Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The winds were cold and unforgiving. The snowflakes hit Jagae’s face like needles. She was used to it, but that didn’t mean she liked it. However, today’s weather felt more.. like it was mourning, rather than gloomy. She didn’t let it get to her though, and carefully steered the ship beside a wooden port. Her crew began to take her goods down for the regular trading.

“Miss Jagae!” A panicked voice echoed through the docks. They’re clutching a scroll, one that she recognized. A letter from the Anko Bun guild. They had just docked at the main harbor of the Cacao Kingdom, and she was planning to go and visit her friends in the area. She sighed, annoyed at Manju for interfering with her travels.

“What is it?” She asked, taking the scroll and opening the contents. The Shiny Shell guild member in front of her kept gasping for air.

“The.. the Anko Bun guild!.. sent this to us..” she said between breaths of air. “Their ship-“

“Sank?!” Jagae read the word out loud, accidentally cutting them off. It was clear from the moment she opened the paper. This handwriting was not his, she didn’t recognize it at all. The cookie in front of her nodded.

“All of the crew is safe, but-“

“What happened to Manju?” Her face was frighteningly serious. She did not dare read any further down the letter. Jagae’s hands shook. She looked up at the cookie, only to be met with a pitying gaze. Only then did her face go from serious to horrified.

“He’s.. he..” the cookie started, before averting her eyes to the floor. “The lifeboat got stuck.. the rope got caught on something.. so he made sure his crew would be able to escape..”

Jagae stood there, silent. With trembling hands, she looked at the letter again, reading down. There she saw it.

“There were no casualties, except for our beloved Guildmaster, who gave his life to save ours.”

She dropped the letter, her eyebrows furrowing in confusion. She could hear concerned voices around her, but couldn’t make out a single word. All she could think of?

That stupid, stupid buttershell fox.

—

Somehow she found herself in a caramel scented room, holding some hot chocolate. A familiar face sat across from her.

“Jagae..”

She looked up to meet the eyes of her friend.

Caramel Arrows eyes were pitying, just like the cookie who told her of the news. That specific cookie, thank goodness for her, had been secretly dating another cookie from the Anko Bun guild. They had gotten permission from the two guild masters before continuing, only them knowing about it. That was probably who wrote that letter, and why they had gotten the news right away.

“Jagae.. are you alright?” Caramel asked her again.

She shrugged. “I don’t know.. it’s like.. why do I care so much? I hated him.”

“To the point you wanted him dead?”

Jagae shot up. Her face twisted in anger.

“No!” She replied quickly. “That’s.. of course I wouldn’t.. I’m just.. confused.”

Caramel tilted her head to the side, as if to say “keep going”. So Jagae did.

“I don’t know why I feel like this.. it’s like.. my heart hurts.. my body feels so empty, and I don’t know WHY!” She slammed her fist into the table. “We were rivals, not even friends. I-I’m not even supposed to feel this much about a rival.”

“Then maybe he wasn’t a rival to you.”

Jagae looked up. Caramel stared into her cup with a weak smile.

“Sometimes, you only realize how important someone was to you until after they leave.” Caramel said, as if reminiscing.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to-“ Jagae began, thinking back to a certain prince.

Caramel cut her off. “No it’s okay. It’s good to remember, that’s how you start to move on.” She took another sip of her drink.

Jagae sat there, still frustrated. She didn’t want to just remember him. She wanted him to be here still. Whatever that meant.

—

Days passed, then weeks, then it became nearly one year since. Jagae found herself constantly thinking about Manju. When she laid in bed, she started to think more deeper.

The last meeting they had ended in bickering, like always.

When was the last time she said something nice to him?

Did he hate her?

Did she hate him?

Maybe she could have been a bit nicer.

…

She never got the chance to say goodbye.

The last one hit her like a truck. She didn’t think she’d have this many regrets.

Over time, she began to think less of him. That’s what time does, I suppose. But she did think back to him every time she set sail. Everytime she set foot on a dock. She’d find herself thinking: “maybe he’d be here”. Obviously not, but it was a habit. Suddenly hearing that sly voice when she was trying to mind her own business, it was something that happened often.

But I guess not anymore.

Was she happy with that conclusion?

No. Of course she wasn’t. Even after months, she still found herself looking for him on every dock. Every ship that passed hers, she’d check if it had that stupid kumihimo cord on the back of it.

She never saw him, and neither did she ever see the rivalling ship. No matter how many times she looked, she’d always end up disappointed.

Witches, I bet she looked dumb.

It wasn’t until she received a letter from the Cacao Kingdom, that her feelings began to change. Caramel had sent her a scroll about how her prince that finally returned home. Jagae could tell from the way Caramels hand written letters blurred together that she was incredibly happy.

Then, if she had gotten a happy ending.. why hasn’t Jagae?

After all these months, why hasn’t she moved on? How come she’s still feeling so empty because of his death? Can’t she just move on like a normal person?!

“Sometimes, you only realize how important was to you until after they leave.”

Caramels words echoed in her head.

“Then maybe he wasn’t a rival to you.”

Then what was he..? It’s not like they were friends. So then..

Lovers?

Jagae’s face flushed at the idea. There was absolutely no way.

And yet here she was thinking about it.

It’s not like they were dating, no, but she could definitely admit that the tension between them whenever they fought felt.. much more intimate.

“Witches, what the hell is wrong with me..”

Jagae face planted into her pillow.

“Acting like a youngster in love.. crumbs.”

It was clear now. She definitely had feelings for him, telling from the way she acted after his departure.

But what the hell could she do now? She was clearly much too late.

She was too fucking late.

