Chapter Text
Boom.
Adrenaline burned beneath his dough. The exhilaration of fighting the Sage of Truth never truly went away. The bastard knew how to evade his spells just as well as Truthless knew how to deflect the Sages. How many years has this been going on for now? 999?
“Dear Recluse, it’s best you don’t get distracted!” The Sage appeared to his left, a Lavitia spell at the tip of his staff. Truthless Recluse didn’t even have to glance in his direction to throw the Sage’s aim off course. All it took was raising his own staff and slamming both of them together.
The Lavitia spell fired off and missed his head by an inch. What a dangerous spell the Sage had found after snooping around his Tower. That one was hidden away from modern magic users for a reason, it pulled on raw magic and could do more harm than good. Truthless Recluse would know — his mentor had shown him the dangers years ago.
With the same movement he used to knock away the Sages staff, he used a lightning spell on the Sages leg. Satisfaction bloomed hearing the Sage shriek and fall from the sky. Lightning did a long way to disrupt levitation spells and it seems the Sage still hadn’t grasped that yet.
Truthless Recluse followed the Sage down to the ground. Despite everything, the Sage’s smile was as radiant as it was deadly. Both of them knew he had been caught. Truthless Recluse made sure not to let this chance slip away. It wasn’t over until one of them had the other pinned and tired.
… Despite his better judgement, he did not just use Black Magic to try and slaughter the Sage. Dark Moon magic came to his aide instead, wrapping around the Sage gently and cushioning his fall. Truthless Recluse pointed the top of his orchid staff in the Sage’s face, glaring with the hint of a spell beginning to bloom.
If the Sage fought back, he would fire it and knock that idiot unconscious for the next month. Again.
Both of them were winded. This fight had gone on for hours now after the Sage rudely interrupted his gardening for the 542nd time. The Sage knew how important his garden was to him, and to not disturb him, and yet he did. Truthless Recluse truly did not know what went on in this fool's head.
The Sage’s laughter caught him off guard. He barely had enough time to flick away the top of his orchid staff before a bolt of lightning shot out of it and hit the ground next to the Sage. Somehow, that made the Sage laugh harder. The fool raised a hand and brushed his hair out of his face.
Out of annoyance, Truthless Recluse dispelled Dark Moon magic holding the Sage up. The fool yelped as he fell to the ground and yet somehow that didn’t even stop his laughter. The Recluse sighed into his hand and lowered his orchid staff. The fight was over and Truthless Recluse had another victory to add to their counter. 855 to 865. That ten point difference still bothered him, even if they were closing it ever so slowly.
“Dear Recluse, you never make combat any less interesting.” The Sage finally decided to stop laughing and look up at him with.. Awe? Affection? Both of them were disgusting to him. Was this fool truly thinking this was fun? A game? Perhaps he should teach him a lesson.
…
“I’m not quite sure how that's funny, Sage.” he poured all of his anger into the title. Somehow the Sage seemed happy. Relieved, even? None of this made sense. Truthless Recluse had noticed how the Sage stopped taking their fights seriously about three hundred battles ago but he never really questioned it.
This… felt friendly. But they weren’t friends, could never be friends. They were far too different, cared for entirely different things. The Sage, in his own words, would rather crumble than succumb to Deceit and throw away the Truth like Truthless had so many millennium ago.
Truthless Recluse had accepted it after their first few conversations and when he realized that the Sage was determined to show the world the Truth, to enlighten it and let them trek down the path of Knowledge over and over again, no matter the pain. Yet he couldn’t discard the little bit of hope he felt now.
“How could I not? I saw you hesitating the entire time!” The Sage floated off the ground and laid in the air, head on a hand and looking at him like he was the most interesting specimen possible. Somehow, he didn’t mind that. “Beessiiiddesss. I have a request for you!”
Truthless Recluse perked up. The Sage? Wanting something from him? That was practically impossible. The last request the Sage had was in aiding him seal away a beast created from Black Magic. Admittedly, fighting alongside the Sage back then was the most alive he’d felt in eons.
… Logically, he should have turned down the Sage. They had no purpose working together or being friends. They were two opposites, forever destined to never collide on their paths and yet…
“What is it?”
Watching the Sage’s eyes light up when he agreed was nice. He forgot how happy the Sage seemed to be when they did anything together that wasn’t fighting. Truthless Recluse ignored the way his heart began to beat so hard it almost felt like it would leap out of his chest. The Sage’s smile was…
“The Moonlit Festival is coming close.” The Sage began to swirl around him, almost as if they hadn’t been fighting to the death and trying to crumble each other moments earlier. “I wish for you to accompany me to it!”
… Moonlit Festival? That one is new. Perhaps a practice that the cookies the Sage arrived with had that simply carried along with them to their new homes. But such a thing… Truthless Recluse could barely stay awake during the day, the Sage expected him to be awake during the night?
