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Cold, tired dough gently shuffles awake as sun breaks through the cracks of the curtains. The ex Beast of Deceit grunts as their body shifts in a strong, warm arm. They unconsciously nuzzle their face in the side of who was holding them, said who gently rubbing their side up and down to calm the newly awoken cookie. Their eyes fall open a smidge to glance at the cookie holding them. Said cookie looks back with equally tired eyes.
"Good morning, Bluebird." The ray of sunshine speaks in a low tone, placing the most feather light kiss to the other's forehead. Shadow Milk always adored Pure Vanilla's morning voice. It was so gruff, so low, so different, it truly reminded him of his old dear Recluse. He's glad he gets to hear it every morning now.
"Hmmmyellow.." She murmured back in an equally tired voice, maybe even more raspy than the other, nuzzling closer to the warm dough. Her eyes glance over at the novel in the other's hands, reaching out and slowly running her finger over the little indented dots on the page, only being able to read a word and a half before trailing off. "Whatcha.. uhmm.." She trails off for a moment to fight off the sleep before speaking once more. "Hmm.. what's this about..?"
"Just a simple romance, nothing special. I believe it's a series." He places a bookmark in the page and places it to the side.
"You didn't have to stop reading, you could've continued." They state as Pure Vanilla gently cards his hands through slowly regrowing galactic hair.
"I know, my dear, but I wish to spend a little ounce of time admiring you." He hums with a small smirk, readjusting their positions to lay fully down against the pillows and tucked nicely under the warm, heavy quilts. The Ancient props his head under his forearm. "Hey." His voice as sweet as honey as he looks at the other with a lovestruck, goofy smile on his face.
"Mhhhmmm-Sup..." He mimics the other's position the best of his abilities, falling half asleep before forcing himself back awake. The other chuckles softly as he pushes a stray, stary blue lock back behind dusty blue pointed ear.
"You're so adorable when you're sleepy." Pure Vanilla gently wraps an arm around Shadow Milk's waist, pulling her in for a cuddle. She immediately nuzzles her face into his neck, taking in his thick scent of vanilla. The smell always calmed her mind despite not wanting to state a fact as such out loud, she'll be teased for.. forever. Or, maybe, it'll allow her to take in his scent more? That would probably be better.
The healer gently scratches their scalp, causing them to purr happily in the other's arms, tail thumping against the bed with a gentle jingling noise following each swing. Huh, must've forgotten to take off their tail ribbon... whatever. They nuzzle their face again but..
Pure Vanilla lets out a slight hiss, causing Shadow Milk to pull back. But he just gets pulled right back in.
"Shhhh, it's okay, Bluebird. Sorry if I freaked you out for a second, it's okay." He smothers the top of her head with kisses. "It happens, you're allowed to make an accident, it's okay." The ex Virtue of Knowledge is a little confused for a second but calms down anyway. Everything is too fast for her brain at the moment, she just woke up.
".. Did I.. knick you..? With my fangs..?" They tilt their head to the side, attempting to assess what on Earthbread was happening.
"Smallest amount, but it is nothing to worry about." He goes back to scratching the other's scalp while turning his kisses to the forehead.
Shadow Milk closes his eyes on instinct. He enjoys how much affection he gets. His past self would scold him for the domestic life he threw himself into. He could already hear it now.. 'How DARE the GREAT Beast of Deceit go all soft.. with our ENEMY none the less!! For shame, hmph!' To be honest with himself, he would pick this life any day.
The fallen Virtue gently pulls Pure Vanilla's head down from his attacks on his forehead. She rubs his cheek with her thumb and groggily pulls him in for a kiss on the lips. It was soft and gentle, only lasting a few seconds. Milk and hints of blueberry mixing with potent vanilla, soft and delicately cared for lips moving with chapped and cracked neglected lips. Despite their short departure, the wielder of Truth just leans back in and recaptures her lips.
The healer slowly rubs his hand up and down the other's side, causing them to whimper softly. Despite how many times Pure Vanilla would rub, hold, kiss Shadow Milk, they will always keen into the touch. Being alone for so long would cause such a cookie to be so touch starved. On top of that, their dough was just sensitive. Too much milk, that was always a problem, even as a Virtue. Luckily nothing was hurting at the moment, or they would've been in a very- no, drastically different mood than they are now.
They depart one last time, for now. The two keep their heavy breathing as soft as possible, smiling at each other. Time was weird when all they did was focus on each other, it was faster. It was a slog to be apart from one another, always made both sides of the pair get a bit frustrated at points. Maybe it was the pull of the Souljam making the two calmer and less aware of their surroundings.
Speaking of not being aware-
The knocks that rung out from the door caused Shadow Milk to flinch back with a gasp. Pure Vanilla attempts to grip onto him but it's too late, already slithering into the darkness under the bed, holding his eyes shut tight and trying not to breathe.
The Ancient sighs in disappointment, regaining his voice and attempting to not sound as disappointed as he is. "Come in!" He calls out, voice still groggy.
Shadow Milk quivers under the bed. Wow, the great Beast of Deceit now a shivering mess under her enemy's bed. Now she's starting to mock herself like how her past self definitely would. What a little bit of self awareness does to a cookie.