She threw the letter on the floor, sitting up. Her pillow was wet. She grabs an empty glass bottle and smashes it against the wall as her breathing became uneven. Her hands, shaking, are fisted into a ball. She was most definitely drawing blood from her palms.

What could she do now? He was dead, she was alive. Nothing in the present could change that. Nothing she could do.

She lays back on the bed, looking at the ceiling. Slowly, her red puffy eyes shut.

Then the world went black.

Chapter Text

The feeling of a moving ship was normal to Jagae, but this one felt weird.

She groaned, sitting up in her bed. Her rubbed her eyes before scanning the room. It felt.. different than usual. Some things on her shelves were different, but familiar. Her desk had some Anko Bun guild scrolls resting on top of it. Did she seriously look through the past letters she got from him last night? She bit her lip trying to remember, cringing at herself. Her breathing hitched as she realized her head was killing her. Her revelation last night was not that serious for her to have a migraine the next morning.

But I suppose realizing you were madly in love with your dead rival is pretty world shattering.

She got up, moving towards the door when something catches her eye. She glances to the calendar beside her window, and her eyes widened at the sight of the year.

The date was the same, but the year was not. Instead of being the current year, the numbers shown on the paper was two digits lower than what it was supposed to be.

She audibly gasps, and runs out of her room. A startled cookie clutched a mop in front of her. The same one who told Jagae of the unfortunate news a year ago, or rather a year from now.

“Gwapyeon Cookie! What’s the date today?!” Jagae asked her, though it came out more as panicked confusion than a question. The cookie panicked, dropping the mop they had before clumsily picking it back up.

“A-August 2nd Miss Jagae!!” The girl managed to get out, more spooked than anything. Jagae looked at her in slight annoyance as she did not give her the information she wanted.

“And the year?”

The girl stammered. “..the year?” She asked, as if Jagae was supposed to know it already.

“Yes..?” Jagae slowly nodded.

Gwapyeon cookie, not wishing to engage in this odd conversation any longer, tells her, and practically short circuits at her guildmaster’s reaction to the news. Jagae is standing in front of her, looking as if she’s trying to solve a mystery.

In her head, Jagae is wondering whether she dreamt of the whole thing, or if she really did go back in time. She curses herself for not pinching her arm when she had originally received the news of his death.

But even if it was a dream, the pain felt real.

Too real.

“I see, thank you.” She bowed her head slightly to her crew member.  “Where are we headed now?”

Seeing her usually on point leader be so unusually unaware, Gwapyeon might of died from confusion on the spot.

—

The ship found its way to the Crème Republic. They docked smoothly, despite the entire situation and her confusion. She stepped down on the wet wood, taking in the sights.

“If I had really gone back in time, then he..” her thoughts wandered. Exactly two years ago, the two had met on pure coincidence, right here. If she was right, then..

As if on cue, a loud bang came from beside her ship. She looked towards it, her eyes hopeful.

A boat had just docked beside hers. Familiar merchants walked down the gangplank.

Then she saw him.

Manju cookie, looking as if nothing had ever happened, safe and okay.

Jagae watched as he told his crew orders, pointing at boxes and then pointing towards a direction.

Then Manju turned his face to hers, and his eyes met Jagae’s.

For a moment, they both just stared into each other, taking everything in, but not once breaking eye contact. Manju moved first.

He walked closer, still with that stupid smile, and leaned closer to hers.

“Why hello Jagae cookie. What a coincidence we meet again. My, you look like you’ve just seen a ghost!” He laughed.

“Shut it Manju, I.. I’m just surprised to see you here.” She huffed, turning her face away from his.

He cocked his head to the side slightly. “Hm? But we see each other often nowadays, since we are both merchants, and are rivals.”

“Ah.. well..” she stammered. It’s been a bit over a year since she last saw him. She practically forgot how to insult people now, as the most bickering she’d been doing has been to him. To add on, she was still in awe to see him again, and was still grappling with her new found feelings towards him. So yeah, she was definitely overwhelmed.

“Hm? Is something wrong?” He looked at her, and still from an angle, he could slightly see the redness of her face. He silently chuckled at the sight before a mischievous smile overtook his face.

“What, fox got your tongue?” He laughed, and Jagae whipped her head around to face him, clearly irritated.

“You..! Despite everything, you still manage to piss me off, you stupid buttershell fox!” She hissed, and Manju was caught off guard, slightly backing up. For a moment his smile faltered, before it springing up again.

“Hey now!” He puts a hand between him and Jagae. “Let’s calm down for a moment!”

She looked at him, mixed feelings of relief and annoyance. She was about to say a reply, when she remembered something about this particular day.

Today, one of her guild members would get one of their orders damaged by accidentally putting the box on the side, instead of the correct bottom.

Ignoring Manju, she turned her attention to the pier, looking at each and every box. When she finished looking at all of them, she stopped to think of the incident happened later.

Suddenly, a loud crash and the sound of breaking glass filled the area. Both leaders turned their heads to look at the commotion. A man was on his knees, trying to scoop up shards of a broken vase.

“Fuck! That was supposed to be for my wife!” He cried, trying to piece the ceramic back together. A passerby quickly crouched down to help him.

The two watched as this happened. Jagae recalled that this hadn’t happened before. Did the timeline already change? Her thoughts raced. While she was distracted, Manju jumped at the opportunity, offering him a look at his goods to see if any of them were able to replace the original gift. Jagae scowled.

“Sly fox.” She muttered, but came back to her senses about the order. She quickly ran over to the crates on her ship. She looked through them, and found the crate that held the item. It wasn’t broken, and the crate was rightfully placed.

How odd. Wasn’t it supposed to break..?

Instead.. something else broke. She tried to piece everything together.

