from where it rest at Black Sapphire’s back.

“I’m doing pretty well, thank you. It’s been some time since we’ve last spoken face-to-face, so I’m just very happy to see you and Black Sapphire again.”

His arms tightened around Black Sapphire’s waist, smiling slightly as he leaned into him. The other immediately tightened up, a slight red dusting his cheeks.

Shadow Milk blinked, slightly caught off guard as he watched the small display.

“Wasn’t expecting you and Black Sapphire to be so… close…”

Pure Vanilla pulled back, looking a little embarrassed as he turned to Shadow Milk.

“Oh, is that a problem…?”

“…No, I just wasn’t really expecting you to get along so well after how you two first hit it off, y’know.”

There was a small tug of jealousy in him, yet he was unsure if he was jealous of Black Sapphire or Pure Vanilla in this moment.

He looked back at the road, now slowly fading out as the town began to disappear, Black Sapphire trotting slightly ahead to take the lead.

“I looked around, and I found a lovely spot in the hill ranges. There’s a river, and even shrubbery. I thought a picnic would be pleasant.”

Shadow Milk blinked, watching the other slightly as he saw which general direction they had begun to take.

He swallowed dryly, feeling a small sense of dread tug at his gut- yet he ignored it. Surely they weren’t going… there.

“That sounds lovely, especially with this weather we’re having. I could only hope there’s a decent canopy, though- the heat is quite a lot.” Pure Vanilla was talking, but mainly to Black Sapphire.

“Yes, yes- the heat is can be quite a lot- but I think you’ll find the temperature is a lot more tolerable near the stream. Actually, it reminds me a lot of that setting in that new novel…”

Shadow Milk was only half-listening, keeping his gaze forward as he followed the others, still going in that suspicious direction which he feared would lead to a place he hadn’t dared visit in years.

The conversation eventually became nothing but background fuzz in his mind- too caught up in thoughts he was desperately trying to scrub clear.

Why today?

The window? The hills? Why was he feeling so ill?

…It was always going to be today. It was because Pure Vanilla was visiting, that everything suddenly pointed to then.

It didn’t matter. Ultimately, nobody would benefit from the truth.

It would only destroy their friendship and break Pure Vanilla’s heart.

What good could possibly come of this coming to light?

He should just accept that-

“So how about you, Shadow Milk? What do you think?”

Shadow Milk blinked, looking up to Black Sapphire.

“Oh, sorry?”

“We were just asking what your thoughts were on C. Linzer’s new novel. The murder mystery. Turns out Pure Vanilla read it too.”

He tutted, directing his gaze to the ground.

“Uh, it was… pretty good. Obvious twist, though.”

Pure Vanilla gasped. “No way, I never saw it coming. My shock stayed for the rest of the week when I found out that his best friend was the killer.”

“Really? The context clues were there the whole time...” Shadow Milk half-muttered, trying to recollect the details of the story.

“Context clues…? I thought they were just character flaws. Obviously, the friend wasn’t the best person in the world, but if they were, it wouldn’t be a realistic character.”

Interested, Black Sapphire decided to interject. “Very true, but upon rereading those scenes, the ‘flaws‘ are obviously traits of a very disturbed individual. It makes sense why the naïve main character didn’t recognise those traits, especially with narrator bias, but it also calls into question why the main character overlooked the red flags.”

For some reason, Shadow Milk felt that same, sickening weight in his stomach again.

He stayed silent, trying but failing to tune out the conversation that had begun to go on without him.

“I didn’t pick up on that, but I suppose it makes sense. Maybe I should reread it.”

“Yes, I’d almost say it is better on the second read. Characterises the killer even better and makes the impending reveal of betrayal even more gut-wrenching.”

Shadow Milk let out an exhausted exhale through his nose. The feeling in his gut got worse.

“I’m not sure, the killer was surely-“

“Yes, cool story. Cool twist. Who cares. Are we nearly there?”

Black Sapphires nose upturned at the tone Shadow Milk had adopted. His eyes narrowed.

“You need to get yourself together, Shadow Milk. Silent Salt isn’t even here right now.” He sighed. “But yes, we are nearly there. I have a spot downstream I checked out last week.”

Downstream. The words unconsciously gave relief to Shadow Milk. Far from… there.

“Fantastic. Anyways, how was the trip? I want to talk about literally anything other than that novel.”

Pure Vanilla blinked confusedly.

“Um, yes…” Should he have not talked about literature…? “It was good, I didn’t want to travel the whole distance in one day, so I stayed overnight a few towns over. Rented a horse-drawn stagecoach after the train line didn’t reach any further. A little warm, though…”

“Haha, that train line, amiright?”

“…Yes?”

There was no response, they finally cleared the plains and met the tree line.

Shadow Milk decided that he’d rather the silence remain for the rest of the walk. The slight clopping of hooves on the ground should have filled the disturbed buzzing in his mind, yet riding this horse… near this river…

He felt sick.

Taking deep breaths, he was able to distract himself with the sound of the rushing stream.

“Here, I thought this would be a good spot.”

Shadow Milk looked up, observing the area that Black Sapphire deigned appropriate for a picnic. It was admittedly nice- fairly grassy for where they were geographically, with a nice overhead of trees blocking out the sun. They stopped a few metres out from the edge of the river, Black Sapphire dismounting with some difficulty before extending his arms to catch Pure Vanilla. They fell back slightly, laughing it off together while Shadow Milk still sat on his horse, watching. He slid off and took the saddlebags off, taking some rope and tying his horse to the trunk of the tree with a generous amount of slack, handing some rope to Black Sapphire so that Nox could also be secured.

He watched as Black Sapphire continued to banter with Pure Vanilla, teasing him lightly while he instructed him on how to handle the horse. Shadow Milk found a rock and slumped against it, staring at the holes of sky in between the leaves overhead.

Why now? Why today? Why at all? It’s been so long. They aren’t even in the same area as the fight with Black Raisin, far further upstream.

The mild chatter of the other two came closer.

“No-! Did you seriously take me for the smoking type!?”

“Haha, I was just teasing~.”

The tablecloth was spread out like a picnic rug on the grass, some of the kitchen towels of vegetables unwrapped to reveal a healthy spread.

“Shadow Milk, could you give us a hand, please? We need to get a fire lit, if you could get some wood.”

Without answering Black Sapphire, he just stood, walking around while picking up small pieces of dry wood. He found a few suitable branches, too, taking the pile over and carelessly dropping at Black Sapphire’s side, scattering the wood.

Black Sapphire looked up in shock, before adopting a look of disdain on his face.

“Geez, if your going to be like this all day, just go home…”

Shadow Milk sighed, ignoring him and walking over to a tree and slumping down beneath it.

Why was he even here…

“Black Sapphire! Will these work?”

Pure Vanilla carried a few large stones close to his chest, carefully squatting down and dropping them to the floor. Black Sapphire smiled, taking them aside the small fire-set up he was assembling.

