Work Text:
Mulled Juice Cookie has a crush on Captain Caviar Cookie.
For the humble head of House Mulled Juice, it was the worst thing ever. For one: he's absolutely head over heels, two: he is also an Elder, and three: if he rejected him, council meetings would become a whole lot more awkward. And what would the others think? The head of engineering dating some salty sailor? But don't get him wrong, In Mulled Juice's opinion, Caviar wasn't ugly, quite the opposite actually. But he felt like the other Elders expected someone a bit better from him. To Juice, it didn't matter how a cookie looks like, a good friend is a good future partner. Or at least that's how Juice viewed it, but even with all those things in mind, he wanted to confess. And fortunately, he had Baumkuchen Cookie by his side to help him out!
Right now, the two of them were in the healer's home, sitting at a table across from each other.
'' So first off. '' Baumkuchen Cookie began. '' If you were to confess at this very moment, what would you do? ''
Mulled Juice gulped. '' Um... That's why I came you...? To figure out how to do that? ''
'' Yes, but I want to know what I'm working with so we can have a reasonable starting point. ''
'' Ah, well... '' Juice thought for a moment. '' I guess by sending a nice letter? ''
Baumkuchen nodded. '' Interesting... What would you write in it? ''
'' ... I guess I could just write about our friendship and end it by saying that I have feelings for him...? ''
'' Well, you seem like you know what to do already! '' The healer said, though a little confused. '' So why are you seeking my help? '' He asked.
Juice was taken back by this, the man said that he was ready, but he didn't really feel like it. '' A-are you sure? I mean, I don't think I really thought about it enough... ''
'' I can help you write the letter if you want. '' Baumkuchen Cookie suggested. '' Or you can confess a different way, I have a couple of ideas you could try. ''
Mulled Juice thought about it. Writing a letter would spare him the confrontation, but the results are quite slow. Then again, in writing his thoughts would be more clearer than if he said it out loud.
'' Alright, I'll write a letter. ''
'' Excellent. I assume you want my help, so let's get straight to it. '' Baumkuchen said. '' Could you fetch a few pieces of paper and a pen from my office please? ''
Mulled Juice nodded and got up from the table to fetch the items requested, coming back a minute later.
'' Great! Come sit by me, it will be easier for me to guide you. ''
'' Alright... '' Juice sat down by the other man. '' Where do we start? ''
----
Mulled juice carefully reread the letter that he and Baumkuchen wrote. He wrote every word with precision to make a perfect letter to send the captain, he even decorated the envelope a little, first impression matters after all. After what felt like decades, the letter was complete, tightly sealed within its envelope and waiting to be sent. Mulled Juice was quite proud of himself. Of course he couldn't have done it without Baumkuchen Cookie, since Juice and writing are not the best acquainted. Now all that's left to do is deliver it!
'' Okay, we're done! '' Baumkuchen said excitedly. '' Now go and deliver it.
'' Thank you so much! I wouldn't have done it without you. '' Juice said as he finally got up from his chair.
Baumkuchen Cookie chuckled. '' Take care, and good luck. ''
And with that, Mulled Juice Cookie got up and exited the healer's house. As soon as he got out the door, he leaned back against the wall of the house, thinking of how on earthbread he's gonna get the letter to Captain Caviar Cookie. He could go the easy way by giving the letter to one of the fleet's guards and telling them to give it to the captain, or he could give it to the captain directly. Either way, the next stop is the docks.
His heart pounded out of his chest as he walked closer and closer to the docks. This was probably the most nervous he has ever been in his life, the last and only time he had ever confessed was back in middle school, where he was severely humbled. Thinking back, the fact that he didn't think about his confession due to how overly confident he was may have worsened the rejection quite a bit. But on the bright side, that moment made sure that juice actually thinks about the confession instead of going in without any preparation. Like right now, avoiding any confrontation by simply writing a letter.
Derailing Mulled Juice's train of thought was the distant bells of a ship departing from the docks. He feared that he may have missed the opportunity to get the letter to Caviar himself, but oh well, he'll get it if he comes back. In the mean time, Juice approached a nearby guard looking over the docks.
'' Hello, am I correct to assume that Captain Caviar Cookie has already departed? '' Juice asked.
'' He has, '' The guard replied. '' he's scheduled to return in three days. ''
The taller man's shoulders sank a little, three days was a lot of time, but he could wait, right? '' Alright, I have a letter for him, could you give it to him when he comes back please? ''
'' Of course, I will hold onto it before he comes back. ''
'' Thank you so much, that's it for now. ''
Satisfied, Mulled Juice parted ways with the guard and went back home. Now all that's left to do is wait...
-----
Finally, Captain Caviar Cookie's expedition has come to an end and the shore was coming closer and closer. He walked along the deck, saying goodbye to the sea for a little while as the next trip out to the sea was far away. He looked over to the busy port below, watching as the cookies ran about. Eventually, the ship came to a halt, and soon he was able to get back on the stable ground. Being out at sea was nice, but nothing can beat the sweet scent of home. Before he could do anything else, he was approached by a guard swiftly walking towards him.
'' Captain! I have a letter for you! '' They said, handing him a fancy looking envelope.