Something broke in place of something that was supposed to break.

With that logic, then maybe if she were to change something in the timeline, it would need to be replaced by something else. In more detail, if she wanted to stop something from happening, the action she stopped would need to happen to someone else.

With this, a plan brew in her mind.

But first, she needed to prove it.

Chapter Text

She said she was going to prove it.. but.. how exactly?

She whacked her brain over events that she was sure to happen, but couldn’t at all. She doesn’t remember anything from this particular stay at the Crème Republic. When that item got damaged, she spent the rest of the day looking all over for a replacement, and ended up caving and buying something similar from the Anko bun guild.

But this time, it never happened to her. So exactly what was supposed to happen now?

She sighed. She walked down the gangway, walking into the streets of the republic. Her crew were still manning their stalls, selling things well. They were due to leave in a couple hours, so Jagae definitely had time to spare.

“Maybe I’ll go sightseeing.” She thought, walking towards the main road when she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned to see her one and only rival, Manju, leaning over her shoulder.

“Want to go check this place I heard about?” He asked her, eyes closed and smiling.

When he opened his eyes again to look at her, he was startled at Jagae’s face of pure confusion.

—

“So? What brought this on?” Jagae asked him, walking beside the fox.

He hummed. “Well, I heard about it from my client, that when I visit the Crème republic, I should most definitely see this place.”

“Ok..?” She scoffed, since that wasn’t what she wanted to hear. “So why bring me along?”

“Well you seemed quite bored.” He curtly replied.

A vein popped up on Jagae’s forehead, in annoyance. “How dare he pity me” is what she was thinking on surface level, but not what she was really thinking about.

“Did he always notice that kind of stuff about me?”

Suddenly self aware, she felt the need to check her reflection. Tugging on her sleeve, she turns her head away, feeling her face slowly heat up.

“..ok.” She mumbled.

They got to the place, only for Jagae to notice it was a cake cafe, one selling confectioneries too. She slowly turned her head to him, as if to ask: “is this really what you dragged me to?”.

He ignored it, stepping into the shop. The displays were filled with cakes of all kinds. Jagae found herself staring at each one.

“So? Are you going to pick one out?” He asked, amused at her reaction to the baked goods.

“Depends. Are you going to pay?” She replied, attempting to get under his nerves with the threat of making him use his money.

He rolled his eyes, still smiling. “Well yes, I was the one who brought you here, was I not?”

Surprised at his gesture, Jagae hesitated before smirking.

“In that case…” she turned to the cashier. “Which of these cakes is the most expensive?”

Manju glared at her. She glanced at his reaction from the corner of her eye and laughed.

“I’m kidding, I know you’re gonna end up asking for what I owe you.” She snickered. “I’ll take that one.” She points to a chocolate cake and the cashier immediately goes and carefully takes it from the display.

Manju watches Jagae as her eyes follow her cake. When the cashier is back in front of the two, he points at a confection. “As for me.. three of those will do.”

The cashier checks them out and they go sit on a bench by the water. Jagae happily snacks on her cake, before being abruptly cut off by a stray fork in her food, taking some of her beloved treat with it. Before she could react, Manju brought it to his mouth, eating it.

“Hey!! What do you think you’re doing?!” Jagae roughly grabs his shoulder, turning him to face her.

“It’s sweeter than I thought. I didn’t take you for the sweet type since you’re from the Cacao Kingdom.” He chewed, and Jagae sat there dumbfounded.

“..I have a sweet tooth. What about it?”

“Just unexpected.”He looked at her for a moment before turning away, back to his food. To keep them even, she takes one of his. Taking a bite, she finds cream cheese and tastes something else inside.

“Enjoying my food?”

She ignores him. “What is this?”

“Steamed buns. Why else would my client recommend this place to me?” He takes a bite of his own.

Ah, so the unknown taste was red bean paste. She takes another bite.

“I thought cookies from the cacao kingdom rather bitter tastes.” Manju told her, switching the conversation back around.

Not turning to face him, she replies. “Yeah, but I’m not from the main kingdom.” She takes a bite. “I’m from a town by a harbor.” She mumbles, her mouth still chewing.

“I see.”

She swallows and looks over at him. “Why do you care anyway?”

His breath hitches at the question. He looks away, not intending to show her his face, whatever it looks like right now.

“I just don’t want to regret anything this time.”

“Huh?”

Chapter Text

He can still remember it clearly. The waves crashing into the hull of his ship, the yells, the thunder above him. He remembered how it sounded when one of the walls in the basement suddenly burst, the water rushing into the boat faster than he could blink. He can clearly remember how his footsteps sounded, splashing the small puddles of water under his feet, as he ran to the life boats. He was about to get on when he heard a yell behind him.

“H-help! I’m stuck!” A cookies terrified voice drowned out the lightning for a moment. Manju did not hesitate. He pounced in the direction of the voice, and found the cookie, pressed against the floor by a large piece of debris. Manju quickly got him out of there, supporting him as he got back to the launch zone. He gave the injured cookie to the other crew members before tugging on the rope that brought the life boat down.

They were about half way to the water when the rope didn’t go down any further. Manju’s gaze turned to the pulley above him, surprised to see a small lump jamming the system. He grunted, pulling the rope harder to free it, so that his crew could get down to the water so he could jump onto the raft.

“Manju cookie!” A cookie yelled beneath him, but he didn’t pay attention. He yanked it over and over again before it finally freed itself. He sighed in relief, looking over the railing to check his crews wellbeing. He was about to get into the lifeboat himself, when-

CRASH!

A lighting bolt suddenly hit the ship, rocking it. He stumbled away from the launch area. The boat was tipping to its side. He tried to grab on to something, anything to get him back over there.