“Yes, these are perfect. Now watch this carefully. Have you ever lit a fire outdoors, Pure Vanilla?”

Pure Vanilla sat down, watching Black Sapphire take out a lighter from the pocket of his chaps.

Actually, this was the first time he had seen Black Sapphire actually dressed like a cowboy. The outfit was all black. Fitting, he supposed. It suited him really well, and it didn’t escape him that his elegant demeanour almost dismissed itself with the new look that he had adopted- now a cigar hung awkwardly from his mouth as his knees scraped against the ground.

He cupped his hand over the wood, protecting it from the breeze, as he clicked his lighter near the wood. A small spark emerged.

Black Sapphire took the cigar out of his mouth, holding it in the air near Pure Vanilla- yet when Pure Vanilla didn’t pick up on the fact he was meant to hold it for him, he just stuck it in the others mouth. Pure Vanilla gasped in shock, nearly spitting it out before the other grabbed it and held it in place between his lips.

“Just hold it for a second, please.”

Black Sapphire, with his mouth now free, blew on the small flame with his hands cupped around the flame to guard it. Pure Vanilla, wanting to help, used his free hands to place sticks- getting progressively larger in size- on the steadily growing flame. He took small breaths, wondering if it would be fine to remove the cigar from his mouth, yet didn’t feel like ignoring Black Sapphire’s judgement in the matter.

The fire finally reached a good size- the three, large stones at the edge were pushed closer together to create a small support, presumably for something to be placed on top of to be heated by the flame, yet provided leverage by the rocks that surrounded the fire.

“Phew, worked the first time…” Black Sapphire muttered, plucking the cigar back out of Pure Vanilla’s mouth and putting it in his own. He went over to the saddlebags pulling out a steel kettle and walking over to the river. The blond watched from afar as the other ran the kettle through the stream, collecting water, before returning and placing the now-full kettle on the stones- the flames tickling its base and hissing when droplets fell down.

“Is this for cleaning the water?”

Pure Vanilla asked, watching as the fire licked the base of the pot.

“Stream water is fine to drink plain, although boiling it does help for potability. But honestly, I just wanted to drink some tea.”

He took the small box of tea blend out of the bag, crouching by the flames and taking a small scoop of the blend in his hands and dropping it into the pot.

“Oh- is that-?”

“Yes, it’s lavender black tea. I was fortunate enough to find it when I went out to buy for this trip.”

Backing themselves up enough to sit on the picnic rug (tablecloth), they went cross-legged as Pure Vanilla watched the flames. Black Sapphire picked up two corn cobs, handing one to Pure Vanilla, before slowly peeling back the layers of husk to reveal the vegetable beneath.

The other followed, and they both began to bite into the corn, taking their teeth only just past the surface, careful to not get corn stuck in their gums.

Shadow Milk looked up, and wandered over to join them, taking the final corn and ungracefully biting into the cob, flopping onto the rug to at least try to provide company.

Meanwhile, Black Sapphire and Pure Vanilla were still making light conversation, and at some point, even swapped corn cobs in joking banter.

His gaze followed Pure Vanilla.

His sweet smile was accompanied by a few pieces of corn that occasionally stuck to his lips, his eyes remaining closed most of the time, opening every now and again when he wanted to look at Black Sapphire.

The soft light coming through the trees danced in his eyes, which almost appeared to glitter in the sunlight with joy.

Black Sapphire could guiltlessly spend time with him.

He just messed around with him, scrubbing at his hair, blissfully unconcerned with the past that Pure Vanilla would surely be destroyed by if he knew.

It wasn’t fair. Black Sapphire didn’t know what happened that day. Why was he the one who had to shoulder this? Why was he given this burden?

This horrible knowledge that that joyous smile before him would be crushed with the truth.

He should cut him off. Just forget that he existed, and in turn forget what happened back then.

At some point, his gaze fell down to his discarded corn cob with only a bite taken out of it. He looked up, and saw Black Sapphire and Pure Vanilla braiding what he could only assume were supposed to be flower crowns with the grass around them.

Black Sapphire was starting to get slightly irritated, by the crown that kept falling apart beneath his touch.

Pure Vanilla reached over, taking the crown from his hands and beginning to weave it himself.

“Haha, you have to pick out the longer strands- the short ones are just going to fall apart.”

“I knew that…”

“But you used the short strands anyways, didn’t you?”

“I was just testing you, obviously~.”

Pure Vanilla gave a small laugh at this, finishing the crown and reaching up to place the crown on Black Sapphire’s head. He had to bend over slightly to allow Pure Vanilla to reach him.

Snickering, he took the blonds crown straight from his lap and placed it on his own head, stacking the two crowns together.

“Hey! That one’s mine!”

“Come and get it then~.”

Shadow Milk snorted, getting to his feet and trudging over to the river. He slumped by the edge, taking a stick in his hand and prodding the water with it, watching the ripples form around the branch.

His grip loosened, the bark slipping by him and giving him a splinter. He lobbed the branch into the water without hesitation.

He felt his breath rising, and took another stick into his hands, snapping it underneath his grip before throwing both halves into the water.

It did nothing for his frustration. He took a stone by his side and threw it into the water- unconsciously flicking his wrist in a motion which allowed the stone to skip against the river.

He watched as the stone bounced, bounced, and bounced one final time before the water surface broke and it sank below.

He blinked, before his eyes widened in horror.

The normal image of a stone skipping in water.

It was normal.

But right now, with all the thoughts he was having this day, it brought a completely different image in his mind.

All the memories he had tried to supress for the whole day slammed back into him.

The stone, hitting, hitting, sinking below.

The stone, wet with-

“Hey, come with me for a second.”

A hand landed on his shoulder, and his breathing he didn’t even realise was laboured broke for a moment.

“…Huh?”

“Pure Vanilla won’t interrupt us. Just come with me.”

Black Sapphire didn’t wait, grabbing his forearm and pulling him up. He was dragged through the woods, pulled behind a tree and pushed into sitting. Black Sapphire sat across from him, elbows on his knees and chin on his knuckles.

“What’s up?”

“What do you mean?”

Black Sapphire sighed. “What do you think I mean? You’ve been acting like… this all day.”

Shadow Milk glared at him for a moment before diverting his gaze back to the river.

“It’s nothing. Won’t let it bother you or Vanilla, so just go back and enjoy yourself.”

“Well, it actually does bother us to see you so miserable.”

“Wow, what a way to make me open up. Really convincing me to stick around.”

“That’s-“ Black Sapphire paused, wincing at his own words. “That wasn’t what I’m trying to get at. I’m concerned, you’ve been like this a lot recently.”

“Well, thanks for your concern, but it isn’t anything to worry about. It’s nothing new.”

“How am I supposed to ignore it? Is this about that night again? I’m not unused to whatever happened that night bothering you, but this is worse than usual.”

“Right, and the fact that Pure Vanilla doesn’t know I killed his friend doesn’t bother you?”