“Why should I?”
“Why shouldn’t you?”
Question with a question. Truthless Recluse could feel a headache brewing and the cause was this fool in front of him. The Sage didn’t even seem bothered by his visibly dampened mood, just smiling and waiting for an answer.
Did he want to? It would give him the chance to spy on the Sage and the cookies he has cultivated despite Truthless’ attempts at interference. Better yet, it would give him an insight on the Sage himself. Even if this was a trick to try and make Truthless Recluse let down his guard and fall into whatever plan the Sage had.
It was risky. The Sage always had something up his sleeve, never honest with his emotions or thoughts unless it suited him. Truthless Recluse could be walking into a trap right now. But the pros outweighed the cons. The Sage could never truly keep him tied down no matter how much he tried.
With a deep sigh… “Fine. When is it?”
For once, the Sage seemed stunned to silence. His mouth was open in the same shock and Truthless Recluse couldn’t help his smirk seeing the Sage looking so stupid. It was a new weakness seemingly and he wasn’t too fond of abusing this one.
The Sage shook his head and lit up like a child seeing the night sky for the first time. Innocent and enraptured. This was the first time the Sage was excited for something that didn’t involve trying to ‘correct’ his view on the world, or his methods to protect the cookies who could not protect themselves. The last time he was this happy must have been when they first met.
How innocent they had been.
“Tonight!” The Sage rotated to pretend to be sitting down while a white and blue portal opened behind him.
… What? Tonight? But the sun was already starting to set. Surely the Sage couldn’t have meant-
“I’ll see you in four hours, dear Recluse!” Truthless Recluse stood there stupidly as the Sage fled through his portal, closing it before he could have any hopes of following that bastard. Like an idiot, Truthless Recluse stood there. Four hours was barely any time.
He slowly inhaled in an attempt to control his temper but it was fraying out of his grasp. It had been enjoyable seeing the Sage so excited but now… Now he just wanted to ruin the Sage’s night by purposefully not showing up.
Perhaps that's what he would do. Not show up because the Sage had purposefully not given him any time to prepare. Leave the fool abandoned in whatever game he wanted to play.
Truthless never liked how he looked in clothing that wasn't his new standard attire. Looking in a mirror always felt like a trap, seeing how disgusting he looked in anything he picked for himself. Truthless Recluse picked at his shirt’s cuff in mild anxiety. With how little time he was given, he barely could find one of his more decent outfits from a time long past.
Though finding his old cardigan, white button up and jeans had been a blessing. A quick spell turned the light colors of the cardigan to his more natural blacks, blues and golds but… He felt too exposed like this. This outfit didn’t have an easy way to hide his face in a hat or cloak neck…
On a whim, he tried to smile again like he had so many years ago. It felt foreign, like watching a ghost possess his body. The ghost of a king who no longer exists, who had died ages ago protecting what was dear to him.
Why was he even attempting to dress up..? He looked foolish like this. This was the Sage he was trying to dress up for. Just some fool who would never see the world for what it was and demanded he forgive the world for the cruelty done to his friends. To the cookies he cherished and were slaughtered just for his continued cooperation.
What a fool both of them were. The Sage would crash and burn eventually from his blind belief in the Truth and… and Truthless Recluse wanted to be there to see it. To mock him and tell the Sage how right he had been. That cookies do not change, no matter how much room you give them. Their growth always leads to betrayal and… And…
Truthless Recluse practically ripped the outfit off. Why was he even bothering to dress up?! This wasn’t a date! It could never be a date. They were worlds apart, destined to never truly stand side by side with their differing ideals.
He ignored the tears that threatened to fall from his eyes as he pulled back on his usual attire. The weight of his cloak and the security of his hat made it easier to not cry, to not lament that the Sage could never understand how he felt. That no matter how much Truthless Recluse tried, they could never truly be friends.
Even accepting the fools invitation had been a mistake. Why was he even trying to think this was a friendly outing?! This was just to spy on the Sage, to understand him further and learn how to crumble him once and for all. That’s all it was. That’s all it ever could be.
…
The sun had set by the time Truthless Recluse stepped out of his Tower and the Moon was already watching them from Her throne in the sky. He hated the way She would watch him the gentlest. Truthless Recluse never understood Her gentle care for him. It wasn’t like he could exactly ask Her, for She did not have a physical form last he knew.
Perhaps he should ask the Sage. Despite how much he loathed the fool for his teachings… They were insightful to the world that Truthless Recluse had little to no knowledge on anymore. Perhaps the Sage would give him one of those excited smiles again for asking such a question.
There was no time to dwell on thoughts that did not matter. He agreed to something, no matter how close the deadline. Even if it felt like there were thorns growing in his lungs as he opened one of his portals to a hidden spot nearby the town that the Sage of Truth protected. It felt like he was a spectator in his own body as he stepped through the portal.