“Ngh!” He grunted, pulling himself up, but as he struggled, time slipped away from him, time that the storm used to push his boat further into the depths. Another wave hit the boat, probably sending the ship far from the lifeboat. Unless they could get to him, there was no way he was getting on it today.

Just as he thought anything couldn’t get worse, yet another strike hit his ship, sending him flying into the rough waters.

The coldness of the water hit him like a truck. Submerged, he suddenly experienced a peace, his ears weren’t ringing from the stress and noise anymore. Still, the feeling that he was about to die didn’t stop. He could feel the currents of the ocean bring him even farther from his crew.

Clinging to his life, he didn’t dare let any air escape from him. Desperate to get more, he tried to swim up, but the freezing temperatures of the water had already cost him his limbs.

It was as if he was watching himself from a distance, like that wasn’t him. He watched himself slowly sink further and further. Despite that, he could feel all the needles of the cold piercing into him, the fear of dying, everything. Yet he could see the way he struggled, like watching someone claw their way into a room they weren’t ever supposed to go into.

As he felt the coldness nipping at his conciousness, he began to remember all that has happened to him.

His seven minutes.

The first time meeting his crew, seeing his ship, his family sending him off for all his voyages, the cookies he’s met, the things he’s seen and learned, the goods he traded, a young king with a paper crown, meeting even more genuine cookies and..

her.

Dammit, he’d never thought he’d ever die with regrets. All he’s ever done was act on impulse, all throughout his life. All, except for her.

She’s the only thing he’d ever hesitated about. The only thing he wanted but still felt as if it was out of his league. The only thing he wasn’t ever able to bargain with, the only thing that didn’t fall for him through his tricks and charms.

She was his greatest regret.

She was so different, so stubborn, and that’s probably why he wanted her to fold.

But then it started to grow.

Thinking about her wherever he went. Every little thing reminding him of her. Wanting to see her again, and when he did, not wanting to let go.

Weeks, then months, then years.

After some time, it was easy to accept his feelings.

How to go about them? That was a different story.

But now.. did he even have a story to continue?

Was that it? All that to end here..?

To leave all that unfinished?

To leave her behind..?

The last bit of air escaped his lips. He sunk deeper and deeper into the depths. His ears popped and all he could hear now was his heartbeat, his slowly fading heartbeat. As he felt his consciousness slipping, he thought one last time.

…

“I wonder how she’ll react to my death..?”

…

Chapter Text

Manju woke up with a jolt. He coughed violently, as if he was drowning. He clutched his neck, feeling the after burn of his sudden coughing fit.

“Sir Manju cookie? Are you alright?”

A concerned voice came from the outside of his door. He flinched at the sound, brushing his hand against one of his ears, remembering how much they hurt underwater. When he checked, they were fine.

“Ah- yes! Thank you for your concern.” He curtly replied and looked around for any indication of what happened.

He looked around his quarters, only to come to the conclusion that he was indeed in his old ship. Except.. there was absolutely no way his ship was able to escape that storm, not after that.

He checked his body for any signs of violence, like his hand for splinters because he was holding on to the wood for so long.

Nothing.

Nothing changed. It was as if nothing happened. Was it all a dream?

His eyes darting around the room, then to the window. The skies were clear and peaceful.

His hands suddenly found his way to his neck once more, lightly touching it with his fingers.

No.. he was certain. He had felt the water enter his lungs, he felt it block his airway.

He had died, and now?

Now he had no idea what was happening.

Was he reborn? His crew didn’t express any regret or concern other than regular hospitality, so he was sure he didn’t get miraculously saved from the storm. It wasn’t a dream, so did he have another life of something?

His head pounded with more theories. Dizzy, he sat on his chair and turned to the papers on his desk. A letter from the Shiny Shell guild sat in front of him. It had what it always had, messy handwriting and an attitude. Though this time, he had already read it. It wasn’t a new letter, so why was it here? He didn’t bring any out. (Not that he keeps her letters, totally.)

His eyes glanced to the top of the paper, which should have a date, unless Jagae didn’t care to put one.

There he read. The month and day weren’t surprising, but the year was.

It was sent a year ago. To others maybe it wasn’t that odd, but to Manju, it began to turn some gears.

Did he go back into the past..?

He quickly got up and checked a box, which was filled with papers of similar patterns to the one on his desk. Letters after letters, all of the dates were of the previous years, never going any higher.

That proved his case further.

He distinctly remembered a letter from Jagae, one he got a week before his death. He looked all over his room for it, but it didn’t seem to exist.

He understood now. He’s in the past now. He’s been given a second chance. One chance to make sure he won’t regret anything.

One last chance to live.

—

His ship found its way to the Crème Republic. He didn’t quite remember what exactly he was doing here, but he was sure it would.. probably be ok.

He walked down to the dock and started to tell his crew to make sure they didn’t put the crates the wrong way. His mind flashes to a memory of Jagae trying to keep her composure after finding out that a new member of her crew accidentally damaged an order. A lesson is a lesson, even if it didn’t happen to you, after all.

He glanced over to the side, noticing a familiar color palette. He turned his full attention towards it, and locked eyes with the one person he was wishing to meet once more.

Jagae cookie, staring straight at him. The sight surprised him, as he’s never seen her look at him with anything other than irritation. Nevertheless, he enjoyed her attention. Really enjoyed it.

Manju began studying her eyes, his eyes starting at the purple, then to the yellow. He felt a familiar urge to move his tail from side to side, but forced himself not to.

Then he took the first step.

Walking with a faster pace than what he was used to, he quickly closed the distance, leaning forward to see her face better.