Black Sapphire blinked, looking down to the ground.

“I- I guess, I didn’t really think of it that way.”

“Of course you didn’t! Because you weren’t the one who killed her! It was me! You just got to wait around in town until I came back from a job you knew nothing about!”

“That’s-“

Black Sapphire looked down at the dirt, his throat swallowing thickly.

“I could find out what happened that night. You wouldn’t have to shoulder it alone.”

He put his hand on the others knee, bringing his gaze up to make eye contact.

“If you tell me what happened, it would be fine. Maybe we could even tell Pure-“

“It would be fine?! We could tell Pure Vanilla?! And how do you know that, exactly?!”

His hand was slapped away from the others knee. Black Sapphire’s eyes widened as he shuffled backwards.

Shadow Milk stood up abruptly, turning his back on the other.

“I’m- we don’t have to then, but at least, you could tell me-“

“Because maybe telling you isn’t a burden I want to give you! At least you get to guiltlessly enjoy Pure Vanilla’s company!”

Black Sapphire rose to his feet, but didn’t approach.

“But I don’t want to be the only one who-“

“Oh, please! If you knew, you’d tell, and if you tell, then we’re done! Nobody gets to spend time with him!”

“…He’d cut you off over it?”

“Get out of here! If Silent Salt killed me, would you still get along with him? Huh?”

“Ah, it does seem obvious…”

“Right. So let’s go.”

“Then I won’t tell him.”

“How do you know that?”

“I- because it’s you, Shadow Milk! I’d never betray a friend’s trust like that!”

“So Pure Vanilla isn’t your friend?”

“That’s-“

Black Sapphire stopped. He chewed over the words.

Shadow Milk let a strained sigh come out of him.

“…I didn’t mean to spoil the mood. Let’s just go back.”

 Black Sapphire didn’t say anything else. He just began to walk behind Shadow Milk, parting bushes as they got in the way.

The horses appeared in their sight, before the picnic set-up became obvious. Pure Vanilla sat on the rug, dimly fidgeting with some woven grass before he noticed their return.

“Ah- hello…”

“Hey! What you got there, ‘Nilly?”

Shadow Milk’s steps became stronger, his posture straightened with a big grin tugging at his lips.

Pure Vanilla looked at him, a small, playful scoff accompanying his smile is he looked at the other’s changed demeanour.

“I’ve been trying to weave something other than grass crowns. I made us.”

He held out a small grass doll to the other, Shadow Milk taking it in his hands and turning it around.

It looked a bit stupid, a bean-shaped body of grass and a little circular head. Four blades of grass were stuck in the body as limbs.

“Geez, this looks just like Sapphy!”

Pure Vanilla laughed, holding out and taking the doll back. He breathed a sigh of relief seeing that the others mood had turned around.

“So what, you just take a handful of grass and tie a few knots?”

“Well, it’s a little more precise than that, but I guess that’s close enough.”

Black Sapphire blinked, watching Shadow Milk.

That… no.

He didn’t just recover from that conversation as though Pure Vanilla magically shifted his mood.

He took some mugs from the saddlebag, filling them each with some lavender tea from the now boiling pot.

“Here, but it’s still a bit hot. Give it a minute to cool.”

A mug was passed to Pure Vanilla, who handed it down to Shadow Milk before accepting another from Black Sapphire.

Black Sapphire took a seat beside Pure Vanilla, who shuffled slightly aside to make room.

“See Black Sapphire, I made little dolls of us!”

“You can call me Sapphy, if you’d like.”

“Really? I can?”

“Yes, that’s-“

“No, that’s what I call him.” Shadow Milk cut him off, his snappish tone suddenly returning.

Both blinked at him in surprise, before he noticed his slip up.

“…Is what I would say if I were joking! We’re all pals, Nilly, Sapphy, Milky- it’s all the same!”

Black Sapphire’s eyes narrowed, setting his tea down.

“…Right, Milky…”

Shadow Milk’s eye twitched, glaring at Black Sapphire from the corner of his eye as he also set his tea down.

“Uh… Anyways, I wanted to show you the dolls, Black Sapphire…”

“…Right, let’s see them…”

Shadow Milk turned away, taking a fistful of grass into his hands. He glanced back at the dolls that Pure Vanilla was making, absently fidgeting with the blades in his hands. He looked back down at them, unsurely beginning to wrap them against each other.

The body was done, a little tight, with the blades barely holding shape, but with the right handling it kept its form.

What came next? He looked back over at Pure Vanilla’s dolls.

The head, probably…

Taking a few more blades, he wove the grass against itself, leaving a few loose strands to attach to the body.

He felt some of the tension from earlier leave him. His hands worked slowly at the task at hand.

It was beginning to come together. Even if it wasn’t perfect. Some of the grass stuck out, and threatened to give out if it so much as shifted.

He added another blade to the head, wrapping it against the body for more stability.

Turning it around in his palm, he took another two blades of grass and stuck it to the bottom- giving the doll some floppy legs. He shook it slightly, a small huff close to laughter escaping him as its legs flopped around and the head dangled.

When was the last time he just messed around like this…?

Taking another blade into his fingers, he stuck it in its side, giving it the first arm. It took a little shoving, but eventually it settled in between the other blades.

He took another blade, turning the doll to give it another arm.

His finger slipped, and the blade fell before it could become settled into place.

“oh, oops…”

He muttered to himself, moving his doll to the other hand as he reached for the blade again.

He readied his fingers again, rolling the one-armed doll on his hand to put the other blade of grass in.

His finger brushed against the surface, rustling the blades-

They loosened under his touch.

“Oh, dear…”

He carefully prodded the now slightly unstable doll, trying to press the grass back into place. His finger accidently knocked against the head.

The blades loosened.

The head fell apart.

His hands began to shake.

The other arm in his hand dropped to the ground.

The doll fell too.

His breathing began to stutter.

He looked down, looking at the doll- one arm, head broken-

He stood suddenly, breathing heavily- beginning to pant as he backed away from the scene. His steps picked up as he ran to his horse, scrambling to the saddle with shaky limbs.

Damn it, damn it- he had just-

“Milky? Where are you-”

“SHUT IT!”

Black Sapphire stilled, flinching in place with widened eyes. He dropped one of Pure Vanilla’s dolls to the rug.

Shadow Milk’s stare widened, blinking rapidly before diverting his gaze away.

“I- sorry, I just-“

“No. Just go.” Black Sapphire’s voice was cutting.

Shadow Milk turned back to him, his face falling a degree before he sucked up a breath.

Wordlessly, he took his horse to a trot and left their sight.

Black Sapphire watched until he couldn’t see him anymore, letting out a deep sigh and lying back on the rug.

“Shadow-“

Pure Vanilla was cut off by a tug down, made into joining Black Sapphire in laying down beside him on the rug.

“I don’t want to think about him right now. He’s in a bad mood and he’s making it everyone else’s problem.”

