Purple Yam let out a soft hum as he glanced around, standing guard outside of the church of Light that Pastry Cookie had set up when she entered the village. He sighed as he thought about it, never really trusting anyone besides Milk. His thumb rubbed on the back of his hand nervously as he sighed shakily, closing his eyes for a moment before shifting and letting them glimmer as he looked to the sky. Judging by how low the sun was, they would finish soon. He sighed as he closed his eyes, mumbling to himself and shaking his head as he shifted and put his hammer over his shoulder.

Milk hummed a soft, though silent, tune to himself, joining in respectfully on Pastry's prayer with a dignified bow of his head. It was the last one of the day, for him at least, peacefully excusing himself from the grand halls after finishing up and wishing Pastry Cookie a good evening, as she was still there. While this specific chapel was nothing like the one back at his village home, it certainly did put a smile on his face to keep some part of his typical routine from back then. Closing the doors behind himself as he left, Milk eyed Purple Yam standing guard for a second before smiling evermore than he already was and offering out a simple greeting, "Hey Yam."

He glanced back at him before smiling hesitantly, tapping his thumb on his hand a bit before shifting and putting his hammer away in favor of just putting them on his hips. "Nice to see you've finally come out, then!" He chirped, always having found prayers pretty boring for the most part. He'd tolerated it for about ten minutes before leaving to stand guard outside the church, humming lightly. "What are we doing today?" He hummed easily, watching him with a softly curious look on his face.

"I'm honestly not too sure. Their highness hasn't told me we need to do much today," Milk answered honestly with a moment of hesitation to ponder on the question himself. "We could check in on their grace to see if they have instructions or bother Maddy and Knight and join in on practice? Tea Knight wouldn't hesitate to whip us further into shape, I'm certain. Unless you have other ideas? That's all I can think about off the top of my head," The paladin added on, holding his hands behind his back as he hummed.

"Why don't we go check in on Their Highness?" He spoke with a soft grin, humming to himself as he trotted off towards the castle. He knew he was pretty much free for most of the day, so at this point, he just needed to find something to do. He hummed to himself casually as he smiled, chatting with Milk the whole way while making sure everything was in order in the village. Had to make sure they were safe, after all.

Milk smiled brightly, happy to chat away with Yam as they headed for the castle, ever so lightly fiddling around with his shield as they walked to make sure it was still in perfect condition and to check if it needed a new coat of polish anytime soon. Which it didn't, as it was as pristine as ever. Quietly walking into the castle when they arrived, Milk led Yam to the throne room, considering the paladin knew the castle decently well, and popped his head inside the room to look for the regal figure they were searching for. "Your Majesty? Are you in here?"

Yam peeked his head in as well, noticing the royal figure bathed in a pool of light while sitting on the throne. They seemed to be asleep, something common they did to gather their energy for another day's spells. They were an ancient, after all, and though their power was strong, many ancients had to gather their strength before facing the day. Yam slowly went inside, approaching them and curiously reaching out to poke them. However, their eyes snapped open and they snatched Yam's wrist gently, startling the warrior as they stood and seemed to tower over him. [i "Do not touch me without permission."] Their voice echoed around the room softly with how it projected.

"He musn't be used to your kingdom or familiarized himself with your rules, your grace. Dark Cocoa's lands are ruled... Very differently compared to here. Many apologies," Milk quickly stated in a clear worried, apologetic tone with a respectful bow of his head and motioning for Yam to do the same, hoping to smooth that little rough start. Otherwise Yam might get in trouble, which would risk in the warrior getting enraged, which then would risk Milk becoming upset; it was a series that progressively got worse as it continued unless you stopped it quickly, to say the least. "We're only here to check in on your wellbeing, nothing more."

An unimpressed hum escaped them as they let go of Yam, who quickly backed up and bowed his head like Milk was. "Please forgive me, my king." He spoke softly, Pure Vanilla humming quietly as they brushed themselves off before sitting gracefully back down on the throne. "It's alright, I suppose. But I am alright, I promise." Yam glanced at Milk curiously, watching them before clearing his throat. "Do you have anything you wish of us, your Highness?" He asked surprisingly softly, Pure Vanilla thinking for a moment. "Perhaps...but it is quite dangerous..."

