*rides in on a dinosaur* Hey, welcome back to Fear the Jelly Walkers- -Chapter 3!
Fanta had a lot of involvement in this chapter, but I did a good chunk of the ending! It's not the clearest of transitions between writing styles, which just makes it that much more interesting for me to challenge you- - where do you think I started writing and Fanta finished?
Anyways, we're both roaring for you all to read this, so let's get started! Hope you enjoy!
TW: death, pet death, zombie stuff
Dino-Sour woke up to the sound of a bird singing. Ah, right, Cotton Candy Bird. He'd almost forgotten.
His girlfriend, Cotton Candy Cookie, had moved in with him not long ago and was currently sound asleep in bed next to him. Or at least, she had been up until that point, for Cotton Candy Bird decided to gently descend from its perch on the nearby window and land on her chest. It gently nuzzled the underside of her chin until she let out a gentle, sleepy moan and sat up in place. Cotton Candy Bird flew up to be eye-level with her, then nuzzled her cheek and gave her tiny kisses with its beak. She giggled and kissed it back on its forehead.
"Good morning, Birdie."
"And good mornin' to you, baby!" Dino-Sour said with a grin before kissing Cotton Candy's shoulder. She blushed and gently set Cotton Candy Bird down on the blanket in front of her, then looked at Dino-Sour with a flustered, goofy grin.
"Good morning, Dino-Sour."
Dino-Sour gave her a big, goofy smile in return before going for a kiss on the lips. Cotton Candy, pleasantly surprised, returned it softly. No matter how many times it happened, she never got entirely used to it. She was just so in love; every kiss was like falling for him all over again. His lips were sour, but his love was so sweet. She could never get enough.
Soon Dino-Sour had his arms lovingly wrapped around her, slowly kissing her all over her neck, shoulders, and collarbones. The softness of her hair, the warmth of her dough, the gentleness of her slow, steady breaths- - everything about her was so perfect, so soothing. And Cotton Candy felt the same way about him. His handsome smile, his adorable laughter, his unapologetic excitement over the tiniest things- - he was so charming, so energizing. She was lucky to have found someone like him. It was almost funny. She was sweet. He was sour. It was the perfect combination.
Cotton Candy Bird took the cue to give the two some more space and fluttered down to the bedroom floor, landing right by Dino-Egg's doggy bed. Jellysaur, who had its own doggy bed nearby as well, was sound asleep, leaning on a sleeping Dino-Egg. Cotton Candy Bird joined the huddle, leaning on Dino-Egg's other side. Everything was still. Everything was peaceful. Everything was as it should be, full of warmth and love and- -
Jellysaur snapped awake. It let out a squeak so loud that it woke up Dino-Egg, then it dashed out the bedroom door and out to the front door.
"Ah, great. Someone's probably at the door. Did you hear the doorbell, babe?"
Cotton Candy blinked. "No, I don't think so…"
"Huh. Weird. Alright, let me go see what's up with this crazy little dude."
Dino-Sour yawned and put on his dinosaur slippers and dinosaur-print robe before slowly making his way to the front door. Cotton Candy simply lay still. She hoped Dino-Sour would be back soon; she wanted him to pamper her just a little more.
She soon realized that wasn't going to happen, for she heard Dino-Sour's hurried footsteps as he rushed back to their bedroom not two minutes later, out of breath, his eyes wide with panic.
"What's wrong, sweetheart- -"
"Cotton Candy. We gotta go. Right now. Run out the back door and don't look back no matter what! I'll be right behind ya!" Dino-Sour instructed between heavy breaths. He began searching through his closet before he found what he had been looking for: a baseball bat. He always kept one handy in case of intruders.
That sent a chill down Cotton Candy's spine. Something was very, very wrong.
"What's going on? I don't understand, what's- -"
"There's a horde of zombie-lookin' Cookies outside. Nothin' like Zombie Cookie themselves, it's somethin' completely different- - "
Dino-Sour's voice was cut off by the sound of someone banging against the front door. Jellysaur began squeaking again frantically, running around the house, searching for somewhere, anywhere to hide. The sudden noise made Cotton Candy scream, but Dino-Sour held her close to his chest for just a moment.