He was so glad he got to see her once more.

“Why hello Jagae cookie. What a coincidence we meet again.” He couldn’t help himself from letting out a slight laugh. “My, you look like you’ve just seen a ghost!” He couldn’t keep himself from teasing her either.

“Shut it Manju, I.. I’m just surprised to see you here.” She looked quite disheveled, averting her eyes.

Confused, he tilted his head to the side.“Hm? But we see each other often nowadays, since we are both merchants, and are rivals.”

Technically, he didn’t see her for a few weeks, because of his death. He didn’t recall much from this time, but since they’ve been seeing each other much more lately, he assumed the last time she’d seen him was a few weeks as well.

“Ah.. well..” she stammered.

Jagae stuttering? That was new.

“Hm? Is something wrong?” He looked at her, still looking away from him. He glanced at her visible cheek. It was pinkish. He could feel his face subtly heating up, but was quickly overtaken by an impulsive thought. His tail swished for a moment.

“What, fox got your tongue?” He laughed. Fox jokes were his thing after all. Jagae suddenly turned her head around and looked him dead in the eye. A familiar sight to Manju.

“You..! Despite everything, you still manage to piss me off, you stupid buttershell fox!”

He didn’t expect this much of a reaction from that. He stepped back.

“Despite everything..?” He thought.

What could that mean?

His mind wandered for the split second, but it quickly turned its attention back to Jagae. Out of pure reflex, he put a hand in front of him.

“Hey now! Let’s calm down for a moment!” He exclaimed.

She looked as if she was about to say something to him again, but then a sudden look of surprise washed over her face. She turned her gaze away from him, glancing over at the dock behind her.

Dumbfounded, Manju stood there confused. She wasn’t the type to suddenly switch attentions. She’d always try to win the squabbles between them, and as a consequence, she always ended up ignoring her surroundings.

So yeah, this was foreign.

Suddenly feeling a bit jealous, he followed her eyes.

“Jagae? What are you looking at?” He asked her, but she didn’t reply. Her eyes kept darting to the crates resting on the pier. He huffed in annoyance. (Why is he like this omfg.)

His attention suddenly shifted to a loud crash. He darted his head to face the direction of the noise. A middle aged man was crouching in the middle of the sidewalk, his face clearly frustrated. Shards of ceramic laid in front of him.

“Fuck! That was supposed to be for my wife!” He shouted.

Manju wasted no time. His body had moved on its own. He quickly went up to the man.

“My my, that seems like that won’t be easy to fix.” He noted and the man sighed.

“Really? I hadn’t thought of that.” He rolled his eyes.

“May I offer you something of replacement? My guild has many vases.” He smiled. The man looked at him.

“Are you seriously taking this for a business opportunity?” He sneered and Manju nodded.

“Well it seems that you are out of choices. Today’s an anniversary correct? There won’t be much time left to celebrate if you go looking now.”

The man, realizing his mistake, bowed his head down. He did not want to push an excellent bargainer any further, especially since he was going to buy from him.

“Apologies.. please show me.”

“Right this way sir.” He used his hand to guild the man to a nearby stall. He glanced over at Jagae, who was on her ship now, looking like she was inspecting something. He shrugged. She was lost in thought, and he didn’t want to face her wrath if he distracted her.

After a bit of searching, the man had chosen a vase and paid in front and in full. The best outcome no doubt, though it did take some intimidating.

He tucked the money into his pocket, and he coincidentally found a paper in it. He opened it. Inside, the paper told of a cake shop in the Crème republic, selling cakes and buns.

Manju recalled a client from the Berry Kingdom giving it to him, saying if he enjoyed steamed buns, he would totally love this place. That said, he wondered why it wasn’t called a bakery instead if they sold other things like bread.

In his other life, he hadn’t gone, as he was having too much watching Jagae look all over the Republic looking for a replacement of a broken order she had.

Speaking of which, wasn’t that supposed to happen today?

Manju suddenly recalled the past. That’s right. Before, it wasn’t the man who had brought something from his guild, it was her. So then, why didn’t it happen again this time?

“Time travel is weird.” He sighed.

Speaking of Jagae, he spotted her staring at the city not too far away. This life, he wasn’t going to hesitate anymore right? He walked over to her.

“Want to go check this place I heard about?”

Chapter Text

The two, still sitting on the bench, finished their food.

Jagae glanced over at him.

“It’s high time we head back.” She says, looking up at the sky which was now slowly turning yellow.

Manju nods. “I agree.”

He stands up, and brushes his pants to get rid of any crumbs. Jagae was going to do the same, but was stopped by Manju, offering her a hand.

Him, still with that same smile, tilted his head, as if to ask: are you going to take it?

She blushed while desperately trying to stay calm. Reluctantly, she took it, standing up.

“..thanks.” She pulls her hand back.

“No problem.”

They began to walk back to the dock, side by side. Jagae looked at him troubled.

This wasn’t like him. At least, not in this timeline. Moreover, it was definitely not like him to not ask for compensation for the cake she ate.

Then again.. how much did she really know about him?

She had only started paying attention recently. Actually, it was more like yesterday than recent. She payed attention to him in the past —only his flaws though— as most of the time they argued. But now that she knew her feelings, she realized that they weren’t.. anything. Just rivals. Not friends, and certainly nothing more than that. She felt a stinging feeling in her chest. She looked up at him. She really wanted to know him better.
Manju on the other hand was smiling like a child. Sure he smiles all the time, but this time it was different. Jagae had accepted his affection, and fuck, that got him all happy. His tail subtly swished from side to side.

