Hot… so very hot. He could feel it, like the very sugar in his dough was melting, burning, disintegrating! He was so thirsty, but that was the least of his worries now. He screamed but nothing came out of his mouth. Was this it? Was he going to crumble here?
A shadow passed through the flames, reptilian eyes staring deep into his soul. Perhaps this would be his last vision before the flames overtook him.
"What'sss the matter, Cookie?"
In that moment, the poor Cookie begged for his life. It was a last-ditch effort, but the desperation in his voice seemed to move the Red Dragon. Insignificant, helpless, yet there was a strength in the creature that the Red Dragon quite liked, maybe even admired. With a toothy sneer, the Dragon granted the Cookie's wish. But there was a catch. No longer would the Cookie be just an ordinary Cookie. He would become the embodiment of flame, itself, blessed with a fragment of the Red Dragon's power.
Sure, it seemed like a great deal at the time. Not just great, it was wonderful! The Cookie got to keep his life, and he was now crazy strong! But the strength came as little comfort once the Cookie realized he could not return home, could not touch other Cookies. His original life had vanished in an instant, and, sometimes, it got so lonely that the little Cookie wished that he had crumbled away instead. The price of power was steep, indeed.
But he survived. Even as that original Cookie faded into nothing, the Elemental embraced life anew. He lifted himself up, arrogance covering up the weaker emotions, like heartache and grief. Secluded from the rest of Cookiekind, Fire Spirit Cookie became a legend in his own right. He could not interact in Kingdoms, or get too close to forests, but he could soar high above the clouds and look down on Earthbread in all of its glory with adoration. His home was still loved, even after all this time.
Eventually, the time came for him to introduce himself to the other Elementals. It was Sea Fairy Cookie whom he saw, first, from a distance. She responded coolly to him, because she only had eyes for the Moon. At least Moonlight Cookie was more kind, when she was awake. She told him where to find the others. Fire Spirit Cookie journeyed to faraway lands to meet them all, but the Spirit of the Wind seemed to be even more elusive than he was. That guy was always on the move, it was so hard to track him down!
Eventually, he did find the other Elemental, but Fire Spirit Cookie didn't recognize it at the time. All he saw was a green Cookie dancing on the wind, as light as a feather. Tall, graceful, with thin limbs and lithe dough. The faint scent of freshly cut grass hit Fire Spirit Cookie and he could not stop staring for a long while. He'd never seen something so elegant, so beautiful. Poetry in motion…
He fled before he could even introduce himself.
When Fire Spirit Cookie went back to the area, the green Cookie was gone, and he grumbled to himself. As he turned around, he heard the softest sound, and, immediately, his defenses went up. He blocked an arrow that had flown straight towards him. Strange, no normal Cookie should have been able to see him, but that arrow was definitely aimed at him. He turned again, and the green Cookie was there, hands gripping a weapon, a bow made of vines, and another light arrow was pointed in his face.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" gasped Fire Spirit Cookie. He held up his hands in a surrender. "What's with the hostile welcome? I wasn't doing anything!"
"You were staring at me," the green Cookie replied seriously, his eyes narrowed.
Fire Spirit Cookie blanched. "You, uh. You saw that?" He quickly shook his head. "I mean! You can see me?"
The green Cookie lowered his bow after a moment and the arrow was put back into its quiver. "Of course I can see you," he said. "We're both Elementals, aren't we?"
Both? Fire Spirit Cookie blinked owlishly. This was the Cookie he had been looking for, the Wind Spirit. Now that he had time to catch his breath and think about it, that seemed obvious! He relaxed and brought a hand to rest on his hip, suddenly grinning smugly. "Yeah, I guess we are. The name's Fire Spirit Cookie—"
"I know who you are," interrupted the green Cookie. And then he turned to leave.
Again, Fire Spirit Cookie was dumbfounded. This guy was just going to float away after all that? "H-hey wait!" Where was he going?! "Normally, Cookies tell each other their names when they introduce themselves, right?" Even though he had introduced himself, the Wind Cookie already knew his name. But Fire Spirit Cookie didn't know his. That wasn't fair!
The Wind Cookie leapt up into the trees and disappeared among the foliage. Fire Spirit Cookie wanted to chase after him, but if he got too close, he'd set the tree ablaze. He tried calling out to him again.