The town was bustling, he could hear it even a mile away. Those thorns inside of his lungs didn’t go away yet he pressed onwards regardless. The walk to the town was marked with hanging lights and laughter. There were cookies celebrating something even this far out, waving to him and welcoming him to the festival. Some of the younger cookies even tried to ask him why he looked so gloomy.
Some of the adults whisked them away but Truthless Recluse couldn’t help kneeling down to them and telling them all about how he was here to judge the festival, so they better be on their best behavior for their parents. He adored the way some of their faces scrunched up in distrust, whilst others widened their eyes and promised to be on their best behavior with a giggle.
Children were such a blessing. He missed having little ones running around his old kingdom. He missed having to carefully avoid little hands that reached for his Soul Jam out of curiosity. He missed their laughter and smiles when he would read to them during his off time. It was something Truthless Recluse never deserved to have again.
The crowd was annoying. Always bumping into him and it made it hard to keep a hand on his staff. He felt glad that he had decided to come with his usual cloak, as it created another layer between his dough and the cookies bumping against him.
He’s not sure if he could have taken the constant touches that weren’t from the Sage.
Eventually he found his way to a familiar fountain. The first time he met the Sage was here, just after he had used a spell to make the innocent cookies leave the area before confronting the Sage. His first attempt to try and get the Sage to stop teaching the Truth, to stop leading them towards their doom.
The first time that the Sage had happily rejected him. He couldn’t understand why the Sage had denied the Truth that he found in Deceit… But now he supposes he can see why. Foolishly, Truthless had been paying attention to the harsh words that the Sage always told him.
“Coward! Hiding away from your Truth won’t save you!”
“Will you run away and hide this time?~ It’s too amusing, I almost want to watch you flee!”
“You really are pathetic like this. Deceit helps no one, the Truth is what can help those you claim to care for.”
“A pretty lie is nothing more than that, a lie!”
… Truthless Recluse leaned on the Fountain’s edge. Ever so slightly sitting on it and using his staff’s eyes to watch the cookies pass him by. It was so loud and there was no sign of the Sage in sight.
It had been a while since he was last out in such a fashion. Isolation suited him better, the call of the crowd made him remember times that he would rather forget about. Truthless Recluse kept his eyes open and alert, lest the ghosts of the Vanilla kingdom came to haunt him.
… Just where was the Sage? That fool was never late. Yet Truthless Recluse had been walking through this festival for at least thirty minutes now. The Sage could have, should have, found him immediately. He wasn’t trying to hide his presence at all.
Even in moments when Truthless Recluse tried to stalk the Sage outside of the town with his presence hidden, that fool always seemed to find him. It led to several stand offs in front of the Sage’s students that led to full brawls. Even in moments when Truthless Recluse isolated himself to his tower, too tired to deal with the world…
The Sage always found him. Yet he wasn’t here now, when he had explicitly asked for his presence.
Truthless Recluse couldn’t help the anger slowly growing in him. Was all of this just a joke? A ploy to pull him out of his isolation for just a night, to throw him into a scenario just like that of his past that the Sage so desperately wished to know about? Get his hopes up for some kind of friendship to bloom between them, only to snuff it out?
Give him a glimpse of warmth back to his life, only to remind him that it never existed? Blessed him with small smiles that weren’t cruel, grace his ears with a laughter that felt so real it almost made Truthless Recluse’s heart beat out of his chest?
Was all of this just a joke to the Sage? All of this? Truthless Recluse had gotten his hopes up for something, anything that wasn’t this cold and desolate feeling. Yet the cookie who gave him warmth again had disappeared, seemingly content to let him suffer from the memories he could not ignore.
He…
“My Recluse!”
Truthless Recluse looked up from his hands. Over top the crowd was the Sage, flying towards him with that same smile that Truthless had grown to want to see everyday. That burning anger and thorns that had crawled up his throat ever so slowly ebbed away the closer that the Sage got. Right. This wasn’t then, and he wasn’t them.
Pure Vanilla had to trust, just once more.
Quietly he readjusted himself to sit properly on the fountain’s edge. Watching the Sage float over and in front of him happily. He looked… good. Instead of his usual tailcoat, the Sage wore a vest in that same blue pattern. He adorned a white shirt with those same golden patterns he normally had.
… His hair was in a loose braid. Truthless Recluse couldn’t help staring. The Sage looked pretty. He hadn’t seen the Sage so casual before, always in that prim and proper uniform. It still was one, but somehow it felt more personal.
It felt like no one else but them existed. It made him want to try and convince the Sage to hide away in the Tower of Deceit with him. It made him want to keep him all to himself and never let anyone take away the brilliant radiance that the Sage gave.