"Hey, Cotton Candy. Just calm down. Let's get out of here, okay? Bring the Pets, and let's go. Hurry!"
Cotton Candy gulped, then gave him a nod and put on her own robe as fast as she could.
"Come on, Birdie! Dino-Egg!" She yelled as she scooped up Cotton Candy Bird and Dino-Egg from the floor. They worriedly snuggled in close to her as she made a run for the back door, only looking behind once as she realized Dino-Sour and Jellysaur were still inside the house. When she turned her attention back to the path in front of her, she screamed. The zombie-like Cookies had made it to the backyard too, and she was out there all alone, with no weapons or fighting skills at her disposal. She turned around and cradled Cotton Candy Bird and Dino-Egg in her arms, waiting for the monsters to fall upon her, only to hear a loud wham followed by a grunt and the sound of a body falling into the grass.
She turned around to find Dino-Sour standing before her, his baseball bat soaked in strawberry jelly, wiping some from his cheek as well. Now his menacing sharp teeth were bared, and he let out a low, rumbling growl, imitating that of a Jellysaur. Cotton Candy sank to her knees, breathing a sigh of relief.
"Dino-Sour!"
"No time to rest, babe! Get back up! Run away while I beat these things down!"
But Dino-Sour didn't have to tell her twice, because as the words left his mouth, Jellysaur darted out in front of both of them and gave a loud squeak which shifted into a full-blown roar as it grew to its full size. Dino-Sour instinctively took the hint and mounted its back before reaching out to Cotton Candy.
"Babe! Do ya trust me?"
Cotton Candy stared at him in awe, then nodded with determination in her eyes.
"Of course I do!" She said, and she climbed up right behind him. Jellysaur let out another mighty roar and charged through the crowd of mutant invaders, trampling them without a second thought. Dino-Sour gave a hearty "whoo-hoo!" as Jellysaur continued its march, and just for a second, Cotton Candy felt safe enough to wrap her arms around him. For now, they both knew one thing: they needed to find somewhere to hide, fast.
And they eventually came upon such a place. After an hour or so of riding atop Jellysaur, they found themselves in a secluded forest, isolated from the rest of Cookie civilization save for a Jelly farm off on the visible horizon. Dino-Sour instructed Jellysaur to stop for just a moment to listen for signs of any other Cookies (or Cookie monsters) that may be nearby. When he heard nothing, he let Cotton Candy know it was safe to come down. He held out his hand for her as she leapt down, then she pulled him in for a hug.
"Thank you, Dino-Sour."
"Of course, baby," he said while rubbing her back.
"Do you… know where we are?"
"Honestly… no. Whenever I go on trips, I usually head to the Dragon's Valley, not the forest…"
"Oh."
"But that's okay!" He asserted with a toothy smirk. "I can still use my survival skills here! I'll take care of ya, babe! Don't worry!"
Cotton Candy blushed and gave him a cheek kiss. "Well, if you're sure."
"I am sure! Come on! Let's go gather some supplies."
"Supplies? For what?"
"For our camp, of course! We need a camp if we're gonna be here for a while! And we can make some clothes, too!"
"You know how to sew?"
"Not really how to 'sew', but I can craft clothin' from all sorts of things with my bare hands! I've done it before whenever my regular clothes got damaged while I was on trips."
Cotton Candy was amazed. She knew her boyfriend had learned all sorts of things as a pathfinder in the Dragon's Valley, but going so far as to learn how to craft clothing? Her heart fluttered with admiration.
"Let's get goin'!" Dino-Sour said with a grin and grabbed her hand. She smiled gingerly back at him as they ran off together, and Dino-Sour made a loud "whoop" in excitement, which Cotton Candy mimicked with joy and love in her heart.
It took a few hours of searching, but when the two Cookies had returned to where Jellysaur lay sleeping to mark their campsite, they had just what they needed for the night and the journey ahead. Dino-Sour went to work straight away, crafting a pair of matching outfits for the two of them. He didn't tell her they'd match, of course; he wanted it to be a surprise, a little something to cheer her up after all the stress they'd been through already that day. And while he was making the clothes, she was doing her best to cook something for them to eat. It may not be something delectable, but it would be enough to hold them over until the next day, when they could perhaps make their way to another Cookie town and buy some better food.