"My name is Wind Archer Cookie," came a voice behind Fire Spirit Cookie's head.
He whipped around, and the green Cookie was standing there again. Amazing! He was so fast, moved with the wind, itself, just as Fire Spirit Cookie was fire. Fire Spirit Cookie wanted to be annoyed, but he was mostly impressed. How embarrassing. "There we go!" he smirked, crossing his arms over his chest while he still held his staff. "Was that so hard?"
Wind Archer Cookie's eyes blinked slowly, but he remained standing where he was this time. "Millennial Tree Cookie told me you would be coming," he said cautiously. Strange, he was more wary of Fire Spirit Cookie than polite. Why was that? "Now that I have given you my name, I see no reason to linger."
Fire Spirit Cookie continued to grin, but he didn't like that answer. He was annoyed, the corner of his mouth twitching. Why were the other Elementals such pains? "Yeah? Well, I guess that's fine. You've got important places to be, an' all! So important!"
Wind Archer Cookie turned away again, but something about Fire Spirit Cookie's tone rubbed him the wrong way. If he wanted to get a rise out of him, it was working. The green Cookie whirled back towards him, angered. "Some of us have duties to attend to, you know. We can't stand around all day staring at other Cookies without speaking up!"
So he'd struck a nerve. Fire Spirit Cookie winced and leaned back. "Alright, alright! Forgive me for not announcing my presence!" he snapped, his cheeks burning up. After a second, he looked away, his voice getting softer. "You're right. That was rude. Sorry."
There was a pause, silence filling the void between the two of them. In the forest, birds and insects chirped, and Wind Archer Cookie finally sighed. "It's… Alright. I'm not mad anymore."
As he floated away, Fire Spirit Cookie wondered if introducing himself to anyone was even worth it. "Duties," he laughed mirthlessly. "What's so good about having duties if no one else appreciates the hard work you put into 'em?"
Wind Archer Cookie paused. He wanted to respond, to tell Fire Spirit Cookie that working behind the scenes for Cookiekind was reward enough, but he didn't think that would be well-received. Fire Spirit Cookie had a lot to learn, but Wind Archer Cookie couldn't teach him everything. Still, he wouldn't gain anything by being unkind to the other.
"It's hard," he finally said quietly, not sure if Fire Spirit Cookie would even listen to him. "It's hard not… being able to interact with the other Cookies. But we were given this job for a reason—"
"I wasn't," the red Cookie huffed, his tone dangerously low. When he thought about how he'd wound up as Fire Spirit Cookie, he didn't think of it as a good thing, a fated destiny by chance, or whatever Wind Archer Cookie was talking about. "I wasn't chosen by some miracle, or by the Sugar Swan or anything grandiose like that. I just wanted to save my own dough."
Wind Archer Cookie moved back over to him, floating in front of the red Cookie. After a slight hesitation, he reached forward, placing a cool hand against the heated cheek. Fire Spirit Cookie quickly snapped back, worried that he might burn him. Or, maybe he simply moved out of shock. Either way, the comforting Wind was enough to make his flames burn brighter, and Wind Archer Cookie, himself, did not look like he was in any pain. Someone had finally touched Fire Spirit Cookie, after all these years. He stared in awe.
It was silly, but that simple touch made Fire Spirit Cookie feel better. Though Wind Archer Cookie disappeared before either of them could respond with words, Fire Spirit Cookie felt comforted. It was as though new life had been breathed into him, again. Was this what the other Elementals meant when they said that the Wind could revitalize the earthbread?
The forest's tranquility was broken with a happy cheer, a cry of laughter. Fire Spirit Cookie shot up into the air, whooping with glee. His flames burned so hot, and he truly felt alive for the first time in ages. As he dashed back towards the Dragon's Valley, he began to understand just how he could help Earthbread. He'd do it in his own way, one step at a time.
author's notes: slowly, but surely, i'm writing little ficlets for all my favorite Cookie Run pairings. i'm sure a lot of people have already written about Fire Sprit Cookie's origins and first meeting with Wind Archer Cookie. i'm not here to compete, i just had a vision and needed to get out my thoughts. thanks for reading.
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