“…Is it because of me…?”

They wanted to talk without him.

Black Sapphire opened his eyes, turning his head with lidded gaze and drawn eyebrows to face Pure Vanilla.

“It’s-“

His heart tugged at him.

It was because of Pure Vanilla.

But it wasn’t his-

“No, it’s not your fault.”

“…Then, could I help?”

Black Sapphire blinked, closing his eyes with a suppressed exhale.

“…I don’t want to think about it right now.”

Pure Vanilla answered with silence, closing his eyes alongside Black Sapphire.

He’d rather have his eyes open and appreciate the nature around him, but right now- mirroring Black Sapphire felt right.

The other felt otherwise. Nature needed to be appreciated in blindness.

He took a deep breath in, and a longer one out.

In the darkness behind his lids, all other senses became heightened.

The rushing of water became louder, and the birdsong began to become noticeable.

The soft rustling against the picnic rug below him sounded close to his ear. Every shift of the other could be heard.

His own breathing could be heard, as he began to focus on the rising and falling of his own chest.

The other’s breaths joined him too, as breathing became less shallow and took up more space in their lungs.

Even the smell of nature felt more powerful. The scent of the lavender tea subtly mingled with the aroma of grass.

The rustling of the other slowly rising met him. He could hear the others careful, padded movements as metal clinked near the stone, before the sizzling of a fire being extinguished by drizzling liquid sounded.

Black Sapphire blinked an eye open, watching as the other was carefully packing the equipment up into the saddlebags abandoned by Shadow Milk. He turned his head more to see the other approaching Nox, trying for a moment to sling the bags over his back before quickly realising that scaling that height was a two-person job.

Black Sapphire rose, wrapping the rug up and bringing it over to Pure Vanilla, who had packed everything else up already.

“Ah, Black Sapphire. Could I please get a hand?”

Black Sapphire smiled, taking the saddlebags into his own hands and putting the tablecloth inside, handing them back to Pure Vanilla. Pure Vanilla accepted it, a little surprised when he felt hands at his waist lifting him up. Taking the cue, he reached up and slung the bags over the horses back, slightly adjusting them until they sat right. He felt himself being lowered, his feet meeting the ground before Black Sapphire secured them properly and untying Nox.

“Well, we’d better get going. Anything you missed?”

“No, that should be everything. How am I going to get on?”

“Hmm, we are missing a mounting block… ah.”

Black Sapphire led Nox to a fallen log and gestured for Pure Vanilla to get up. Once Pure Vanilla was on the log, he released his grip from Nox and joined him, helping him up and getting on the saddle soon after.

The large sound of hooves clinking against the earth joined them as they began to move, exiting the tree line and travelling over the plains.

The gentle glow of the orange sun joined them as they slowly made their way back to the inn, small conversation joining them.

Silent Salt glanced through the slit in his vision, watching the inn doors slowly open and close from his place on the rocking chair. Shadow Milk didn’t even turn in his direction as he sighed deeply and slumped against the door, bringing himself to sit in the floor.

He remained for a good minute- eyes closed and leaning against the door- before his eyes widened in realisation and snapped to Silent Salt’s direction.

“You- how long have you-?”

“Whole time.”

He groaned, throwing his head back against the door before rising to his feet and wordlessly trudging into the hallway.

“Wait, Shadow Milk-“

A door slammed from down the hall, Silent Salt leaning back into his seat and sighing before the muffled sound of a scream sounded from afar.

He shut his eyes and ignored it. Screaming into pillows wasn’t a habit he was familiar with, but it wasn’t one he was ready to be acquainted with either.

…He wouldn’t be of much help, anyways.

His leg began to bounce against the ground, his arms folded as he flicked his eyes up to stare at the ceiling. His sight was greeted by the rim of his hat- he ended up shutting his eyes with a strained exhale.

…

Fine.

He planted his legs properly on the ground, each step creaking the floorboards as he made his way to the kitchen. His large hand dwarfed the knob, ducking down to miss the doorway as he made his way inside. He scoped it out, remembering the layout, moving over to the pantry and walking inside.

A small stepladder was in his way, he nudged it aside with the casual stroke of his lower leg as he saw himself eye-level to an opaque jar.

Under his bandana, he smiled. It seemed like they didn’t throw his gift out, after all.

He pulled it out, opening it up to see it half-full of biscuits. Setting it on the counter, he took out a small plate and placed a few of the desserts on the smooth surface, taking one of each flavour- just in case. He returned the jar, taking the tiny plate in his giant palm as he left the kitchen, making his way down the hall.

He set the biscuits down in front of the door, knocking lightly with one knuckle before immediately turning and making his way down to the reception.

The door creaked open, Shadow Milk sticking head out and quickly adopting an expression of disgust as he saw Silent Salt literally just walking away from him down the hall.

Did he seriously get ding-dong-ditched in his own home?

At the noise, Silent Salt’s head turned around his shoulder as he slowed, meeting Shadow Milk’s gaze. He waited a moment before pulling a hand out of his pocket and pointing a loosely curled finger to gesture near the others feet.

Shadow Milk looked down, looking at a plate of cookies, before slowly meeting the others gaze with a blank expression on his face.

“…Did you just take my own cookies and give them back to me?”

Silent Salt blinked, before slowly nodding.

“…And I’m supposed to be touched by your thoughtfulness?”

A large arm reached up to scratch the back of his head, before he gave a small shrug, his head faced away with his gaze being elsewhere.

“…You’re ridiculous. Take them, I’m not hungry.”

Shadow Milk picked the plate up, taking a few paces forward before holding it out for Silent Salt to take. Instead, his whole body jolted when a hand descended and hit his shoulder with a surprising amount of force.

He yelped in surprise, retreating slightly out of the grip, when it only tightened and held him in place.

“Oh- I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to-“ Silent Salt looked down, quickly taking the biscuits out of the others’ grip with his free hand. “…I apologize. You looked unwell. I wasn’t sure if I should approach.”

“Well, you can let me go now.”

“…Right.”

His shoulder was released, Shadow Milk quickly reaching up to rub at it with his other hand.

“Geez, you’ve got quite the grip. You’d give Spice a run for his money.”

“I already have. We don’t talk.”

Shadow Milk blinked, looking up in confusion.

“Damn. Maybe I should keep my head down a bit more.”

“I do not want submission. I want equality.”

Silent Salt began to walk back to the kitchen, gesturing with one finger for Shadow Milk to follow.

“…Your friend. ‘Pure Vanilla’. Tell me about him.”

Shadow Milk groaned.

“Ugh, I don’t want to think about him right now.”

They entered the kitchen, Shadow Milk accidently bumping into Silent Salt when the taller took a bit longer to get through the door. He quickly recovered, following inside.

Silent Salt set the plate on the counter, not even bothering to return them to the jar.

“Less than you want to talk to me right now?”

“Actually, yes… Barely.”