“Hey..” Jagae suddenly spoke. She could feel her face heating up. She really wasn’t used to these feelings. Manju glanced over at her.

“..do you know where you’re going next?” She said, averting her eyes.

Upon hearing her words, Manju cursed himself in his head. He didn’t remember exactly what his current priorities were at this time.

“Uhm well.. Could I get back to you on th—“ he paused. Despite everything, she was still his rival. If she saw how disorganized he was, just how would she think of him?

And it also made him look suspicious.

Jagae looked at him confused. He quickly thought of the first place he remembered going to this month. Hopefully he wasn’t wrong.

“Ahh.. I think I’m heading to the Berry kingdom next month. I’ll send you a letter when I do.” He smiled. He noticed Jagae’s face slightly relax.

“I see. Maybe I’ll meet you there then.” She muttered just loud enough for him to hear.

Manju looked at her. Seeing her like this, all shy? He was caught off guard. His ears suddenly perked up and he could tell his face was turning pink. His tail was violently threatening to wag. “Does she want to spend more time with me?” Is all that he was thinking. He bit his lip to try and contain himself.
Having something that constantly tells others what you’re feeling is a genuine downside.

The two get to the dock. Both crews are waiting for their captains on the dock, while occasionally giving a dirty look to the other guild. When the crew members see the two arrive together, the line snaps.

“Captain! Why are you with that buttershelled fox?!”

“Why is the stinky shell guild leader with OUR captain you mean!”

“Excuse me..?”

“You heard me. Sir Manju! Just exactly why are you with her?!”

“Ha! He’s probably trying to steal the secrets from the superior guild! Why else would a fox be interested in us? Then again I can’t expect much from your kind can I?”

“And why exactly would my captain be stealing secrets from himself?”

“Why you..”

While the two guilds are bickering, Jagae sighs in annoyance. In the future, the two guilds entered an era of peace, or at least as peaceful the two guilds can get with each other. Bickering like this in open space means the public would be able to see and hear everything that is said, bringing the reputation of both guilds down. If they wished to argue, they’d do it in private or in whispers.

She, however, time traveled, so that peace treaty was never reached yet.

She looked at her crew, clearly spited, but one cookie caught her eye.

Gwapyeon cookie shifted among her peers uncomfortably. Jagae suddenly recalled the future. Right around this time, she had started dating a member of the Anko Bun guild. In fact, she was the one who made Jagae and Manju decide to have that peacemaking. More specifically, her and Daifuku cookie.

The two had bravely came to them to tell the guild masters of their relationship, hoping for approval. All four of them were about the same age, the couple being only a year younger than the captains. Of course, Manju and Jagae didn’t really have any choice, as it’s not like their rivalry in trade should affect any amount of personal life. After that, they told their crews that arguing in public will not be tolerated, as to try and keep the young couple happy and comfortable in their respective ships.

Safe to say it worked, and the two guilds—while still participating in the usual rivalry—had a much more calmer and welcoming environment between them. It even attracted more customers to the two guilds, some even becoming loyal clients of both, since the pressure of choosing just one was significantly lesser.

Of course, the two captains did still bicker often. Who could blame them? It was tradition, and maybe a bit enjoyable for both of them.

But now that she was used to peace on the docks, arguments like this was absolutely irritating.

“Enough. What are all of you? Children? Both crews, go get ready to set sail like a real prestigious guild.” Jagae ordered, first glancing at her own guild, then to Manju’s guild.

The two crews looked at her in confusion. Since when did Jagae, the one who fought the most with Manju cookie, stop an argument with her biggest rival? Despite that, of course the Shiny Shell guild couldn’t protest, so they went ahead and started preparing bitterly.

The Anko bun guild however, looked at her in detest. I mean, who was she to order another man’s guild?

A strong voice rang out. “You’re not our captain, why should we listen to—“

“You heard her.” Manju cut the cookie off.

The Anko bun guild looked at their captain in shock. He kept speaking.

“Go get ready to set sail. Sure she’s in another guild, but Jagae still outranks you. If it’s not something petty, I expect her orders to be followed.” A rare serious tone came out from him.

The crew member, stunned but intimated, nodded quickly before scurrying off. The other members followed. While watching them all prepare, Manju made eye contact with Daifuku, whose eyes looked incredibly hopeful before going back to his work. The captain lightly chuckled. Daifuku and Gwapyeon were so obvious, it was a surprise that he didn’t get to the conclusion that they were dating earlier.

“Sorry about that. We probably should have came back at different times.” Jagae sighed.

“Hm? How come? It’s not like we should hide the fact we went out for a snack together.” Manju hummed and Jagae rolled her eyes at him before slightly smiling. They sounded a lot like a secret couple trying to escape prying eyes of those who don’t approve, she thought. Not like they were anyways. They were just friends right now.

Just for right now though.

“Whatever Manju, for the sake of it, let’s say we just so happened to be on the same path coming back.” She huffed and Manju nodded in agreement.

“Understood. In that case, I’ll see you later on the sea.” He smiled and nodded his head slightly before turning around and heading back to his ship. This time, he didn’t mind letting his tail swish around.

Jagae watched him walk back to his ship. A wave of emotions washed over her. She remember the last time they parted like this, and it ended in her finding out that he was dead a week later. She bit her lip. Now that she was given a second chance, how exactly was she supposed to save him? Follow his ship on the day of? Tell him to not go on a voyage that month? It won’t work. If she saves him, someone else will die in his place, right? The only question was who. She fisted her hands. Was she really expected to find someone else— a sacrifice, in order to prevent Manju’s death? She wasn’t an assassin, she was a merchant. Fuck, what exactly does she do?

She cursed under her breath. Footsteps slowly came from behind her.