Why was he thinking this..? Truthless Recluse inhaled and exhaled ever so slowly. Pushing away the feelings and wrapping them in a safe blanket of apathy. It felt easier to breathe, easier to think when he felt nothing.
The Sage was frowning, almost disappointed. Truthless Recluse raised an eyebrow at the Sage’s stare. “Is something the matter?”
“Of course not!~” The Sage floated forward and grabbed his hand. Truthless Recluse’s eyes widened when the Sage pulled him and stood him up. The Sage was smiling brightly… “I just didn’t realize you would be in your usual attire."
… Did… Did the Sage want him to dress up…? But this wasn’t a date. This couldn’t be a date. It wouldn’t be a date. The Sage was just playing a game again, that’s all. Truthless Recluse wasn’t here because he wanted it to be a date, he was here because this way he could find a way to protect the cookies that the Sage claimed to care for.
That's it. That’s all it ever could be.
The Sage was still holding his hand. Truthless Recluse didn’t try to take it away. That seemed to embolden the Sage to begin gently pulling him along. He followed behind the Sage, growing curious on where he was being brought.
“Just what is this festival, Sage?” he found his words again, and he asked what had been burning on his mind for several hours now. Even through his small spiral earlier, he had noticed the constant shift of the crowd. The laughter, the way they were walking together and playing some form of carnival games.
The Sage chuckled at him yet didn’t answer. Truthless Recluse frowned and allowed himself to continue being pulled forward. It wasn’t like he wanted to leave yet, he still hadn’t gotten to see what the Sage had planned.
Each step forward felt like the two of them were walking into their own world. Cookies would part away from the Sage of Truth, giving both of them ample space as they passed by. Some of the cookies around them would call out to the Sage and then clam up seeing him. Truthless Recluse wanted to be upset over it, but the Sage barely even paid them any form of attention.
Just kept pulling Truthless along as if none of the cookies that called to him existed.
Then the Sage froze and Truthless Recluse bumped into him. He had no idea what the Sage was looking at, his staff had barely turned in the direction he was looking at before Truthless Recluse was being pulled along again, more aggressively than he had been previously.
… The Sage brought them in front of a sharp shooter stall. The cookie running it looked just as surprised as Truthless Recluse felt standing in front of it.
“Sage-?” The cookie blinked rapidly, looking between both of them in shock before gently shaking her head. “Doesn’t matter. What an odd guest you’ve brought!” She stood up from where she was sitting down without even letting the Sage speak. Grabbing one of her toy guns and handing it over.
“Thank you.~” The Sage, without prompting, handed over two coins. She raised an eyebrow and moved to grab another gun but the Sage’s staff stopped her by blocking her path. “Ah! No need. He’ll be the only one playing!”
The cookie running the stall looked at the Sage like he had grown another head but her surprise shifted quickly into exhausted amusement. She murmured something about how unpredictable the Sage could be before quietly setting up the targets before sitting down again. Just some wooden blocks that Truthless could feel some magic was cast on.
A trick then. Not surprising, if everyone won then how would there be a profit?
He flinched when the Sage held out the gun to him. A part of him was terrified looking at it but the soft smile from the Sage spurred him forward. He carefully set his staff to lean on the booth in front of them, allowing him to see the targets but not himself.
The gun in hand wasn’t heavy but it wasn’t light. Somewhere close to how his staff felt which was quite lucky. Using his eyes again after several weeks of not having done so was annoying however. The world was so blurry and he couldn’t have his staff to guide him.
Ever so slowly he got himself lined up with the little wooden targets the best he could. He still remembers when these were a new weapon. Now they’re used in carnival games… How strange. Truthless Recluse pulled the trigger with a little bit of magic pushed behind the wooden bullet.
He frowned when only two of the wooden targets fell. The cookie running the stall whistled a little but didn’t try to stop him. Annoyance bloomed under his dough that he pushed back under his blanket of apathy.
“Dear Recluse, you have it all wrong.~” He tensed up as the Sage suddenly wrapped himself around his shoulders, gently positioning his arms in such a way that felt natural but with how tense he was with the Sage being this close, it almost hurt.
The Sage’s hands were holding his wrists, gently moving them to line up his shot. Their arms were touching. The Sage’s chest was pressed against his back and the Soul Jam worn by his neck was gently pushed into Truthless’ neck. Their faces were right next to each other.
“See? Just like this. Now fire.~”
Bang!
All of the remaining wooden blocks fell down.
The cookie running the stall stared at them for far longer than what was socially acceptable before getting out of her chair with a soft laugh. “Man, how am I not surprised?” She walked around the back of the stall and came back with an odd object. “Heres your prize!”