"Dangerous?" Milk repeated with a raise of his brow, bringing his head back up to share a glance with Yam before looking back to them. "Then we shall go fourth with caution. What is it that you'd wish of us to do? If need be, we can ask Madeleine or Knight to accompany us. Though, we alone make for a good team, might I remind you." The paladin said easily, lightly dusting off his own robes whilst keeping his shield drawn close.

Pure Vanilla crossed one leg over the other, bouncing their leg before sighing softly. "I need you two to go back to Dark Cacao's kingdom and check how things are there." They spoke calmly as their eyes glimmered softly, looking down at them with a soft hum. "Can you do that for me?" Yam seemed confused, looking at Milk in confusion.

"You'd like for us to return to Dark Cocoa's kingdom to check on it?..." Milk, once again, repeated after their highness, this time with a voice filled with slight uncertainty as his eyes glanced down to the floor for a millisecond. "I do not see why couldn't be able to do so for you, your majesty. Though, with all due respect, I do find the need to ask. Could I know why? Isn't Dark Cocoa capable of managing his own kingdom without need for check-ups from the other kingdoms of the ancients?"

"You question my orders?" They spoke in a stern tone, watching them with an eyebrow raised. They didn't seem happy at the moment, tapping their finger against the armrest of their throne before standing up and grabbing their staff. They then looked to the two guards, muttering a simple "Come." before walking off. Yam listened without questioning it too much, following behind the ruler, who walked with purpose and therefore, would take a bit to catch up to.

The paladin quietly gulped down his quickly rising fears and uncertainties, following dutifully behind Pure Vanilla, keeping pace with Yam. A newfound soft frown was glued to his expression now, rather than the bright, sometimes toothy grin he typically wore. Yeah, he was aware he asked the wrong questions, though in his honour's defence, it was concerning his homelands and the well-respected king of said lands. Didn't he have a right to ask about matters concerning it? Maybe not as much as he had thought, quietly sighing as he continued to follow them to wherever the regal figure was leading the two.

They opened a door and walked inside, settling themselves on a plush cushion as they hummed and placed their staff in their lap with a soft hum. Yam walked inside as well, looking around before hesitantly settling himself down on a cushion as well. His eyes glimmered as he looked around softly, humming to himself and shifting as Pure Vanilla held their hands out and began to chant softly. A foreboding feeling filled the two younger Cookies, light swirling around them.

Continuing on with his uneasy silence, Milk eyed the light that seemed to dance around, as if inspecting it for any harmful intentions or as if he were suspicious of it. The paladin simply didn't enjoy the foreboding feeling that had fallen over him, though, pulling his shield closer to himself in case he felt the need to hide himself behind it regardless of the lack of a current threat. Milk didn't speak a word despite all of it, having enough trust and respect for Pure Vanilla to interrupt with another rudely placed question. It would be out-of-line to speak now anyways, he knew that much by heart at the very least.

The ruler's eyes began to glow as they held their hands up, an even worse feeling filling them all as a harsh sound came. It made Pure Vanilla flinch, wincing softly as their magic flickered, then died. They panted as they dropped their hands in their lap, Yam looking at Milk with a softly confused look. "Does this happen often-?" He spoke softly, clearly nervous as he fidgeted. He wanted to help, but he didn't want to get snapped at like earlier.

Milk could only spare Yam a brief glance with a solemn gaze, setting his shield down at his side as he worried looked to them. Milk had a rough understanding of the type of spell they had cast; admittedly only knowing the general basics as he couldn't go too in-depth about the various types of spells; but that was more than enough to warrant worry. "...Who were you thinking about just now, Your Highness?" He warily asked out, a frown staying glued to his otherwise soft features, eyeing Pure Vanilla carefully, almost as carefully as he listened for an answer.

"...You two." They spoke after a moment of catching their breath, knowing they would need to calm down and recharge their energy while the two guards did their task. "You two are in terrible danger...and that is why I must implore you to go to Dark Cacao's kingdom and see if everything is alright there. I've heard some unsavory rumors from Millennial Tree, and even if he's not quite worried, I am." Their tone held a bit of urgency.

