Chapter Text
“I've been wondering; instead of taking my Soul Jam by force, you decided to test me, and see if I could truly fall, Why?” Shadow Milk pauses, about to snarl back at Pure Vanilla, but bites the tip of his snake-like tongue. He doesn’t need that long to think, Deceit was his whole schtick, To the point he was deceiving himself and coming up with something on the spot is his specialty.
“Oh, can't I have a little fun? Seeing the seeker of Truth tremble, consumed by self-doubt. So scared to be devoured by my Deceit!” Good enough. His voice is wavering slightly, and he can’t quite tell if the other is picking up on it. Ugh. He has to stick to the script. What is he supposed to do when he’s going full improv?
“You say that, and yet... I saw your records. I saw how happy you were to see my Soul Jam touched by Deceit.” He had- THIS LITTLE GNAT. Sure, he spied on other cookies, (he did have eyes everywhere, after all) but dear Witches he hated being watched himself. Yes, he had been thrilled, but it was all for the fun of the game!
Which is why he’s even more flabbergasted when he can only say one.. singular.. word.
“... What…?” His voice had fully dropped the dramatic flair he usually had. If it weren’t for his ridiculously low pain tolerance along with the frailty of his dough, he would’ve slammed a fist into a wall of the Spire. He sounded weak.
Shadow Milk Cookie was not weak. The Fount of Knowledge? It had been, but not him. He was better than it now. Witches, he was perfection.. |right?|
“I could feel how lonely you truly are.” Shadow Milk wants to punch Pure Vanilla in the face, so badly. He was NOT lonely. Denial is the best companion to Deceit, after all, and Pure Vanilla knew NOTHING.
“PSH HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA! LONELY?! AHA HA HA, NOW WHO IS THE CLOWN HERE?! OH, I'M TEARING UP...” Shadow Milk wipes a… totally fake tear off of his |one good| eye.
Pure Vanilla dares to… he can’t even finish that thought before the edges of his vision start to blur, before everything switches to black.
—
Blueberry Milk Cookie was standing on the podium he had always stood at, answering questions about pointless, menial things. It had become instinct to him, and he didn’t even need to put much active effort into it, not anymore.
A question about if someone likes someone. |He doesn’t know. He answers ‘yes’ anyways.| A question on when the next rain will be. |Not for another two weeks, he says it will only be a few days.| All of it was so dull he tuned it out after the first few minutes.
Sometimes he says things that aren’t true. A Cookie had once asked him why Cookies were created. He knew the answer, of course (He had since he was created), and he gave it.
There were rumors that Cookie had gone mad. Shadow Milk had always felt a level of guilt when he thought about it, knowing that he was responsible.
Truth was not a kind thing. Cookies don’t want truth, they want what makes them happy, what they want to hear. Who is the Fount to deny them?
—
Sugar leaned against his shoulder, a feathered wing wrapped around his torso. She was warm, a contrast to his usually freezing dough. |If only it could’ve stayed this way forever if only i could’ve saved you before I fell too-|
They were watching the sunset together, in silence. Truth be told, Sugar was the only one who tolerated him anymore. The other Virtues had become distant, and rarely showed up, not like they used to. Because they’re gone and they’ll never come back He misses them, and longs to go check on Spice, at least.
—
He breathes a farewell to Sugar before portalling to the Spice Lands. A spice storm is kicking up around him, but he’ll be fine. |He won’t, he’ll never be fine again|
——
Shadow Milk blinks back to the current time, Pure Vanilla staring up at him. He looks at him with something akin to “Are you okay?” |He’s not, but no one has to know that.|
He thinks he can just trick him..?
“Shadow Milk. Are you… okay?” He finally says it in words. Disgusting. A question he hadn’t heard since that night with Sugar…
“Aw, ‘Nilly, all worried about the big, bad Beast.” Pure Vanilla looks frustrated with the amount of |denying| back and forth he’s giving.
“Why would I not be worried?” Shadow Milk blinks.
Because I hurt you like I hurt them and they left so WHY HAVEN’T YOU?
“….” For once, he can’t think of anything to say. The not so Great Beast of Deceit, silenced by a clown in some idiotic white robes. How pathetic of him.
“..If you did not hear my previous question, if you’d like to come back with us… I would not be opposed.” Ha. He thinks Shadow Milk would want to go back with him? Some little part inside of him wants to. He snuffs it out before it gets too big.
“I know your tricks. I know what you’re trying to do. And it won’t work. You think you and that little half a Cookie can just lure me in with false promises. Well, guess what?! I am smarter than that.”
His tone is dead serious.
He unintentionally sinks closer to the ground before snarling in Pure Vanilla’s face. “I will not go in that tree again without a fight.”
Pure Vanilla looks… pitying? He doesn’t want pity. Let alone his. Not when he’s done so much damage trying to make things better to the point he drove himself mad.
He’s within arm’s reach of Pure Vanilla. Not like he wants to risk crumbling, if he were to try the more physical sort of violence, he’s just not trained in that and would probably die.
Pure Vanilla quietly says “it’s not a trap.” under his breath, to the point where only Shadow Milk can hear him.
That’s what Salt had said.
Look where he ended up by trusting them. Alone, in pain, with no way out and no way to breathe. Just constant suffocation and misery.
He won’t be fooled again. Not by him of all Cookies.
“You know who you sound like? The very Cookie who’s responsible for all of this. Really not doing you any favors.” He hisses in Pure Vanilla’s ear. The other flinches before offering a quick apology.
“Save it.” That’s all he says before rushing back into what little remains of his other-realm.
No one will be able to find him there.