The Sage of Truth let go of him to float over to her. Truthless Recluse shook ever so slightly standing there. He could still feel the phantom touch of the Sage’s hands, the Sage’s arms all around him. The warmth that the Sage’s body produced seemed to seep through his clothing and onto his dough.
He shakily dropped his arms and put the gun down on the table in front of them. He fumbled for his staff and held onto it like a lifeline. The Sage had been so close, Truthless Recluse could still feel the way his chest fell and rose as he breathed on his back. Could still feel the pulse of the Sages Soul Jam on his neck.
They had been so close. That was the closest they had ever been outside of combat. Truthless Recluse could still feel the Sages touch all over his arms. The gentleness, the soft kindness. It was like a ghost was haunting him despite Truthless Recluse seeing the Sage right in front of him, inspecting whatever the cookie that ran this stall had brought out.
… Truthless Recluse could still imagine the Sage’s breath against his cheek.
The Sage turned to him with a smirk, holding a tiny little bunny plush. “For you, winner!” Truthless Recluse flinched when the plush was shoved into his chest, barely able to grab onto it with his free hand before the Sage let go of it.
His Sage was smiling so brightly at him… Truthless Recluse carefully held the plush close to his chest and tried to fight away the rising warmth in his face. That seemed to be the right choice because the Sage gently took the hand that was holding his staff and gently began to pull him along again.
As they walked, the Sage took his staff in his other hand just to hold Truthless’ hand properly. He let him. Pure Vanilla let the Sage drag him along while holding onto the little bunny plush like it was a lifeline. The two of them walked through the crowds that hadn’t died down at all, the Moon shining bright above head as if She were celebrating with them.
It felt like She was smiling down on him. Truthless Recluse couldn’t find it in himself to be angry at Her kindness right now. Not with the Sage’s warm hand holding his own, holding him tightly and pulling him along to whatever next he had planned.
Seemingly, the Sage had quite a lot planned. They stopped by nearly every booth, doing whatever was offered. Trying to throw a clothespin into the neck of a bottle, throwing balls at targets just to try and knock it down. Using little thin scoops to try and fish up a gummy fish from some sugar water. He failed each and every time and had to be dragged away by the Sage.
Throwing darts onto a wheel for a completely random prize, the Sage had him prove his memory by playing a guessing game to determine what cup had a ball under it. He won every single time and adored the way that the Sage seemed so proud of him.
Even a game with vivid colors and images, where it was up to random chance who managed to complete one of the predetermined patterns first. It… It was fun. The two of them kept collecting prizes after prizes. Some trinkets, but mostly plushes. Their little hoard got big enough that Truthless Recluse gave up trying to hold all of them, instead having them levitate behind them and above the heads of the crowd just so no one would get hurt.
Never once did the Sage let go of his hand. Never once did Truthless Recluse try to take away his hand. Holding the Sage this close, in such an intimate setting made him feel safe. The other cookies around them were staring, but it didn’t bother him. He could see their stares of barely concealed amusement and wonder.
Nothing like the stares of hatred and distrust he was so used to. It made him feel relaxed for once, able to let down the walls he had built over centuries and centuries. It felt so wrong to let himself relax like this but at the same time… It felt right.
Their fun was cut short by his stomach deciding to make itself known. The Sage hadn’t even seemed bothered, just laughed about forgetting to eat and dragging him away from the stalls to the food court. Cookies were all around, sitting at makeshift tables and conversing with each other.
He was left by the Sage in a darker corner, only illuminated by a lamp post nearby. It was quieter there, and he could barely feel the curious stares of the cookies around them. It was… It was oddly considerate, for the Sage.
Yet all of it still felt wrong. The Sage should have never cared and yet he was. What did he even get out of this? Truthless’ support? That would never happen, not for as long as he still preached the Truth.
… The Sage of Truth had never once tried to debate with him over their differing views. Never once did they go into familiar conversational topics, always focused on where they were at that moment.
Just what was he playing on? What game was this? Getting him to lower his guard just to try and sow seeds of doubt into his head? To make him believe in the Truth again? It was a foolish attempt, he never would. It had burned him to a crisp once before and he refused to let it happen again.
Truthless Recluse held the bunny plush he first won in his hands gently. It was a pretty cream color, almost like his hair. A part of him wanted the Sage to keep it, another part of him wanted to hide it away in his bedroom.
…
Pure Vanilla didn’t want the night to end yet. Truthless Recluse didn’t know how to feel about any of this. It was fun, it was terrifying. The longer that the Sage didn’t do anything, the longer he had to wonder when he would pull the rug out from under him. Crush him like he had tried so many times before just to make Truthless bow down to the Truth again.
“I have returned!” The Sage floated over, countless plates of food followed behind him and made Truthless Recluse’s stomach drop. There was no possible way he could eat all of that. He barely eats a full meal per day, there was no possible way…
“Sage-”
“Shush!”