Unfortunately for her, she was fresh out of recipes that used… wild grasses and leaves as main ingredients. She sighed. She was going to have to go collect some Jellies.
"Dino-Sour, dear?"
"Yeah, hon'?"
"I'm going to go collect some Jellies for our lunch and dinner, okay?"
"Are ya gonna try snaggin' some from that Jelly farm over on the horizon?"
"Maybe just the outer crops… I feel bad stealing," Cotton Candy admitted, pouting a bit and toeing at the ground.
"These are desperate times, babe. It's alright. I'll be right here waitin' for ya. Take the Pets with ya just in case, and if anythin' happens, run back here as fast as ya can."
Cotton Candy nodded. "Alright… baby."
Dino-Sour gasped and cupped his cheeks in his hands, a wide grin on his face. "Ya called me 'baby!'"
"I did!" Cotton Candy smiled proudly, putting her hands on her hips.
"I love you!" Dino-Sour yelled and waved his arms excitedly. Cotton Candy giggled.
"I love you too!" She said as she made her way towards the horizon with Dino-Egg and Cotton Candy Bird following close behind. Dino-Sour sighed with delight and went back to working on their clothes. He couldn't wait to see the look on her face when she got back!
Cotton Candy returned after about an hour with her arms full of Jellies of all shapes, colors, and sizes. Dino-Egg and Cotton Candy Bird had brought some back as well- - only the Jellies were already in their mouths, being eaten slowly.
"Ya found yourself a little treat, huh, Dino-Egg?" Dino-Sour said before grabbing Dino-Egg and giving it a noogie. It squealed with delight.
"They got a bit carried away and ate any Jellies they saw that looked appetizing… but look at all these!" She said as she held out the Jellies in her arms. "I think these will be good for cooking!"
"Looks good to me!" Dino-Sour said, taking a close look at them. "Oh, but leave out this pink one here. It looks a bit… swollen," he said, pointing to a large brightly-colored Jelly that glistened in the afternoon sunlight.
"Aw, but I like the color of it! I bet it tastes so sweet!" Cotton Candy said with a delighted lick of her lips. Dino-Sour shook his head.
"You can have it for dessert, then. I don't want it."
"Alright, if you say so…" Cotton Candy's voice trailed off as she tried to stick the Jelly into the pocket of her robe. That reminded Dino-Sour of what he'd been waiting to show her!
"Oh, Cotton Candy! Look at these!" Dino-Sour said as he held up their new matching garments. "I call them 'Pathfinder!' What do ya think?"
The forest clearing was quiet for a second. Then, Dino-Sour heard a small sniffle coming from Cotton Candy. She ran over to him and held him tight, burying her face in his chest.
"They're wonderful. Thank you so much, baby."
Dino-Sour blushed and shyly rubbed the back of his head. "Aw, it's nothin'."
"Can we try them on?" Cotton Candy asked eagerly as she pulled away from her boyfriend and looked him in the eyes, her fists clenched in excitement.
"Sure we can!" Dino-Sour laughed. "But we should probably make a tent to change in first."
"Oh, you're right," Cotton Candy giggled.
And so they built a tent, and then immediately got dressed for the rest of their adventure. Dino-Sour was the first to emerge from the tent, standing tall and proud. It felt good to wear this kind of clothing again- - the kind you can really run and climb around in. He walked to a nearby river to look at his reflection and grinned smugly at himself. Who was this handsome, brave, strong man staring at him? Was it himself? No, surely it wasn't! Oh, Dino-Sour, you tease!
"Honey? What do you think?"
Dino-Sour jumped at the sudden noise, then turned around once he recognized whose voice had called out for him. And the sight awaiting him was breathtaking.
Cotton Candy stood in front of him, shyly holding her clenched hands in front of her face like she always did when she was embarrassed. The outfit suited her well- - it was nearly identical to his, save for a lack of a dinosaur skull atop her head, but it was still beautiful. She was beautiful. Dino-Sour felt his heart beating hard against his chest; he was so captivated.
"I-it looks great, babe!" He managed to mutter out that much despite how he was feeling. Way to go, Dino-Sour.