“Um.. captain?”

“Huh? Ah.. yes?”

Gwapyeon cookie stood in front of her, her eyes more sparkly than usual.

“That’s.. quite a bitter look on your face. Did the Anko bun guild master say something?” She questioned.

Jagae let out a forced laugh. “Ah, no not exactly. That Manju cookie just makes me think sometimes.”

“Of him?!” The girl widened her eyes. Despite the two being close in age, Gwapyeon tended to seem more childish in Jagae’s eyes. Right now she looked like a school girl. Then again, Jagae did too.

She immediately flushed at the young cookie’s words. “That’s— huh?! W-where exactly did you get that idea?!” She stammered. The cookie in front of her eyes lit up like she just realized what she said and who she was talking to.

“Ah! No that’s not what I meant! I mean.. are you two close with each other?” Gwapyeon shifted the conversation, and Jagae willingly took that chance to get away from that topic.

“Well.. as much as rivals I suppose. Why do you ask?”

“Well.. I was wondering “why is captain calling Manju Cookie by his real name?”, so..”

Ah. Jagae didn’t even realize. In the past, the two had gotten close enough to call each other with their (actual) names. At this point, it was just habit. She then realized that a lot happened in the next few months. She completely forgot she was in the past when she was out with Manju. Huh. Wonder what that insinuates about their relationship.

“Uh.. thats because I was thinking that if we were going to avoid loud bickering down by the docks, the two leaders should be the example, you know?” She chuckled awkwardly, and Gwapyeon looked at her for a moment, as if to observe her expression.

“I see.” The cookie smiled.

Maybe Jagae had a lot more to be mindful about. And to think this is just the first day in the past.

—

Meanwhile, on Manju’s ship, they were just about to pull out. The captain silently went and checked the ropes of the life boats.

“Nothing wrong with them..” he muttered, his ear twitching as he recalled the day before. His hands still felt the burn of the rope. He glanced over at the dock, watching Jagae speak to a member of her guild, taking in the sight of her as if it was his last. He had completely forgotten his situation while he was with Jagae, and to be honest, that was good. The fact he forgot that he died, even if it was just for a moment, it was reassuring.

“Captain! We’re ready to..”

A cookie stands behind him, trailing off when she realizes that her captain didn’t hear her. Confused, she follows his eyes, realizing who he was staring at. When Manju notices he isn’t alone, he turns and makes eye contact with the cookie.

“Are we good to depart?” He asks and the cookie nods. The cookie also happened to be the same cookie who had questioned Jagae’s authority to the Anko Bun guild before getting cut off by her own captain.

“I would like to apologize for before, I was out of line.” The cookie bowed her head and Manju nodded in response.

“I accept your apology. That said, I do apologize for Jagae cookie’s suddenness, but what she said was the truth. Both guilds will try to keep peace on the outside. Call it a friendly rivalry if you will.” He smiled and the cookie nodded in understanding.

“Got it. Though I must ask.. since when have you called the Shiny shell guild leader’s name without any formalities? I reckon you used to call her Miss Jagae no?” The cookie questioned him, and Manju froze.

She was right wasn’t she? He and Jagae weren’t close as rivals yet at this point in time, and here he was calling her without honorifics. Way to fuck up the timeline.

“Oh, it seems I’ve been calling her that for a while now.” He laughs and the cookie looks at him in utter confusion.

“Huh..? For.. a while now?” The cookies mouth is slightly agape. Manju nods. “I see.. I wasn’t aware.. are you two.. um..” the cookie trails off and Manju can feel his cheeks slightly burn.

“I wish” is what he would have said, but that would tamper with his leadership, and despite how much he liked her, that wasn’t something he was willing to sacrifice.

“Ah no.. just friendly rivals is all.” He smiled awkwardly, and the cookie in front of him nodded in understanding, still in a bit of disbelief.

“Right, sorry for the sudden intrusion.”

“It’s fine. Let’s get ready to set sail.”

The cookie bowed slightly to her captain before walking off. Manju took one last look at Jagae, noticing she was looking at him back. He smiled and waved, earning him a flustered expression on her face, probably from being caught. That said, he was quite happy of the attention he’s been getting from her lately.

The two looked at each other for a bit longer. Maybe for others it was just a few seconds, but to them, they didn’t know if this was going to be the last time.

When they were ready, they both turned to their ships and began to sail once more.

A few weeks. All they had to wait was a few weeks to the next time they saw each other once more.

Chapter Text

The time that passed was long for the two. Usually Jagae would forget to sleep when she was navigating the ocean, but now, she welcomed sleep so much in order to pass the time, which worried her crew to the point of vocalizing their concern. Jagae had to reassure them that she was just tired, and totally not wishing for time to pass faster for her to see her rival, oh no no no.

Manju on the other hand was much more stressful. Luckily he always had a list and itinerary for all destinations and clients, which is how he found out that his next visit to the Berry Kingdom was much later than expected. He dreaded sending Jagae an updated message saying that they would have to wait longer to see each other. However, instead he was very surprised to find that she had sent a reply, no more than a day after sending his, saying she’d coincidentally would need more time to collect some goods before heading there, so it was alright.

It was in fact, not fucking alright.

Both captains slowly felt their patience chip away, bit by bit with every passing moment.

As the narrator I’d usually say “5 weeks passed before they knew it”, but they did in fact count down every single day till their arrival.

And their reunion was nothing short of overwhelming.

—

The sweet breeze of the Berry Kingdom was unmistakable. They were about to dock. This time, Manju’s boat hit the shores before Jagae’s. The gangway was put down and the usual routine commenced. Crates and crew members made their way down.