"Good morning, your majesty!" They're still calling him that? It makes their dough crawl. He obviously, explicitly stated he didn't want to be referred to as that anymore.. "Apologies for waking you up."
"No, no, I was already awake! What seems to be the issue?"
"Oh, nothing. Just wanted to make you aware that breakfast is ready. We have breakfast sandwiches, omelets, bagels, and pancakes. What would you like?"
Oh, Pure Vanilla, please just have them bring breakfast upstairs!
"I can decide for myself when I make it downstairs."
Shadow Milk accidently lets out an exasperated groan, causing the maid to flinch.
"Th- The Beast is in here? I- I apologize uhmm.."
Oh...
That's why they hid...
They slump further into the shadows, looking down somberly. Couldn't those foolish gnats see they're getting better? Whatever... seems like nothing is going to change between them and cookie kind. They could return to their old ways and destroy this stupid kingdom, but they choose not to. Pure Vanilla would be so disappointed..
He must've been so caught up in his mind because Pure Vanilla was now gently wiggling his fingers off the side of the bed, giving Shadow Milk the signal to crawl out, which he does.
"I apologize if she scared you, my love. Are you okay?" He gently grabs her hand into the both of his, rubbing her knuckles and placing a soft kiss to the dough. She just nodded in response. "Alright then."
Shadow Milk takes a step back as Pure Vanilla rises out of bed, giving a good stretch as his wings flair out to full wingspan, fluttering slightly before folding back. He smiles softly at them, they don't smile back. They were lucky he was mostly blind without his staff, seeing mostly blobs of color. If he could see right now, he would see the stupidly disappointed look on their face and pester if they were okay or not. Psh-! Of course they were okay! They just don't feel like smiling. That's, at least, what they tell themself.
Pure Vanilla was already trudging his way to the bathroom to brush his teeth and hair, guiding Shadow Milk along with him. The two brush their teeth together, brush their hair together, basically anything they need to do to get ready for the day. Pure Vanilla leaves Shadow Milk in the bathroom, knowing the other might want to focus on doing his makeup, but all Shadow Milk does is stare at himself that his eyes start to hurt.
Eugh, look how.. disgusting she is.. sharp teeth poke out from her lips, pupils as sharp as razor blades that could kill a man just from her look, sharp angles, crooked nose that comes to a point at the tip, some cookies say she looks like a witch from the nose alone. Little do those fools know that not all witches have those noses! Literally, Mama-..
Mama.. had..
They agressivly rub their eyes to stop the sting of tears. No, focus! Makeup..
...
He was gross... too gross...
Nope-, no makeup today.. it'll make this worse..
She floats out of the bathroom and towards the closet. Great, another mirror, just another excuse to look at such a hideous creature.
"Love?" Shadow Milk turns around to look at Pure Vanilla who was searching through a clean laundry basket. "Is there anything you needed washed? Like, for a cold wash? Bras? Sweaters? Anything?"
"Uhh.." They scratch their chin with a hum. "Hmmm.. yeah uhh, one sec." They shape shift into a hare and hop into the closet, searching around in the back for a little bit before crawling back out, pushing a pile of laundry onto the floor with their head. "I had a couple of things i kinda forgot about the other day that I threw in the back of my closet. On the floor, over here, when you get a second." They dive back into the closet on the search for whatever they wanted to wear today.
"Thank you, love!" The healer calls out to the other, folding some of the clean laundry and putting it away.
After getting far enough in the closet, he stops moving flopping down in a dark corner for a bit. Witches, why does he feel so awful? He was doing just fine when snuggled up to Nilly, so why now is he feeling bad? He doesn't care about that maid! She was mean anyway, calling his sweet Nilly something he doesn't like. Then again, she called him a Beast still.. he's not really a fan of that anymore.. Was he? Cmon, he's the GREAT BEAST OF DECEIT!! Of course he's still a Beast!! Then.. why did it make him feel bad..
... He really was getting soft..
She whines softly looking around the space. Right in front of her was a softly crochet sweater. It was a baby blue to light yellow gradient with the face of a bunny on the front. She smiles fondly at it. It was a sweater that Pure Vanilla made her a little while back, it was her favorite sweater. She grabs it in her mouth and pulls it out of the corner it was in, then tossing some shorts, socks, underwear, and a bra onto that pile for easy transport. She bites onto the arm of the sweater as she drags all of the clothing out and into the open.
After hopping out of the closet, they shape shift back to their regular form. With a snap of their fingers, they were dressed, old pajamas already teleported into the now dirty laundry basket. Pure Vanilla was sitting at the vanity, all dressed for the day in a simple robe and working on putting his hair in a braid.
He made looking pretty so easy. They could never dream of that.
"All dressed, my love? Ready for breakfast?" Oh, yeah, food... blegh..
"Uhh, duhhh! What are you blind??" Pure Vanilla just shakes his head with a fond smile.
"You're-.." He sighs, finishing off his braid.
"I'm- what?" Shadow Milk floats over to Pure Vanilla's side, poking his cheek. "C'moooonnn, I know you wanna call me a dork! So just say it, Nilly." He places a kiss on his cheek.