“…My first ‘win’. Our friendship will be blossoming in no time.”

Shadow Milk snorted.

“Did you swap actors under that bandanna? The Silent Salt I know doesn’t know how to joke. Or swear.”

“…Let us continue. There is a point to my questions.”

“…Fine. Will it be a long conversation?”

“Possibly.”

The shorter groaned, sluggishly opening the door and stepping through, flicking his chin up to signal for the other to follow.

They walked down the hall, reaching the shared room.

They faced the door, Shadow Milk hesitating with his hand over the knob.

“I will ignore the wardrobe. Let us just enter.”

Shadow Milk perked a brow, craning his neck behind him and staring up at the man above him, blinking slightly. Finally, he opened the door, before laying out the covers and flopping back on the bed. Silent Salt closed the door, awkwardly standing near the door and shuffling slightly in place.

“It’s fine- just take a seat on the bed.”

“If you are alright with it.”

Silent Salt sat on the bed, before turning and settling against the headboard.

“So, you screamed earlier.”

“Ugh, don’t remind me.”

“Was it to do with Pure Vanilla?”

There was a moment of hesitation, as he pinched his lip between his teeth.

“…Yes? He didn’t do anything, though.”

Silent Salt flicked his eyes down to Shadow Milk beside him. The other was absently staring at the wall with his hands in his lap.

“Did you wrong him?”

“…Yeah, but he doesn’t know. And it wasn’t really him I wronged, just someone close to him.” The hands in his lap began to raise, gesturing slightly with each word.

“Why not confess?”

“You aren’t going to ask about what it was?”

“Only if it is relevant.”

Shadow Milk sighed, leaning his head back on the headboard and folding his arms beneath his head.

“I can’t tell him. It will hurt him a lot.”

“Would it hurt more if he found out naturally?”

“It’s impossible for him to found out. I am the only one who knows.”

Large fingers drummed against the sheets, thinking hard.

He was the only one who knows? What about the one he wronged? Could they not tell him? Unless they aren’t…

“Shadow Milk, are you a murderer?”

Shadow Milk’s eyes widened, unfolding his hands from behind his head and backing away from Silent Salt.

Silent Salt’s own expression fell, yet to Shadow Milk it was just a faceless bandana with eyes of justice boring into his own soul.

“W-Wha-“

He backed up further, now standing and approaching the door.

Silent Salt immediately stood up, his giant form towering over the other as he rapidly approached, grabbing the others wrist in an iron grip as it tried to reach for the handle.

“…Your reaction tells me some…”

Shadow Milk’s features hollowed, his eyes flicking down to the holster at Silent Salt’s side.

The other’s eyes followed his gaze, quickly noticing the others concern.

“Wait- do not fear. I do not believe in ‘eye for an eye’. People change, after all.”

He pulled him back to the bed, pushing the other to take a seat as he took his own seat beside him. His grip stayed around the others forearm.

“…I’m sorry, but I’m sure you understand why my grip must remain-“

“…No, I get it.”

“…Right.”

“Well?”

An audible, muffled sigh came from Silent Salt.

“…How many?”

“Many what? -Oh.”

“…”

“I don’t know. It’s a lot, but it’s always instant, and they’re always criminals- it’s pretty rare we bring someone home who’s completely innocent.”

Silent Salt felt disgust pooling in his gut.

“…This is a regular occurrence?”

“…”

“Right. So I assume that you have killed someone close to Pure Vanilla.”

Silence followed, alongside a small nod from Shadow Milk.

“Before anything else, I want to ask why you feel guilt for this victim in particular. Is it because they were familiar with Pure Vanilla?”

It took a moment of thought before Silent Salt was given an answer.

“…It wasn’t a pretty death. It still bothered me some before Pure Vanilla and I became closely acquainted. But I would say being friends with Pure Vanilla with this knowledge is… unpleasant.”

“…Right. And you don’t intend on telling him?”

“Gods, no!”

Silent Salt rubbed his nose through his bandana.

“…Sometimes it surprises me that I did not report you years ago…”

“Hey, doesn’t surprise me. I know how much blood you have on your hands. We’re like two peas in a pod~.”

“They all deserved it.”

Shadow Milk’s gaze narrowed, chewing his lip slightly.

“…Doesn’t everyone deserve it?”

“…What do you mean?”

“Well, just about everyone in this town has a body to their name. Some more than others- but after your first kill, your soul is tainted all the same.”

“How morbid…”

“…”

“If it makes you feel better, I think there is merit in keeping this information from him.”

“…That isn’t something I expected to hear from you of all people, Salty.”

“I told you not to call me that.”

Shadow Milk snickered, sticking his tongue out slightly and grinning to himself.

“But in all seriousness, the dead will stay dead. Telling him will not change that. I believe he deserves to know, but on the other side of the coin, he is happy as is… Sometimes, there is no reason to unbury old grief.”

“…Damn, kind of poetic.”

They sat in quiet for a short while, before Silent Salt released his grip. Neither moved still, yet Silent Salt went to speak.

“I will not report you, yet you must vow not to kill any more. I am of the belief that everyone is capable of change- you have already demonstrated basic remorse- yet change will help nobody if it occurs behind bars.”

The other raised his brow, yet the tiny expression was missed behind Silent Salt’s limited vision. Instead, the words met him.

“Sure, I can stop. I have enough savings, anyways.”

They were lies. He had no intention of stopping.

But the other was always truthful, and he could trust that he really wouldn’t report him if he simply said he’d turn a new leaf.

“…I am truly glad you are capable of reflection-”

Silent Salt’s gaze suddenly wandered to the bedside table, spotting a pile of papers.

“What is…”

Two large fingers carefully pealed up a sheet of paper from the stack, bringing it up to his face, struggling to read through his limited vision and dim lighting.

Shadow Milk practically jumped, climbing onto the other and reaching for the paper.

“NOTHING-!” He grabbed the paper, scrambling to get the others and shove them into the drawer. “Nothing, nothing~… Now, the other’s will be back soon, let us get going…”

“…Right…”

Silent Salt stood alongside the other, taking the walk back to the reception, flopping onto the rocking chair while Shadow Milk split into the kitchen.

...Reading “once upon a time” at the top of the page hadn’t quite been expected…

“Ew, you were going to give me one with marzipan? You can eat this one-“

Shadow Milk walked into the reception, plate in hand, eyes narrowing once again that day as he saw Silent Salt yet again on his rocking chair.

“Wow~! Really made yourself nice and comfy in my home, huh?”

“Yes, it’s a good chair.”

“Get off.”

“…Huh?”

Shadow Milk groaned, setting the plate on the desk before walking over and stomping a foot onto the connecting bar between the two chair ‘legs’, expecting the force to push the other forward.

Instead, Silent Salt’s weight held him completely still, followed by him folding his arms and raising a leg to shove the other away.

Shadow Milk was sent staggering backwards, nearly falling, yet he caught himself with shaky legs.