'' An envelope? For me? '' Caviar took the envelope in hand, inspecting it. '' Who sent it? ''
'' Mulled Juice Cookie did. '' They said. '' They wanted to give it to you directly, but your ship just departed when he came, so I held onto it before you arrived back. ''
'' Well, thanks mate! Take care! ''
With the envelope in hand, Captain Caviar Cookie retreated to his office to read it. Upon closing the doors he plopped down on his armchair and inspected the envelope more thoroughly. The back was decorated with inked with leaves and flowers and Captain Caviar's full name, the front had a wax seal in the shape of House Mulled Juice's emblem. Caviar took the pocket knife and carefully cut open the top to not damage the elegant envelope. He pulled out the neatly folded piece of paper, which upon opening, revealed to have similar designs as on the envelope, the handwriting was as neat as it could be. He relaxed into the soft cushions and started reading.
Dear Captain Caviar Cookie.
I hope your day has been wonderful, the safety and well being of my friends is very important to me. I am writing to tell you something that I realized about myself recently, something I wanted you to know.
We have been friends for as long as I remember and I hope our relationship will linger when you finish reading this letter. I know this information may be quite shocking, but there is no way I can keep this to myself any longer, so forgive me if this may seem like 'bad news' to you. At first I thought that what I was feeling was just the progression of our friendship, but eventually I realized the true intentions behind those feelings. It was confusing, and even when I was certain about my feelings, I chose to bottle them away for now, as I feared that this may ruin our friendship. But those feelings have started overflowing, and its getting more and more difficult to keep those feelings within.
I am in love with you.
Every time we speak, I get a strange fuzzy feeling and my heart races out of my chest. Your eyes are enchanting and your soft smile is contagious. There's so many things I wanted to say, but I am limited by the size of the paper. Please, come speak to me when you have the time, whether you bring bad news or good news.
With love, Mulled Juice Cookie.
Captain Caviar Cookie traced over the words with his eyes, not believing what he was seeing. He realized that this was no ordinary letter, it was a love letter! The captain's cheeks blushed a deep red, he has never received this kind of letter, and after getting one from Mulled Juice Cookie he couldn't be happier. Mulled Juice was a great guy and a great and caring friend, he has some good looks too. Caviar has thought about the man before, and he may have some feelings for him as well. He hasn't been in a romantic relationship for a long time and maybe some company would do him good.
Caviar got up from where he was sitting and put the envelope in his drawer before leaving. With a spring in his step, he happily made his way through the dock and towards the laboratory. He knew that Juice spends a lot of time there, so he'll have a good chance of catching him there. And as soon as he got there, lo and behold, his not-so-secret admirer was just exiting the lab. The captain cracked a soft smile as he approached the other man.
'' Aye! Mulled Juice Cookie! '' Caviar yelled out.
As the other man heard his name and recognized Caviar's voice, his shoulders tensed up as he turned around. As soon as he did he was met by Caviar's friendly smile, which eased him a bit. '' O-oh, hey! How are you doing? ''
'' I'm great! '' Caviar replied with a smile. '' I got your letter. ''
'' Oh, yeah. I umm... did sent you a letter. '' Juice said nervously. '' Well... What do you say? ''
'' I'm sayin' that I may have a wee somethin' for ya too! '' The captain said, his smile turning into a playful smirk. '' And I must say, it was a nice letter! Nicely decorated, too. ''
Mulled Juice Cookie blushed. '' T-thank you! Baumkuchen Cookie helped with the writing actually. '' He chuckled softly. '' So... Is that a yes...? ''
'' 'Course it is! C'mere! ''
Suddenly, Caviar wrapped an arm around Mulled Juice's shoulders, although needing to reach up a bit due to their height difference, before guiding him along with him.
'' Wha- where are we going? '' Juice asked.
'' To my office! '' Caviar said to the other man. '' Just wanted to talk a wee bit, haven't had much company for a while! ''
Mulled Juice eventually gave into Caviar's friendly embrace and let him guide him back to the docks. The captain eased his grip on the other man when they neared the port, lowering his arm to his back instead. As soon as they both entered his office, Caviar locked the door behind him and sat down an his couch, gesturing to Juice to sit by him. When Juice sat down, Caviar immediately put his arm back around his shoulder and pulled himself closer to him.
'' So, whadya wanna do? '' Caviar asked.
'' I don't know, i didn't know that I'd get this far! '' Mulled Juice chuckled.
It was obviously up for Caviar to start a conversation. '' Well, how's your day been then? ''
'' Nothing eventful, I've mostly been waiting for your response to my letter. '' Juice said, scratching behind his head. '' But you just came back from a expedition. Surely, there has to be something interesting that happened, right? ''
'' Oh, you wouldn't believe what we saw! ''
As Caviar was explaining the story of his trip out at sea, he let himself ease more and more, eventually ending up with both of the cookies entangling in each other's limbs. Mulled Juice reached his arm up and ran his fingers through Caviar's hair. Their position shifted from sitting to laying down with the captain atop of the other, and eventually the muffled sound of the busy port lulled the two cookies into a peaceful sleep.
------The End-----
