#e-sides

[a-lilyinthevalley]

*ahem* the air splits open for a moment and a very fluffy porple trips and falls into Lily's vicinity, accompanied by a surprised squawk and falling books

- @feathery-faeries Sapph

Dark Enchantress jumped nearly a foot in the air at the new cookie's appearance. Lily didn't seem too affected, other than tensing up for a moment.

"Ah," she said, "That's..."

"Black Sapphire?" her Bug said, head cocked.

"...Yeah."

At the edge of the Silver Kingdom? Why?

[a-lilyinthevalley]

I wonder what Pom Pom and their siblings could be capable of without their restraints...

Dark Enchantress paused at that. ...Limiters. Other-me might be mentally unwell, but she isn't stupid. Well. Mostly, anyways.

"I suppose... they could possibly turn into dragons, though that's just theory. Dragontongue shouldn't be used on cookies, so I really haven't the faintest idea what its long-term effects would be, especially without something to balance all that power."

White Lily stirred in her sleep, which caught the dragon's attention almost immediately. With a slight groan, she stretched, then slowly slid out of bed on shaky legs to hunt down a shirt that didn't show her burn scars and magic markings.

It wasn't nothing that Bug hadn't seen before, but it put her at ease to know that no one could see them. That being said, button-up shirts were evil. She could barely grasp the buttons, much less slip them through their designated holes.

With a frustrated growl, Dark Enchantress deigned to leave the shirt open and pinned her cloak in place. They'd be going back to the Castle, anyways. She needed to check in with Matcha and Licorice.

Lico should have the cloaking pendants finished by now. It can't be good for Matcha to stay in the Castle all her life. She needs to see the world. Make her own opinions. Hopefully, going out will help with that.

The dragon also needed to hunt down Strawberry Crepe and threaten them ask politely for them to make Matcha a speaking device of some kind.

"...Dee?" called her Bug's sleep-scratched voice.

"Over here! Just... speaking with them," she called back. Lily hummed faintly in acknowledgement.

Well. Nothing left to do here but leave.

[a-lilyinthevalley]

Dee, do you want to kill the witches?

"...well. I'm just tired. I never really thought about what came after revenge. I just want to live. With my k- minions, and with my Bug."

[a-lilyinthevalley]

Perhaps! She also used Dragontongue to create Pom Pom, Venom, and Mold so they could be quite the bit more powerful than they seem - especially if one somehow managed to get those collars and chains off?

All Dark Enchantress could think about was the other her the butterfly had told her about. How odd it must have been, to be so corrupted.

Though burn marks marred her dough and her jam ran through blackened veins, she could not fathom doing what the other had. It did not compute with her frame of the world at large.

[a-lilyinthevalley]

... Dee, that Dark Enchantress killed some of the Cakes that worked under her for the simple act of existing too close to her enemies. That collar Pom Pom has? Their version of you put that there. To control them, because she didn't want trust, she wanted obedience. And poor Pom isn't the only one, their siblings are out there somewhere with similar binds. You're one of the most considerate versions of you when it comes to accomplishing your evil goals. Be proud of that.

"That's not... aheh, that's..."

That's evil, she almost said, but stopped. If that was evil, then what were her actions supposed to be? For gods' sakes, she used black magic, not morally grey magic!!

"That's... cruel, of her. Reckless, even. No regard for collateral, especially during a war, is how one loses. No cookie can rule with fear indefinitely. What, was her plan to simply... control everyone? Like all of Earthbread would wear her collars around their necks?

"Excuse my asking, but was she insane?"

I met Pom-Pom. The fact that puff stood in front of me without flinching... is highly impressive.

The dragon sat there for a moment longer before she pushed her hair back with a still-trembling hand, "Gods, to think the other versions of me are so... distasteful. What Freedom could they possibly be chasing? Whatever ideal it is, it's not for the betterment of cookiekind, that's for damn sure."

[a-lilyinthevalley]

*poking Dee more* they're from another timeline where you don't care about your underlings at all :)

"Surely this other Enchantress you're talking about does that much. Food, clothing, shelter... basic necessities..."

If she doesn't, then... how are the Cookies of Darkness from that timeline faring..?

[a-lilyinthevalley]

*poking Dee* you wanna learn a fun fact about Matcha's fluffy friend?

"If you need to tell me, keep it quiet, alright? Bug's still asleep."

[a-lilyinthevalley]

Dark Enchantress woke slowly.

The ceiling of an unfamiliar room -- an infirmary? -- greeted her.

What... happened..?

A light snore alerted her to White Lily's presence at the foot of the bed. The faerie's eyes were closed, head pillowed on their arms. The crack over their eye glowed weakly.

...Was her crack always that big? I don't remember it reaching beyond the bottom of her eye.

The dragon pushed it from her mind in favor of doing an inventory check on herself.

Her arms ached. Most of her ached, but not any more than usual. She hadn't felt pain like mold poisoning since... the cauldron, really. Most injuries did not penetrate her dough to the point of her feeling it. Small mercies of being baked alive; a good chunk of feeling in your body burns along with you and your hope for a better world.

Even with how high Dark Enchantress' pain tolerance was, she had never felt anything like the rot pulsing through her dough. She would not wish it upon her worst enemy, and that strange Beast had wanted White Lily to drink the entire thing??

She couldn't bring herself to trust Pale Milk Cookie. Yes, he had stabilized her Bug, but at the cost of poisoning them.

The dragon closed her eyes, and thought.