“Oh my god. FINE. You don’t even get a marzipan one! I was going to be nice, but now you go ahead and-“

“…You were going to give me marzipan?”

“Well, I wasn’t going to eat it.”

“Giving your guest the leftovers. Maybe there truly is no hope for you…”

Shadow Milk gawked, jaw slacking.

“You were the one giving me my own food! And acting as if it were a favour!”

“You seem to forget that I actually am doing you a favour, actively.”

“…You mean inn-sitting? I didn’t even want you here!”

“But you needed me, right?”

“Yeah, but- but-“ Shadow Milk stammered, before throwing his head back and letting out a high-pitched whine. “Fine! Fine! Ok. But inn-sitting doesn’t mean you can do chair-sitting, huh? Huh?! That chair’s mine!”

“It is the only chair that fits me.”

“Oh! Right! I forgot your extra-fat ass needs extra-large furniture! Is that why you-“

“Umm… did we… pick a bad time…?”

Shadow Milk froze, slowly turning to the front door which must’ve opened at some point while he hadn’t noticed.

Pure Vanilla stood in the doorway, fidgeting with his fingers, diverting his gaze when Shadow Milk met his. Standing behind him, Black Sapphire leant against the open door, boasting an unimpressed look on his face before he let out a strained sigh.

“No, No~! Come in! Salty and I were just-“

“I said not to call me that.”

“Right, right… Well, how are you guys? Enjoy yourselves?”

Black Sapphire’s gaze narrowed further, lifting off the door and avoiding Pure Vanilla as he stood face-to-face with Shadow Milk.

“Did you? I sure hope at least you got to enjoy yourself after whatever that was.”

Shadow Milk folded his lips between his teeth, swallowing with an audible gulp before letting out a forced laugh.

“…Ah, well- some unnecessary words were exchanged, ones which I would perhaps express differently upon reflection.”

“…Close enough. Alright, let’s go get dinner.” Black Sapphire turned, lightly prompting Pure Vanilla out the front door before turning back to the others, gesturing for them to follow.

“Does this invitation extend to me? I would be glad to watch the inn if not.”

“No, you’ve done us a huge favour, Silent Salt. Besides, it is Friday evening. I’d be surprised if there was a soul in this town not at the saloon right now.”

“Very well.”

Silent Salt followed them out the door, Shadow Milk quickly catching up.

Once the door was shut, Black Sapphire tapped on Shadow Milk’s shoulder, wagging a finger to get him to come close. Shadow Milk perked a brow, leaning in to put his ear near the other.

“You good?”

Shadow Milk smiled, huffing lightly.

“’course, never better~.”

“Right, and you never lie~.”

The both snickered, Black Sapphire patting his back before quickening his paces to catch up to the other two, who had already made it to the road. Shadow Milk followed, keeping a few paces behind to hang with Black Sapphire. Conversation being made between Silent Salt and Pure Vanilla was already being made, both parties craning their necks to keep eye contact- or something close to it, given the inconvenient bandana.

“If you don’t mind me asking, why do you keep your face covered? Do you have a secret of some kind?”

“Whether or not I have a secret to keep might as well be a secret in and of itself.”

“Ooo, how mysterious…”

Shadow Milk laughed, cutting in.

“Nilly, if you knew how ugly he was under that bandana, you’d be glad he kept it on all day.”

Black Sapphire snorted, before Silent Salt exhaled deeply, turning to Pure Vanilla, cupping a hand to the others ear before loudly whispering just in earshot of the others.

“He fears I will leave no ladies for him should I take it off.”

Black Sapphire snorted even harder, biting down a laugh. “Pha! Shadow Milk has it for men, anyways.”

“Well, I doubt he’ll get either a man or a woman with that personality…” Silent Salt muttered.

Shadow Milk rolled his eyes, before moving forward to Pure Vanilla’s side, whispering into his ear.

“Don’t listen to him. I can get a man any time I like…”

A pained sigh sounded from above.

“Gods save us, we haven’t even gotten to the saloon and he’s flirting…” Silent Salt put his hands together in faux prayer as his head tilted to the clouds.

Black Sapphire finally let out a hearty laugh, coming closer and slapping a hand against Silent Salt’s back, before wincing with pain and clutching said hand to his chest.

“Ow… Good god, do you wear armour under your clothes?”

“Too impractical, and I hear that it is ineffective against bullets, in any case.”

Black Sapphire wrinkled his nose up, directing his gaze over to Shadow Milk.

“Has he just magically learnt humour, or has he been dead serious this whole conversation?”

“I don’t know, but if he’s finally learnt sarcasm, it would be tragic- I might have to resign my spot as funniest guy in the west.”

“Oh, please. Don’t flatter yourself~.”

The saloon began to drift into view, Shadow Milk already perking up, quickening his pace and pointing it out to Pure Vanilla with a stretched grin.

“I’ve been here before, Shadow Milk, there is no need to point it out…”

“Oh yeah, that’s right.”

“…How did you forget the place you kidnapped him, anyhow?” Black Sapphire remarked, picking his pace up to meet Shadow Milk’s.

Silent Salt stopped in his tracks, grabbing Shadow Milk by the collar and hauling him into the air to make eye contact.

Shadow Milk gasped, bringing arms up to claw at the hand keeping him suspended.

“Ugh- what is it this time?!”

“You kidnapped ‘Nilly?”

“I said that only I can call him that…” He grit his teeth, seething slightly.

Silent Salt sighed, before hoisting him even higher. Shadow Milk’s eyes widened, watching the ground get further and further away from his dangling legs.

“Woah woah woah- too high, too high-“

“Wait! It’s fine, so please put him down-!”

Pure Vanilla rushed over, reaching his hands up to grasp at Shadow Milk and pull him out of Silent Salt’s grip. Shadow Milk didn’t budge from his pulling, instead Silent Salt’s unyielding grip drawing him closer to his face.

Nearly nose-to-nose, Shadow Milk saw the tiniest portion of sun catch in the eyes of the other, appearing as though tiny pinholes of light were staring him down.

Whispering, only to him, Silent Salt’s low voice sounded.

“…I will let it slide, as ‘Nilly has asked nicely. But if I hear of just one more way you have wronged this innocent soul, I will do some more… personal inn-sitting.”

Shadow Milk’s eyes narrowed, adopting an expression of confusion.

“…What does that even mean.”

“I will deliver justice.” Silent Salt stared a little longer, blinking twice. “That is purposefully ambiguous. Use your imagination.”

“-ah.”

Shadow Milk swallowed, giving a slight nod with wide eyes as he was set down again.

He coughed slightly, bringing a fist up to his mouth to aggressively clear his throat, quickly backing off from Silent Salt as he jogged up to Black Sapphire.

“Well-! Saloon! Food! Whiskey! Been a minute, huh?!”

Silent Salt looked down at Pure Vanilla, before quickly realising he had already left to catch up with the others ahead.