Without being given a chance to try and reason with him, the plates of food were put down on the table. Truthless Recluse carefully whisked the bunny plush in front of him away and temporarily in pocket space with the rest of their prizes.
He watched the Sage sit down with mild fanfare, already grabbing one of the cinnamon buns and shoving it in his mouth. Truthless Recluse looked at all of the food in front of them and felt… fear.
Eating this much was always a sin. There were more cookies to feed than him, cookies that could deserve it more. He was not noble enough to deserve this. Yet the Sage was looking at him like he expected Truthless Recluse to eat regardless.
Like he wouldn’t admonish him for eating.
…
Carefully, Truthless Recluse reached for one of the odd fluffy pink clouds. The texture was odd, but it was easier to grab when he realized there was a paper cone. He stared at it in mild confusion.
“Truthlesss, why aren’t you eating?~” The Sage’s voice was clipped in a way he knew by now meant that he was annoyed or impatient. The Sage was never concerned for him, so surely it couldn’t be that.
But he just stared at this… odd cloud. “What is this?”
Silence. The Sage stopped chewing to just stare at him in surprise. Truthless Recluse shifted uncomfortably as the Sage suddenly burst into laughter. Even if it was mocking, Truthless couldn’t find it in himself to hate it.
The longer he did not say he was joking, the slower the Sage's laughter got.
“Oh Witches above, you don’t know?” The Sage’s laughter died out quickly when he seemingly realized that Truthless was telling the truth for once. In a matter of moments, the Sage was floating by his side with a small smirk. “It’s cotton candy, eat it.~”
The Sage pushed the hand holding the ‘cotton candy’ towards his mouth. So Truthless Recluse did as told, taking a bite of it. It dissolved in his mouth and instead of whatever he was expecting, the taste of it was nice and sweet. He kept eating it slowly while the Sage watched him.
He swore he heard the Sage mumble ‘cute’ underneath his breath but that must have been a mistake. Something he heard from the still bustling crowd around both of them. The Sage wasn’t calling him cute for just.. eating.
But the Sage went back to his seat far too quickly, going back to eating most of the sweets he had brought over whilst Truthless Recluse slowly ate the cotton candy in his hand. It wasn’t filling but it was enough to soothe his nerves over eating.
Disappointingly, the cotton candy was gone before he wanted it to be. The Sage snickered again from across the table and Truthless Recluse forced his expression back into that of blank apathy. He reached for a cinnamon roll as well, chewing on it far slower than he had the cotton candy.
The Sage cleaned up most of the food that was brought over, allowing Truthless Recluse to pick at most of them without fear of it going to waste. The cinnamon roll paired with the rich taste of chocolate was nice. The Sage kept trying to goad him onto eating more, trying other foods, but Truthless Recluse refused.
He had already taken enough away from others that could need it.
The two of them sat in silence like that. The Sage staring at him, whilst Truthless watched the crowd go by through his staff. It felt odd not being dragged around by now but he was grateful that the Sage let him rest.
“My dearest Recluse,” The Sage spoke up after several minutes of that silence. Truthless Recluse glanced over to him to be polite. Oddly enough, the Sage was fidgeting ever so slightly with his nails. “I have some place I wish to show you. Will you come with me?”
Truthless Recluse wasn’t quite sure what was going on through his head. The entire night, the Sage had been an enigma to him. Touching him without care, gently and as if he were precious.
If this was a trap, the Sage had played it perfectly. Truthless Recluse wasn’t even worried that he would be hurt wherever the Sage wanted to bring them. If anything… He wanted to know what the Sage wanted to show him. How strange this entire night was.
…
“Sure.”
The place that the Sage brought them to was the rooftop of his academy. There was an accessible one at the very, very top. It was quiet there, isolated in a way that the noise of the crowd beneath them could barely be heard.
But it was not dark there.
Truthless Recluse couldn’t help himself from staring up at the sky and all of its glory. The stars shining and almost dancing in the sky as the Moon passed by and watched them all in Her endless care. Her moonlight illuminated the rooftop they were on, illuminated both of them.
Not only that, but the Sage had a few little different colored balls of light flying around the area, almost emulating fireflies. It was peaceful. Truthless Recluse liked it.
“Speechless at my genius already?~” The Sage floated past him and towards an oddly prepared blanket on the ground. Truthless Recluse followed quietly behind and shook his head. Of course the Sage had prepared this, why was he even surprised?
“... It is very beautiful.” he decided on those words instead of pointing out how pretty the Sage’s hair looked with the lights shining multiple colors on it. Instead of pointing out how his eyes seemed to shine in the moonlight and captivate him.
The Sage snickered and floated by the blanket, hovering over it as Truthless Recluse sat down on top of it. It was soft and warm and perfectly what he needed. He resisted the urge to lay down on it, just barely.