Pure Vanilla shakes his head and stands up, grabbing into his staff and gesturing Shadow Milk to follow after. The ex Beast waits for the Ancient to be a little ways down the hall before quickly going over to her bedside table and practically ripping open the drawer. Comedy-Tragedy mix? Too disturbing. Snake? Will scare kids. Wolf? Was her personal favorite and was the cutest in her opinion, but people still run off. Hare it is again.. eugh..
They slip the mask on over their head, making sure to have their hair covering as much of the string as it can. They finish off the look by flipping their white bangs over the forehead. There! Much less disgusting! And before they leave, they make sure to place a ruffled choker on to cover the jarring scar on their neck. They quickly float after their partner.
The pair make it downstairs quite quickly, making it to the dinning area. Shadow Milk sits directly next to Pure Vanilla, just wanting to stay close. One of the chefs came out to inquire what they wished to have for breakfast. The Souljam wielder of Deceit refused to talk, just squeezing his other half's hand when the option he wanted was mentioned. The chef nods and heads back towards the kitchen to retrieve the pair's food.
Pure Vanilla gently takes hold of Shadow Milk's face, pulling her in and placing many kisses on her check. She tries and fails to hold back giggles and snorts, leaning in closer to the other. She takes hold of his free hand and squeezes it. Witches she loves this man.
"Mmm you're mine forever, Nilly.." Shadow Milk huffs out between giggles.
"As long as you can be mine forever in turn, Bluebird." Pure Vanilla responds with that stupidly fond smile on his face, placing one more kiss on their cheek before pulling away, keeping the other pulled against him, shoulder to shoulder.
The chef leaves the kitchen with two plates. The pair both chose pancakes for their breakfast. Shadow Milk's stomach growls impatiently, which makes him grumble. However, the ex Beast couldn't help but notice that the chef looked a little... put off. There was some hesitation when placing down the food in front of him, flinching back as he moves to pick up his fork. They begin to walk off once mo-
"Ehm, excuse me?" Pure Vanilla starts, grabbing the chef's attention.
"Yes, your majesty?" Seriously, again with the 'your majesty' thing?? "I- Is something wrong with your meal?"
"Ovens no, it looks fantastic!" The eye on his staff perks for a moment at the food before looking back at the chef. "But, I can not help but wonder why you haven't given my fiancé the same amount of food as I? I have two and she only has one. I also can't help but notice the one you gave her is drastically smaller. Mind explaining to me why that is?"
No one else knew this little fact, but the fallen Virtue could tell Pure Vanilla was pissed off. Ever since the trip to the Spire and his time as Truthless Recluse, the Ancient Hero has grown more assertive with what he believes should be right. But right now, he was ticked off. They could already hear the cogs in his head turn on overdrive and visualize the smoke coming out of his ears. How DARE someone treat their Bluebird like this?
Ever since Shadow Milk moved in, cookies haven't been uhh.. the nicest to him... to say the least. And oh, it was really, and he means REALLY, getting on Pure Vanilla's nerves. Probably by how he was already acting today, he can make the assumption that his partner wasn't really feeling the best about himself, Shadow Milk would never explicitly state these feelings himself but he could feel the resonation of the Souljam and overall the signs. And the fact that his own staff was making it worse?? He was about to blow.
"Well, we assumed-"
"'Assumed'?" Pure Vanilla takes a deep breath before continuing, noticing his tone was a bit too harsh for comfort. "How about we discuss it this way." He stands up. Shadow Milk was already getting giddy but hid it behind her mask. The cookie of truth continues as he walks up to the chef. "When I was at my lowest and refused to eat, did you make me smaller portions?"
".. No, sir."
"Correct. And did you pester me about not eating all my food?"
"No, sir."
"Correct again. So, what if my darling soon to be wife here doesn't eat all their food, hmm? What if they were having a bad day? Do you think it would make them feel better, or worse, to be treated with less respect than the cookie right next to them?"
"..."
"Answer."
"Worse, sir."
Pure Vanilla backs away, clasping his hands together. "Well then! Will you please be a dear and get Shadow Milk Cookie a bigger portion? With some whipped cream, powdered sugar, and blueberries on the top, please."
The chef nods their head, picking Shadow Milk's plate back up. They bow with a hushed: "I apologize, sir." before hurrying back to the kitchen.
Pure Vanilla slowly sits back down in his chair with an exhale. He wraps his arms around the cookie of Deceit's waist to coax her onto his lap, which works. He gently nuzzles his face into her neck, taking in her milky-blueberry scent with a smile.
"I'm so sorry, my love." He murmers against their skin, placing gentle kisses. "They'll know you sooner rather than later. They'll see how much of a sweetheart you are." Another kiss. "I'll show them." Another. "Mmmm I love you."
"Nills!!"
"I'll never let you go, you are my love and no one will take my love away from me." His voice slowly becomes more hushed, nuzzling impossibly closer. "You are the most precious thing, and you're all mine." He places one more kiss before lifting his head back up. Blush was dusting the both of their cheeks.
"You're-..."
"I'm- what? A dork?"
"Unreal.."