He breathed to himself, quickening his steps ever so slightly to cross the distance between himself and the saloon.

When they entered, they were instantly greeted by the overwhelming loudness of chatter and clinking of glasses. Every table was packed at the edges, stacks of empty shot glasses laid out in front of collapsed country folk.

“Damn, where to sit, huh?” Shadow Milk huffed, hands on hips as his eyes flicked from table to table.

“Had I anticipated we were going to visit in the first place, I would have placed a reservation.” Black Sapphire mentioned, taking steps towards the counter, leaning an elbow against it as he gestured to the overworked bartender.

The group followed, lingering a step behind. Shadow Milk groaned, slapping a hand to his back.

“Hey, don’t bother with the bartender. Guy’s a stickler for the rules. If we want to get a table, we have to get it ourselves.”

Shadow Milk strolled over to a small table in the corner, eyeing out four passed-out drunkards collapsed over their drinks.

“Barely past sunset. Shameful!” He grabbed a man by the back of his collar, dragging him out of his chair and into the corner, Black Sapphire quickly snickering and following suit with the other men. Left in a pile, the seats were freed, and the new patrons quickly settled down.

“How shameful…” Silent Salt muttered, seated furthest in the corner and shading the sight of the man-pile from the rest of the patronage.

“Hey, if you don’t like the game, don’t play it. Inn’s back that way, pal.” Shadow Milk flicked a thumb behind his shoulder, vaguely gesturing away from him.

“Insufferable… I am at the saloon, I am hungry, I will eat.”

“Eat how?” He pointed to his own mouth, miming the pinching of a bandana.

“…I have my ways.”

Black Sapphire snickered, ribbing Pure Vanilla slightly for his attention and whispering in his ear. “I’ve never seen him eat before. Get excited for the big reveal~.”

A well-dressed man approached the table, notepad and pencil in hand with a look of confusion on his face as he peered at the new guests who had somehow gotten themselves a seat despite the rush of the hour.

“Evening, gentlemen. Have thoughts on what to eat?”

Pure Vanilla turned to Black Sapphire, speaking as quiet as he could while still being heard.

“I didn’t see a menu… how do I order?”

“Oh, it’s all good food here. I’ll just get you what I’m having.”

Black Sapphire turned to the man, a measured smile on his face.

“Evening, sir- keeping it simple tonight. We’ll all get an order of four pork and beans...”

His eyes drifted to Silent Salt, turning back to the waiter with a renewed grin. “Make that five. And a bottle of whiskey, please.”

The bartender nodded, politely disappearing from sight as the four men turned back to conversation.

Pure Vanilla was seated adjacent to Shadow Milk and Black Sapphire, opposite to Silent Salt, who was currently occupied in a heated ‘debate’ with Shadow Milk. Although it appeared that the taller was simply silent while the other was animatedly throwing his hands in the air with exaggerated words.

Black Sapphire snickered, leaning back in his chair as he shut his eyes, opting to passively enjoy company while the others entertained themselves.

Pure Vanilla pursed his lips, looking between the obviously tense ‘discussion’ the two were engaged in, and back at the man who showed no interest in conversation.

His fingers began to fidget beneath the table.

The bartender returned with a bottle of whiskey, sliding out glasses all around the table, immediately snatched up by Shadow Milk who wasted no time in slamming down three consecutive shots and already filling his glass up when it was snatched up by the large hand beside him.

“Hey-! Wait your turn-!”

“If I do not take initiative, I expect I will smell the alcohol in your breath before I taste the alcohol on my tongue.”

“And if you don’t shut up, you’ll be tasting the alcohol on my tongue-“

“What was that?”

“...I forgot you weren’t Black Sapphire, please ignore that.”

Pure Vanilla diverted his gaze away in something close to second-hand embarrassment, opting to focus on something else. He looked down at the table, drowning out the awkward atmosphere as he focused on the grain of the wood, observing the waves and knots in the lines. It was… an unfamiliar texture. Some sort of wood he probably hasn’t encountered in his own furniture yet. Different timber in each environment, perhaps?

He tapped his foot against the floorboards, looking over his shoulder to the back of the saloon, watching for a man with food in his arms to arrive. Food would at least give him something to do…

An arm slapped against his shoulder, gripping him tightly and pulling him close.

“-Yeah, that’s right! Nilly and I are as close as it gets! Look at this guy! This is, like! The best! Guy! Ever! Didn’t even report us to the coppers, that’s how you know we’re long term!”

Pure Vanilla winced, the sudden stench of alcohol close as breath fogged against his cheek.

“Ah, Shadow Milk-“

“Wait! That’s, like, not even possible… Because this is only the something-th time we’ve even met in person! And the first doesn’t count! Nor does this, because I haven’t even held a proper conversation with him today…so are we even…”

Shadow Milk trailed off, beginning to rub his hand in circles on the others shoulder, pulling him closer.

Pure Vanilla just felt confused, but a twinge of sympathy tugged at him as he fully leaned into the other. Shadow Milk responded by lifting the other onto his lap to face him and hugging him deeply.

“I’m- I’m sorry Nilly! You aren’t my best friend! Sapphy is! I’m a liar-!”

“Uh- It’s- it’s ok, Shadow Milk…?”

Pure Vanilla’s arms rose, gently hugging the other back, trying to ignore the strong smell of whiskey invading his nostrils. He felt an arm leave his back, the trickle of liquid following, before Shadow Milk’s hand came back into view and brought a shot glass to his lips, tipping it down before croaking a small sob.

“Uh, Shadow Milk, that’s- probably enough alcohol…”

The man in question gaped, sniffing deeply as his eyes widened

“I’m sorry! There won’t be any left for you! I’m sorry-!”

More liquid filled the glass, and Shadow Milk’s arm returned, another shot glass pulled out as he began to prod it against Pure Vanilla’s lips.

“Quick! Before Silent Salt drinks it all!”

“…Leave me out of this.”

“Ah, Shadow Milk, it’s quite alright-“

His lips parted momentarily to speak, and the opening was taken advantage of as liquid was tipped into his mouth, hitting his throat. Pure Vanilla hacked in surprise and spat violently, spraying all the alcohol straight into Shadow Milk’s face.

Both gaped for a moment, and from across the table, Black Sapphire’s laugh echoed over the saloon.

Footsteps sounded- before two large hands were felt under Pure Vanilla’s armpits, lifting him gently from his place on Shadow Milk’s lap and into the air, before Silent Salt set him gently back into his seat.

“Utterly shameful, Shadow Milk…” Silent Salt groaned, folding his arms against his chest as Shadow Milk was still in slight shock, wiping some of the liquid from his cheek with the cuff of his sleeve.

“Ugh~ Salt, get me something to wipe with-“

He looked up to face the other, utterly in shock when the other followed- fingers up behind his neck and fidgeting with the bandana.

“Wait, nooo~! I don’t want to see your face yet, I like the mystery-!”

Too late.

