Hero joining the TBD in attempt to save Croissant from Timekeeper but fails and falls to her as well as Croissant?
"How brave you are, dear Hero. Truly, you live up to your name!" Timekeeper patronized to the young cookie. Within the Director's Office of the Time Balance Department, the caramel cookie stood nervously in front of the deity he knew to be chaotic. "P-please, just call me Caramel when I'm not in my suit... Only Croissant is supposed to know about my other identity..." The words that almost sounded like pleading were only met with a grin. "Of course, of course! My apologies... Caramel..." Something about the way his name was spoken sent chills down his spine, but he didn't dare let his fear show more than it already was. For a hero, he was certainly a coward by heart. "Well then! Please do make yourself at home in the TBD! And if you dare try to tamper with the deal that Croissant and I have made..."
"Consider yourself a permanent member of this department."
The whole interaction, let alone Timekeeper's words, were certainly ones that were wrapped around Caramel's mind. It was with a nervous sigh that the mechanic speedily walked through the halls of the TBD, careful of his asthma, to head into the personal quarters. He's visited now and then, so knowing where Croissant stayed was one of the only comforts of stability he had in mind. As for Croissant herself, well... That was the main issue at hand.
The two keep in touch regularly, but it was only recently that Caramel had noticed a change in her behavior. He knew the deal between his sister and Timekeeper, and though he didn't want that deal to remain, he wouldn't stop Croissant from doing what she wished. She was just being stubborn as always, and could easily hold out for as long as need be... Or so Caramel thought it to be. There was something in the way she spoke over the calls the two had together, the way it seemed... Unstable. Spastic, really, though Caramel wasn't sure if it would be rude to describe her as such. Not to mention she was letting her hair down more often, something Caramel knew his sister hated to do.
His footsteps paused before the door to Croissant's room. The mechanic took in a deep breath, knowing that being face-to-face with this oddly acting sibling of his would be... A trip, to state the least of it. "No matter what happens... She's still your family." He murmured, adjusting his glasses and taking a step into the quarters he knew to be Croissant's. And... Well, he was greeted with an overly excited hug! Normally Croissant would just be chill enough to offer a wave or something, so for Caramel, this was more than a bit sudden! "Oh, Melly! It's so wonderful to see you again!" Yup. That voice was different. A lot more playful than usual, so say the least. "I can't wait to show you all the progress I've made in going through time all by myself! At this rate, I won't even need my machine sooner than later!"
"Y-yea, okay, neat..." Caramel squirmed in the other's hold, finding himself whimpering even once he was released. "L-l-listen, Saunty, I... I think y-you should take a break from all of this TBD business..." Croissant seemed to twitch their visible eye, the other having been covered by an eye patch. Wait- "Uh- Though before you u-uh go off on me about that... What happened to your eye...?"
"This? Oh! Haha! I just accidentally went through time with my goggles only part-way on! It was an honest mistake, and Timekeeper found the time in their day to make this patch just for me!" That... Wasn't a good thing to hear, in Caramel's mind. Expression narrowing in worry, the mechanic found himself almost trembling at the thought of his sister slowly becoming another Timekeeper. "Oh... That's- That's unfortunate..." He mumbled, trying to find a way to speak of things without winding up seeming offensive. Especially not to someone as dear to him as Croissant. "Maybe- Maybe you really should take a break... At least let your eye recover a-and that, yea...?"
For being the weird one in the room, Croissant certainly looked at Caramel as if he had grown a second head. "Take a break? Let it recover? Haha, Caramel, quit being a jokester! Being the greatest mechanic of time is a tireless endeavor! That, and my eye won't ever heal anyways, so there's no point in stopping for that!" That grin the afflicted held... It was so similar to Timekeeper that Caramel swore the two could have swapped places at that moment. "I-I know it's something your passionate about, but... I... I'm really concerned that something is happening to- to you, you know? You're... You've been acting so different..."
"Maybe so! But that's not an excuse to just let all of my work be put on hold! I'm so close to some kind of breakthrough, I just know it! I'll keep working at it so long as time lasts!" With a yelp from the mechanic, Croissant set her hands on the other's shoulders, looking him dead in the eyes. "C'mon, brother o ' mine! Can't you see how happy this is making me? You don't want to upset your big sis, do you?"
As much as Caramel wished to look away, get away from that wickedly joyous gaze that felt as if it didn't belong to her sister at all, he... He was caught in it. "I-I don't mean to upset you, no... I... Don't..." The hero was losing his words, not even realizing that they were being lost in a haze. When had Croissant gotten her eye so bright and easy to fall into? He- He couldn't tell if it was her anymore, really. "I know you don't, silly! Which is why I want you to just look at me and tell me something!" It was an odd request, but... Caramel would nod. Slowly. "What is it that you- that you want me to say...?"
"That you love working at the TBD!"
A simple request, though one that Caramel would hesitate to comply to. "C'mon, Melly! Just say it! You'll feel better when you say it, I promise! Hehe!" Caramel's vision went blurry for a moment before focusing back on that enticing eye. If- If she said so... "I... I love working for the TBD...?" There was a joyous laugh in response, one that struck a chord in Caramel to get him to smile faintly. "You love working for the TBD, just like me! We can work together!" Together... Being with family was always a good thing, not that Caramel could really say anything of the sort with how his mind was somewhat blanking.
Some other voice, hazy as it may be, was just behind Croissant's. Caramel couldn't tell whose it was, but it wasn't as if it mattered. The TBD would be a great place to finally stay with Croissant and not have to worry about her during all of his heroic duties... "Say it again, won't you?" The voice prompted, and Caramel answered. "I love working for the TBD..." And upon being told to repeat, Caramel did so. He loved working for the TBD. It was a fantastic place to stay. He loved working for the TBD. Just like Croissant. He loved working for the TBD.
He loved listening to the Timekeeper's whims and words.