"Thank you!" Cotton Candy replied with a bow. "You look great, too!"
"Ya think so?"
"I do!" Cotton Candy smiled.
"Th-thanks…"
"Are you hungry? Should I start cooking?"
"Ah, yeah, yeah! You go ahead! I'll start makin' beds for us in the tent."
Cotton Candy nodded and went straight to work, as did Dino-Sour. But he couldn't help but stare at her a little bit. She was absolutely determined to help however she could, and it showed in the way her eyes glittered with passion. He admired her drive so much. Was she always this adorable?
Day soon turned to night, and Cotton Candy and Dino-Sour were sitting by their little campfire, munching away at Jellies until they couldn't munch anymore. Dino-Sour slapped his tummy and let out a burp, which made Cotton Candy giggle.
"Dino-Sour!"
"What? Just sayin' your cookin' is good! Thanks, baby."
"Of course, dear."
"Alrighty then!" Dino-Sour said as he leapt from his spot near the campfire. "I'm goin' to bed! Goodnight!"
"Goodnight, Dino-Sour. I love you."
Dino-Sour stopped in his tracks for a second. Did he feel… melancholy? Why? There was no reason for him to be feeling that way. Maybe it was just something he ate. Maybe he really needed some sleep.
"I love you too, Cotton Candy."
He slipped into their tent and lay in bed, waiting for sleep to fall upon him. Cotton Candy sighed and was about to turn her attention back to the fire when she spotted part of her robe peeking out from underneath the tent doors. The pink Jelly! She had forgotten all about it! She could eat one more Jelly before calling it a night.
She reached for her robe and carefully drew it out from the tent (not wanting to wake up her boyfriend, who was probably already sound asleep with a cute expression on his face), then retrieved the Jelly from its pocket. When she held it up to the campfire, she noticed just how pretty it really was. It appeared opalescent the light of the fire, sparkling in a rainbow of colors no matter which way she turned it. She took her time eating it, if not just to see the colors change at the new indents left by her teeth, and when she was finished, she scooped up all the Pets into her arms, put out the fire, and carefully found her way to the tent. To her surprise, Dino-Sour was still awake- - probably because she had failed to retrieve her robe quietly.
"I saw ya got your robe. Did ya eat that pink Jelly?"
"I did," she answered as she set the Pets down onto the tiny beds Dino-Sour had prepared for them.
"Was it tasty?"
Cotton Candy sat there for a moment, a slight frown on her face. "It was sweet, but something about its texture was… odd. It sparkled like a gem in the firelight! I've never seen a Jelly do that!"
"Huh. Weird. Maybe it's a new type of Jelly they're developin'."
"Maybe… Anyway, we really should sleep. We have a big day tomorrow."
"Yeah… What exactly is our plan from here on out, anyway?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, we don't have a map to follow, and we don't have our cell phones, either. If we're goin' to head to another Cookie town, we'll have to find it the old-fashioned way!"
"By exploring?" Cotton Candy said with a smile as she propped her head up with her hand, resting her elbow on her makeshift pillow.
"By explorin'!" Dino-Sour smiled back.
"Sounds like a plan to me! And I'll have the best tour guide in the Cookie Kingdom with me the whole time."
"Aw, babe!" Dino-Sour said before giving Cotton Candy a forehead kiss. She giggled and gave him one in return, then settled herself into her bed as comfortably as she could.
"I love you, Cotton Candy."
"I love you too, Dino-Sour."
The two drifted off to sleep without another word- - having found each other's hands to hold onto as they slept without even thinking about it.
Dino-Sour had always been a light sleeper, a habit he hadn't dropped from living in Dragon's Valley but would probably come in handy now that the Jelly Walkers could catch up to them at any time. Whatever the reason, when he started hearing soft whimpers in his dreams, he woke up pretty quickly. His first instinct was to check Cotton Candy, and when he turned to look at her, he found her curled up into a ball, trembling. What was wrong?
"Babe, ya okay? Bad dream?" He asked softly, putting a hand on her shoulder and rubbing it a bit. Why did her shoulder feel… sticky, though? He drew back his hand, and as his eyes adjusted to the lack of light, he saw that it was colored in a thick, purple jelly. He jumped to his feet with a gasp, stumbling over the Pet beds and out the flap of the tent. He'd successfully woken up the Pets.
