Chapter Text
Pure Vanilla was in the spire with Shadow Milk, and they found out from a friend of White Lily that apparently there has been a spirit watching Shadow Milk… Coconut Milk Cookie… the cookie Shadow Milk baked when he was known as the Fount of Knowledge… the cookie that crumbled as a baby.
After they found out, they decided to do a ritual to see if it’s true… The ritual needed many different things… a piece of paper with the cookie’s name; an item that was dear to them… or in this case had been used by Coconut Milk, and there were probably more steps that Pure Vanilla couldn’t remember even if he tried, but there was one that was concerning... and it was that they needed jam from a relative.
Shadow Milk had said jam ready, which was also concerning on its own, so they did the ritual, and it worked… which was shocking since the ritual seemed like it was fake
The ritual only made it so that they were able to see Coconut Milk but didn’t give him an actual body, nor would they be able to hear him, not to mention this wasn’t permanent, so Coconut Milk decided to write instead… I guess watching over the former Fount of Knowledge helps a bit when it comes to learning things.
They decided that they would make this permanent by baking a body for Coconut Milk and let him stay in it, but they needed to do the ritual again in order for it to work.
They did all the steps like last time… wrote Coconut Milk’s name on a paper, found another item Coconut Milk had used from inside Shadow Milk’s portal, etc., but when they got to the jam part, it somewhat made Pure Vanilla uncomfortable that Shadow Milk had to take some of his own jam.
"Bluebird, are you sure you have to get some of your own jam for this?”
"…Yes, it’s absolutely mandatory, Vanilly."
“… *sigh* if you insist, my love."
Coconut Milk doesn’t seem to like that, however, and manages to get the book with the ritual out of his hands, allowing Pure Vanilla to see it clearly… Everything that was used for their ritual was there, but… the jam of a relative wasn’t needed… It was just used to guarantee the ritual’s success.
“Bluebird… why did you lie about this?"
“…”
“If it isn’t needed, then I’d prefer that you don’t take any more of your jam for this."
Pure Vanilla was focused on telling Shadow Milk that he didn’t want more of Shadow Milk’s jam to be used; he didn’t notice that some of the eyes on Shadow Milk’s hair had turned red… And he’s now acting a bit different… instead of listening to Pure Vanilla’s concern, he’s heading to the portal he still had open.
“Move out of the way… I’m going to use the jam no matter what."
"Shadow, do you hear yourself? You’re saying you're willing to put yourself through so much pain to bring a cookie back when it isn’t even necessary… please stop and think for a minute before you do something so harmful."
"...Move, or I’ll have to make you."
Pure Vanilla now realizes the red eyes that are on Shadow Milk’s hair… that is strange… Shadow Milk has only blue eyes on his hair, nothing else, so why is there red, and why are there fewer blue eyes than before… The red eyes don’t even look like Shadow Milk’s eyes… not even a bit.
"...You aren’t Shadow Milk, are you?”
“…can you stop talking such nonsense and just get out of the way”
"No, I won’t do that… it’s clear now that you aren’t my other half, so tell me, what did you do to him?"
“I did nothing, so mind your own business and leave."
“I won’t do that anytime soon… now get out of him, Dark Enchantress Cookie."
“So you know who I am then? I’m surprised you figured it out with how idiotic you are… you can’t even see the truth of this world."
“I couldn’t care less about bickering with you right now… I want you out of Shadow Milk’s head… now."
“You are quite hard-headed, Pure Vanilla Cookie… I won’t tell you again to leave, or I’ll make you."
The longer Dark Enchantress is in Shadow Milk’s head, the fewer blue eyes there are… one after another they turn crimson red until there’s one blue eye left, and Pure Vanilla seems to notice that.
“Nononono… Bluebird please fight back you can’t let Dark Enchantress win”
“Hm… tell you what, I’ll get out from Shadow Milk’s mind IF and only IF you leave the spire… for good."
“What—no, I won’t do that… I’m no fool; I know you won’t do your part of the deal… either that or you’ll find a loophole.”
“So it seems I’ll have to get you out by force."
Dark Enchantress… no, I’ll call this version ‘Red Eyes’… Red Eyes summons their staff and points it at Pure Vanilla… They're getting a spell ready to be cast.
“Last chance, Pure Vanilla Cookie: either you leave the spire for good, which in turn means I’ll get out of Shadow Milk’s head and you get out unscathed, or~ you don’t and in the process you probably crumble."
"…If I have to leave Shadow Milk, it will be by force… not by choice. You don’t seem to realize that, Dark Enchantress Cookie.”
“If you insist~”
Red Eyes is ready to cast the spell, but their arms are shaking now. It seems like Shadow Milk is trying to prevent the spell from being used on Pure Vanilla… The one blue eye is crying… It doesn’t want Pure Vanilla to get hurt… Unfortunately for him, his opinion doesn’t matter to Red Eyes, and they finally manage to have their staff aimed at Pure Vanilla and cast it… The spell hits Pure Vanilla’s face… it seems like the spell at first won’t look like it caused much harm to Cookies, but knowing Red Eyes, it probably is as harmful as they said it was.
Pure Vanilla realizes something… either way he’ll have to leave Shadow Milk… he’ll have to make the choice on how it ends up… either he fights to stay with him in the present and in turn crumbles… allowing Red Eyes to do whatever they want with Shadow Milk once he’s crumbled, or he actually leaves the spire as soon as possible now that he has been hit… In turn, if he heals himself in time, he may be able to live through this and come back for Shadow Milk… He'd rather take the chance at leaving him temporarily rather than crumble and not be able to stop whatever is planned for Shadow Milk… Pure Vanilla runs out of the room and out of the spire… he keeps running… and running… and running until he’s too tired to run… He starts to heal himself before he passes out from exhaustion.