“Are you having fun, my dear Recluse?” The Sage floated down so they were face to face. If Truthless didn’t know the Sage well, he would’ve thought that the smugness on his face was actually hopefulness. But the Sage had no reason to be such a way, therefore it wasn’t.
Truthless Recluse looked past the railing and down to the crowds beneath them. They looked like tiny little dots from up here, moving around and enjoying themselves like they had. It was nice to watch them.
It was nice to quietly remember the time that he let Hollyberry throw a festival in the Vanilla kingdom all of those years ago. He remembered the laughter, the joy. The way his dearest friend looked so happy as well…
…
Truthless Recluse looked away from the crowd and threw the memories back into the depths of his mind where they belonged. “I am. Thank you.”
The way that the Sage’s eyes lit up when he spoke the truth was… nice. Even if it was fake. Even when tomorrow comes, the Sage would be back to trying to crumble him and demanding that he accept the Truth and stop trying to rob the innocent cookies of this world from its harsh reality.
…
“Why did you bring us up here, Sage?” It was eating away at him. They didn’t need to come up here, if they wanted silence then surely there were better places for it. If the Sage wanted him alone then surely they could have not just gone to the Sage’s home..?
Yet they were up here.
The Sage snickered and floated over to him slowly. Truthless Recluse tensed up, ready for the Sage to hurt him. He wasn’t ready for the Sage to steal his hat and put it on. Before Truthless Recluse could try to get it back, the Sage raised his hands to a part of his hair and began to brain it slowly.
He didn’t pull away. It had been so long since someone had played with his hair and he caved pitifully fast. Truthless Recluse let the Sage quietly braid a bit of his hair for as long as he wanted. He used his staff to watch the crowds beneath again, watching a few odd groups in several areas seemingly setting something up.
Eventually the Sage pulled away and used familiar blue string to tie the braid together. Truthless Recluse fought away the blush that threatened to engulf his face. He didn’t even know why he was wanting to blush, it was the Sage, his eternal enemy.
So why…
“Ah!” The Sage was suddenly floating up to the railing. “It’s about to begin!” With a swirl of a hand, the little balls of light that had been on the roof disappeared for some odd reason.
Truthless Recluse slowly stood up and next to the Sage. The way that the Sage was smiling and kicking his feet in excitement was odd. It was almost cute. It was a side of the Sage he hadn’t seen until now and selfishly, Truthless Recluse wanted to see more of it.
He watched the Sage quietly take off his hat and fiddle with the rim of it. The Sage inhaled slowly and exhaled shakily before turning to him again with a smile. “Truthless-”
Boom
He was cut off by fireworks shooting up into the sky and drowning out his voice. Truthless Recluse knew that he was talking still, could barely hear him and could see his mouth moving, but it felt like it was impossible to decipher what he was saying. Instead all he could focus on was how the fireworks lit him up, making the world narrow onto the Sage entirely.
The Sage looked… beautiful like this. The light that bloomed from the fireworks coated the Sage in such a radiant blanket that it looked like Truthless Recluse was looking at the night sky itself. Almost as if the Sage were the stars brought down to earthbread and given form.
Beautiful. Utterly beautiful. The Sage looked like he was a God like this, divine and entirely out of his reach.
His heart was beating out of his chest. Blush finally came to his face that he could not hold back. Every firework that exploded almost felt like his heart was beating just as hard and just as loud. The Sage looked beautiful.
His Truth. His Sage.
No.
No no no no no no. He couldn’t accept these feelings. They were enemies, neither of them would give up their beliefs for the other. They could never be together no matter how much Truthless Recluse wanted to keep seeing that smile, that panicked anxiety that the Sage never showed.
The Sage was running a hand through his hair whilst he talked, even if Truthless could not hear him. He was showing an unnatural fear, almost as if he were worried that Truthless Recluse would hate him for the words he spoke.
If only Truthless Recluse knew what he was saying. He finished talking a minute before the fireworks ended. Why was he counting the time? Was it so he could keep this image in his head forever, his own little secret?
“My dear Recluse..” The Sage’s voice felt foreign once he could hear it again. It felt like Truthless Recluse was focusing so much more now to how he sounded. He had a tiny lit to it, almost like he was happy. Excited, perhaps. Why did Truthless care, why did he notice? He…
“Will you come with me?” The Sage’s words felt like daggers into his heart, into his dim Soul Jam. That warm, fluffy feeling that had engulfed him shattered into pieces at his feet. “I don’t want to fight anymore.”
He… The Sage wanted him to join him in the Truth again… After.. After all of this..? Was all of this just… a lie..? To get him to lower his guard..? To trick him into saying yes…?
Instead of answering, Truthless Recluse ran away. A portal opened behind him and he fled into it. He could just barely hear the Sage calling his ‘name’ as he ran away. The portal closed before the Sage could follow him. Before the Sage could realize his new weakness and abuse it.