He'd also successfully woken up Cotton Candy Cookie. Or… what was left of her. She sat up, and through the tent's open flaps, he could see her hollow eyes glowing a sickening neon yellow, no longer thar gentle pink he'd fallen in love with.
"Dino-Sour…?" she said, her voice a twisted hiss of the sweet melody it once was. Even then, it still hit a few notes, and that fact alone made Dino-Sour's heart drop. The Pets gathered around him, chirping anxiously as she began to crawl out of the tent and towards them.
"Cotton Candy… babe…" He breathed, watching as she slowly stood to her full height and reached her arms out towards him.
"Dino-Sour… hungry…!" Her face warped into a strange grin, pink slime dripping out of her mouth as she charged for him.
He should probably be running. Cotton Candy was hungry, but it looked like he was the food. Yet for some reason, he was frozen in place. He couldn't move, even as Jellysaur squeaked frantically from his shoulder, even as Cotton Candy got closer and closer, even as Cotton Candy Bird started pulling at his hair. He couldn't move. He just- - he couldn't believe it. He didn't want to believe it. Cotton Candy's… gone?
It wasn't until they were almost face to face that he snapped back to reality- - that the gravity of the situation hit him- - but before he could even think of running, she'd grabbed him by the shoulders, ready to turn him into another shambling monster. He struggled, but her grip was stronger than ever before, and a cold sense of dread washed over him. This was it, mate. This was the end. He struggled still, but even then he screwed his eyes shut, trying to imagine the sensation of teeth tearing through his throat so that maybe it wouldn't hurt as bad when it happened.
The same moment he miraculously wrenched free, Jellysaur let out a pained squeak. He staggered backwards, Dino-Egg and Cotton Candy Bird just behind him, and saw the Jelly Walker standing there absently, looking him in the eyes blankly. Jellysaur hung limply from her mouth, toxic purple jelly leaching into its wounds. He couldn't help but let out a scream. He'd lost both of them?!
Then he was running. Before he even realized he was running, he'd taken off, clutching Cotton Candy Bird close to his chest as it cried out for its owner, Dino-Egg desperately flapping behind him. He wiped tears from his eyes with his free hand as he ran through the woods, trying to get far away, and fast. He heard a roar behind them, followed by thundering footsteps and the Jelly Walker calling his name as the ground shook beneath his feet. His blood ran cold.
Could he even outrun Jellysaur?
No, probably not. But he did know that Jellysaur had a shit sense of smell, and barely bothered to look too far down or enter things it couldn't fit in.
Almost like a gift from Millennial Tree himself, he saw a cave down a slope to his left. Whatever beasts may lay in wait in there, it'd be better than getting stomped on by his own Jellysaur. He grabbed Dino-Egg by the wing and ducked into a slide, rolling to his feet and running into the cave to hide in the deep shadows it provided.
They watched in tense silence as Jellysaur ran past, its scaly skin bright pink with deep purple stripes, giant puddles of pink jelly drool left behind with every step. Atop its back rode Cotton Candy Cookie, her hair still snowy white in the moonlight. Neither spotted them from within the cave, and in just a few instants, they were gone with another roar from Jellysaur.
Dino-Sour slid against the wall of the cave, letting out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. Dino-Egg sat in his lap as Cotton Candy Bird let out another cry- - a mournful melody for its owner. Dino-Sour gently stroked its cotton-like feathers, humming Cotton Candy's favorite song under his breath until he slipped into an uneasy sleep.
That's the end of the chapter! Hope you all liked it! Share your thoughts!
This chapter was beta'ed by worriedindigo and violetinfidel! Give them a follow on Twitter and/or Tumblr, they definitely deserve it! Violetinfidel is also on AO3, so you can read more content there! Don't forget Fanta's on fanfiction .net too, if you want some fluffy fics she's definitely the place to go! Me... not so much, haha.
But hey, keep your spirits up! Next chapter's going to be... can't claim it ends better than this one, but it's a fun read at least! So stay tuned to see what happens next, the chapter's getting posted Friday!
See you all next time, and also! Totally missed it earlier, but happy (belated) Eid!
~Ani