Milk hummed out, drenching the singular note in surprise, understatement, and a tad pinch of fear all at the same time. "I- I see... When would you like for us to leave, then? We could grab some supplies and leave quickly if you so much as say for us to do so." The paladin stated with as much feigned confidence as the ocean contained salt, admittedly rather worried but he wouldn't let that show truly quite just yet. "It wouldn't take us but ten minutes, don't you think, Yam? That seems manageable to me,"

"Soon, if you can." They spoke as they tried to stand, nearly about to fall over before Yam moved forwards in order to catch them. "Be careful, Your Grace." He spoke in a hurried tone, Pure Vanilla managing to stand up with help as they looked up at Yam. "Thank you, Purple Yam..." They spoke softly, letting out a soft groan.

"Ah, let's get you somewhere where you won't fall over first, Your Majesty." He suggested as he came to their aid as well, only wishing to help as one could never be too certain, leaving his shield and healing staff behind to do so. Milk could always return to grab it afterwards, he supposed. "Would you prefer your bedroom or the throne room? Or someplace else? I don't want to leave you when you're in a weakened state..."

"You needn't worry about me, you two, but I appreciate it." They smiled hesitantly, taking a shaky breath as they attempted to stand without help. Yam wouldn't let them, putting his hands on them once again. "Please do allow us to help, your highness, you seem very fatigued!" He was genuinely trying to help, and Pure Vanilla seemed to recognize that as they sighed slowly. "Very well...the throne room should suffice." They held both of the guard's hands, allowing the two Cookies to lead the way.

Milk hummed out a soft note, otherwise quietly and gently leading Pure Vanilla along with Yam to the throne room, presumably so that they could rest like they had been doing before the two had interrupted them earlier. Given, it did little to ease his mind from the fact he and Yam were apparently in danger and the paladin didn't know [i why], but it did soothe the part of him that insisted to ensure the royal figure was cared for. Only once Pure Vanilla was seated on the throne when they made it there was when Milk stepped back and gave them some space, standing at the side of Yam and sparing him a glance.

The king slowly sat on their throne, putting their hands together and murmuring a soft prayer before looking up at the two Cookies. "Go safely, and please try to come back alive." They spoke gently, then sighed and closed their eyes. Yam shook it off quickly, patting Milk's shoulder before strolling out of the throne room and starting towards his home in the barracks.

Milk, in turn, turned to leave the throne room after a respectful bow of his head, quietly closing the grand doors behind him as he left. The first thing he did was scoop up his shield and healer's staff from the other room in which he left the two in, as those were things he typically immediately needed. Besides, it was probably alright to be away from Yam so they could separately gather their own things for the trip. Plus, the warrior could easily find him if anything were to honestly happen. Yeah, the paladin convinced himself it was alright after a few moments, swinging by his own home to get all of his basic needs for the last-minute trip.

Purple Yam got ready as quickly as he could, waiting for the paladin at the entrance to the village while fidgeting nervously. He wasn't sure what he thought of the order, but he was going to listen to it anyway since he didn't want to upset the ruler. His eyes glimmered as he hummed softly, closing his eyes and smiling while swaying back and forth.

It didn't take long for him to gather up all he needed, or tiny things that would make him a little more comfortable on the trip like lotion or a specific blanket he enjoyed; he was not accepting questions about that. After grabbing all he decided to bring, Milk hurried himself along to the entrance to the village, sighing out in somewhat relief that Yam was waiting there for him. He quickly put on his typical smile as he walked up to the other, "I'm surprised to see [i you] smiling about all this. What a treat that is,"

He hummed lightly as he thought about something, looking over at him before putting his arms behind his back. "Let's go, we'll get there sooner. I'm kind of excited to see how Dark Cacao's kingdom has fared!" He hummed lightly as he trotted along the path, his eyes glimmering as he put his hand out in invitation to the paladin. It was clear the barbarian was mildly excited for this journey, humming lightly and smiling as he stuck his tongue out slightly.

"I'm certain the kingdom is still as grand and powerful as it always has been." The paladin spoke before he genuinely smiled at that, happy to take up the invitation he was given with a little hustle to get back to staying by Yam's side. Given, he didn't pass up on the perfect opportunity to hold the hand that was held out to him either, gleefully humming to himself as they walked. "Y'know, I don't think I've seen you so excited for a trip like this!" Milk chirped out in the same happy tone he hummed to himself in, shifting around the few things he was carrying to gently boop the warriors nose. "I wonder if we could make a stop at my home tribe..."