He was alone again. As he always should have been.
The icy floor of his Tower greeted him as Truthless Recluse collapsed to his knees. His heart wouldn’t stop beating. He couldn’t get the Sage’s beautiful face out of his head. He couldn’t stop the blush that consumed him.
Of course it had been a trick. It had to be. It had to be. It had to be. The Sage had brought him there just to get his guard down, to try and convince him to give into the painful Truth again and be hurt. To make Truthless Recluse want to be with him.
Tears fell to the ground in what had to be anger. That’s all it was. He wasn’t heart broken. He was angry that the Sage had tricked him. He wasn’t crying because he was unable to contain the sorrow he felt. These tears were from anger, not sorrow.
The Sage was cruel, so cruel. Truthless Recluse clung to his staff and tried to wish the tears away. He couldn’t. They kept falling no matter how much he tried to stop them.
…
A familiar numbness came to him. The tears did not stop, but the pain that engulfed his heart and body faded away. Apathy engulfed him in its numbing embrace and guided him. He walked through the halls of his Tower silently and weakly.
His bedroom was cold. He was grateful for how little he decorated it here, it let him fall onto his bed easily and without having to move things aside. The tears would not stop. They could not stop. Why wouldn’t they stop? He wanted them to stop.
This was the Sage he was crying over. The Sage that had never, in their near millennium of knowing each other, given up trying to convert him back to the Truth. The Sage that never once stopped trying to find out more about him, the Sage that always cared when he seemed weak.
Who always made sure he was okay. Who stopped fighting sometimes when he noticed Truthless Recluse bleeding from a wound not inflicted by him. Who always wanted to know new things about him, about his past.
Who came to his garden on quiet days and would quietly sing while he gardened. His Sage who had brought over papers to grade in the safety of his garden. The Sage who would bring him new seeds for his garden, teaching him how to sow and cultivate them. The cookie who had begun calling his spell work beautiful. Complimenting him no matter how vile a spell Truthless Recluse tried to use to maim him with.
… His Sage, who had wormed his way into the depths of his heart and settled right next to it.
He…
Truthless Recluse opened the pocket space that held all of the prizes they got. They all fell out onto his bed and he dug around in the pile for one specific one. The little bunny plush that the Sage had helped him with first.
It was so innocent. It still smelled like the festival and the Sage. Truthless Recluse curled up in his bed, holding the little plush close to his chest and through his tears. It felt like a piece of the Sage that he had believed existed for a single night.
Did he ever exist in the way that Truthless Recluse wished he did? Did the Sage that Truthless Recluse had fallen in love with even exist? He didn’t want to know. He wanted to engulf himself in the same sweet lies that he gave to innocent cookies and drown in it.
If the Truth could not give him the love he needed, wanted, then a lie would do. He would lie to himself and believe that the Sage of Truth loved him. Then he would wake up from the lie in the painful Truth that the Sage always preached.
But he would not accept that. Not tonight. He would believe his lie for tonight and tonight only.
“Do you know why the professor is in such a bad mood?”
“Which one?”
“You know which one!”
“Oh, Sage? Did you not see?”
“See what?”
“He had that hermit from the Peak of Truth with him at the Moonlit Festival.”
Gasp
“Seriously!?”
“Yeah! So many cookies saw it! The Sage was dressed up slightly too. Apple Pie Cookie even saw them touching each other! In her words, it was like it was straight out of a romance novel!”
“Why would he want to be with that damn cookie?”
“Dunno! But apparently they were together all night.”
“Wow. No wonder he’s in a bad mood.”
“It’s not because of that according to those who saw them! Apparently he was in a really good mood around the hermit. Nice enough that he even double paid everyone for everything!”
“Wait what? He never does that, even on his nicest days!”
“Strange isn’t it? He even bought up half of the food court just to feed him!”
“Then.. what happened?”
“Dunno. Apparently the two of them disappeared just before the fireworks that signal the new year and then afterwards, Sage appeared looking like a trainwreck. Dried tears and all before he locked himself away in his house.”
“Wait, tears? He never cries!”
“Right? Even Black Sapphire couldn’t get him to open up, and usually he can!”
“Wow. What a cruel cookie that hermit is.”
“I know right?”
“I wish that the Sage would get rid of him already..”
“You wish I would do What now?”
“Professor-!”
“Get out of my sight before I make you.”
“Yes sir!”
“Sorry, Sir!”
…
Those two students ran away with their figurative tails between their legs. Blueberry Milk floated there wordlessly. A quick flick of a hand had his beloved Recluse’s hat back in his hands. It didn’t smell like the Recluse anymore. That faint vanilla scent had vanished sometime ago.
“Coward.” He spoke to no one in particular.