The bandana was released, handed to Shadow Milk, who was staring up at the other to see-

Another bandana.

“…You wear two bandanas?”

“…What if one falls off?”

 “I’m in too deep for this...”

Plates hit the table, sliding across the surface and stopping short of each patron. Black Sapphire was handed cutlery, he took some for himself as he passed the handful around the table, each taking a fork and knife for themselves.

Pure Vanilla settled properly in his seat, waiting for everyone else to begin eating. Black Sapphire was following, yet Shadow Milk was still wiping up and Silent Salt was pulling at his new bandana, presumably staring at his food.

He noticed the pointed looks from Pure Vanilla and Black Sapphire, offering a smalls sigh.

“…I was anticipating solid food. Then I could slide it up there.”

“Why didn’t you interrupt me while I was ordering?”

“I was occupied.”

Black Sapphire sighed, piercing some beans on his fork and wiping it against the sauce, carefully placing it in his mouth to avoid mess on his lips. Pure Vanilla, seeing the other begin to eat, followed suit.

“Ugh, your bandana’s full of sweat- do you even wash this thing?”

Shadow Milk was talking to Silent Salt, but Pure Vanilla perked up as he was listening in.

He snorted slightly, a joke coming to mind.

Should he say it? No… but…

“I guess you could say it’s… kind of salty.”

“HAH-!”

Black Sapphire slammed his fists down on the table and barked out a single, loud laugh. The force caused the table to shudder, Shadow Milk’s shot glass near the edge knocked off for a brief moment before it was caught in a large, waiting palm. The whiskey fell out, spilling into the glove.

“The joke wasn’t even that good, Sapphy…” Shadow Milk groaned, looking down at the hand which had managed to catch the glass with lidded gaze.

“Ugh… Why is it whenever I go drinking with you two, alcohol always ends up in places other than the mouth…”

Silent Salt looked at his glove, glancing at Shadow Milk before wiping his hand over the others pants, the liquid mostly transferring onto his chaps.

“Silent Salt-!”

Shadow Milk began to stand, before losing his balance and falling back into his chair. Silent Salt sighed, seating himself back on the too-small chair.

“Eat your food.”

“Eat yours.”

“...I’m figuring that one out.”

“Why do you care so much about keeping your face a secret, anyways?”

Silent Salt looked down at his food, piercing beans until his fork was completely full, wiping the sauce off on the edge of the plate. Using one finger, he teased an opening at the bottom of the bandana, allowing the fork to disappear momentarily before returning clean.

Taking a moment to chew and swallow, he gave an answer.

“That’s for me to know, and for you to try to find out.”

“You- you should be glad I’m too intoxicated to take that mask off myself…”

“Threatening. Yet somehow, despite my bandana, I have finished more of my food than you.”

Shadow Milk groaned, looking down at his untouched plate. Aggressively, he speared a mix of beans and a chunk of pork on its prongs, chewing down with haste. As Silent Salt began to eat faster, he followed suit, shovelling more food into his mouth and washing every other bite down with a shot of whiskey.

Pure Vanilla watched him through the corner of his eye with concern, slowly chewing his food as he began to lose count of just how many drinks deep the other had become.

“Don’t mind him, no matter how much he drinks, he never throws up.”

“Sapphire, he’s past ten, I think we should intervene.”

“Oh, believe me, I’ve tried to stop him before- it’s better not to interrupt that guy so long as there’s a holster at his hip.”

“Is he actually that trigger-happy?”

“Oh, you have no idea~.”

Pure Vanilla swallowed, picking his fork up to prod at his meal.

“That’s… concerning.”

“Don’t worry about it. Besides, the food’s going cold.”

“Oh- right.”

Pure Vanilla took a proper bite of his meal, looking around the table to realise that he was somehow the one with the most food remaining, taking a few more quick bites to catch up.

The food begun to be cleared, although at some point Shadow Milk stopped trying to eat and just occupied himself with the second bottle of whiskey the bartender had supplied at some point. Silent Salt was no longer even entertaining the other with banter, merely slumped back in his chair after he had stacked both finished plates on top of each other and tipped his shot glass upside down.

Pure Vanilla finally finished, although his food had long gone cold. Black Sapphire stood up, wiping imaginary dust from his chaps as he tucked the chair back in and turned to Pure Vanilla.

“I’m going up to pay, could you please keep an eye on these two?”

“I’ll try.”

Black Sapphire let out a tired chuckle, turning to the counter. Pure Vanilla watched as he talked to the tender, fishing out a pouch of coins from his pocket and counting out what he owed.

With a polite wave behind his shoulder, he returned to the table and began to try hoisting Shadow Milk onto his shoulders with a grunt.

“Wuff, gained some weight, evidently…”

The unconscious man woke up for just a moment, blinking drearily and sticking his tongue out with a ‘bleh’ before completely slipping into sleep.

“Good god, I can only pray that Silent Salt has not had too much to drink.”

“I handle alcohol well. I can walk, probably.”

“See, I always thought you were the kind to abstain- it surprises me that you drank at all tonight.”

“I discovered that there is community to be had in drinking. It brings people together in a way like no other. In any case, are we going to take that other bottle home? It’s mostly full.”

“You can keep it. Payment for inn-sitting.”

“…His mouth was on it. I’ll respectfully decline.”

“-Right.”

Black Sapphire felt a little unsteady on his feet, having already partaken in a few drinks himself, yet was able to stabilise himself.

“Pure Vanilla, give me a hand?”

“I’ll try.”

Pure Vanilla came to Shadow Milk’s other side, wrapping his arms around the others side and supporting him. They barely got out of the saloon doors, the others heavy, limp form proving a struggle for even the both of them to handle.

Silent Salt followed, before he reached out a hand and scooped the man in question up, slinging him over his shoulder as though he weighed nothing.

“Don’t burden yourselves. I am not so drunk that I am incapable of helping.”

“Impressive.” Black Sapphire murmured, rolling his sore shoulder that had just been supporting Shadow Milk. “Say, there’s no way you’re getting all the way back to your home tonight, especially in that state.”

“No, I’m not.”

“There’s a room down the hall free; the others haven’t left yet- but you’re welcome to stay free of charge.”

“Much appreciated. How about Pure Vanilla?”

Both glanced at him, a few steps were taken before Pure Vanilla realised that he was the one expected to answer.

“Oh- I guess, whatever is fine with Black Sapphire…?”

Black Sapphire sighed, putting a hand to his face.

“Look, Shadow Milk is absolutely shit to sleep next to when he’s drunk, but you are welcome to sleep with us tonight if you can get past that.”

“…I don’t think I’m really given much choice, here...”

“Oh, there’s another inn on the other side of town. They’re always under booked. They’re sure to take you in.”

“No, no- that’s quite alright- I’ll sleep with you guys.”

Black Sapphire grinned, turning another corner as the inn came into view.

“Alright, but I’m not going to be the one next to him~.”