Manju did as well, though occasionally glancing at the ocean for a certain ship. He also noticed that Daifuku cookie was doing the same.

“Daifuku, are you waiting for someone perhaps?” Manju asked. He really could not resist teasing.

Daifuku immediately flushed, knowing of being caught by his captain of all cookies. He awkwardly laughed.

“What are you talking about sir? I’m.. just admiring the water is all!” He tried to switch the conversation, but Manju kept pushing.

“Have you been sending letters to a certain girl perhaps?” He said, knowing that Gwapyeon had probably sent him a letter than she’d be heading to the Berry Kingdom next, and that was why he was also waiting to see the shiny shell guild ship.

The bomb dropped and Daifuku immediately began to stammer, desperately trying to form words and thoughts in order for his captain to stop pushing further, but the panicked expression on his face only did the opposite. Luckily for him, the ship that the two cookies were waiting for, pulled into the waters of the Berry kingdom.

The Anko Bun guild glanced over at the ship, but contained theirselves from making a scene, remembering their last encounter. Instead, they awkwardly put a hand up, meaning to wave hello but not moving it in order to keep their serious reputation. Daifuku however, waved towards the ship with no hesitation.

Glancing over at the ship himself, Manju’s eyes were immediately drawn to Jagae, watching her bark out orders as she skillfully steered the ship beside a dock. A few of the members were waiting at the still closed entrance and exit of the ship, some of them readily holding the gangway, while the others stood next to boxes and crates. One crew member he recognized as Gwapyeon cookie had a big old smile on her face as they drew closer. Her eyes were fixated upon Daifuku.

Honestly it was still beyond himself why he hadn’t noticed before, they were so witchingly obvious.

As the Shiny shell guild made their way on land, he witnessed a spectacle of the couple sneaking looks and smiles at each other, blushing as they went along their way.

“Um, captain I’m going to go over there now to help with the goods.” Daifuku told Manju when he was (finally) done with staring at his girlfriend. Manju nodded and he watched him walk towards the ship.

Speaking of (future) girlfriends, Jagae had finally made it down onto the dock as well. Not sure of what to do, Manju simply nodded at her when they made eye contact. Jagae awkwardly did the same, acting as if she wasn’t ecstatic to see him again. She briefly scanned his body for any injuries, and relaxed when she found he was fine. When that conclusion reached her brain, she immediately flushed red, realizing what she had just done.

Witches, she was completely obsessed with him now, wasn’t she? She cursed herself.

Yet she longed to speak to him again.

Little did she know, Manju wished the same. He quickly made his way to her, a more genuine smile on his face than usual.

“Why hello my rival. What a coincidence meeting you here.” He chuckled lightly and Jagae couldn’t help but roll her eyes.

“Don’t act clueless Manju, it’s not a good look on you.” She replied curtly, but she could feel the corners of her mouth tilt upwards.

Manju’s heart skipped a beat at that comment. He smiled a bit wider. “Does that suggest that you find me good looking at times?”

A familiar warmth began rising in Jagae’s chest. She scoffed. “No! It’s a saying, besides there’s no way my impression of you could possibly stoop lower.”

She was straight up lying for the first bit, but for the second? It was truth. She said it couldn’t stoop lower, but that didn’t mean it was already low to begin with.

Manju laughed. “Is that so?” He said between giggles. Before she knew it, Jagae started to laugh too. She rose a hand to her mouth, covering it slightly with her finger and thumb. Both of their cheeks looked slightly rosy.

It was like they were recharging their batteries.

“I must say I didn’t expect that you’d actually come.” Manju noted, leaning closer to the guildmaster.

“I’m the one who asked you where’d you go dumbass. Why wouldn’t I be?” She sighed, noticing Manju’s advancements but not deciding to move back.

“My my.. did you really want to see me that much?” He leaned in closer. Jagae froze, but she didn’t move in response. They could both subtly feel each other’s breath on their faces. Jagae stared into his eyes, and for a moment, his smile dropped into a much more serious expression. For a moment they stood there just taking each other in, neither of them moving away.

What if she slightly leaned in too..?

As the thought circulated in her mind, she slowly gave into it. She slowly inched forward testing his reaction.

Manju noticed what she was doing and began to do the same. Their noses were nearly touching when..

“Manju cookie, is that you?”

The two jerked away in surprise. Both of their faces completely red. Manju turned to see a cookie with light pink icing. She looked at the two in confusion.

“A-ah! Strawberry Swirl cookie..” he managed to strain out, manually making sure his tone wasn’t so obviously annoyed and disappointed. Jagae turned away and put her hand to her forehead while breathing heavily. What the fuck were they thinking, doing THAT all of a sudden in the middle of the Berry Kingdom docks?

But fucking witches, they both could not stop thinking of what could’ve been.

“So it was you! I didn’t know if it was because your tail was moving around so much. That’s quite a new behaviour from you.” She laughed and Manju suddenly became incredibly self conscious. He was so fixated on Jagae that he didn’t realize.

“I see. So did you need something?” He tried to push the conversation faster, though he knew that he and Jagae wouldn’t be able to continue what they were doing, but it didn’t hurt to try.

The pink cookie smiled before asking. “Did you try the cake shop I told you about? The one in the Crème republic.”

That got Jagae’s attention. She turned back around, looking at the two. So she was the client who told him about it.

“Ah that. I did, thank you for the location.” Manju slightly bowed, and the cookie in front of him giggled.

“Why don’t we go together sometime?” She suggested, still smiling.

Jagae stood there, taken aback. She was flirting with him. Quickly replacing that warmth in her core, she felt her blood run cold. For a moment, she imagined herself reacting in anger, even pulling Manju away, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it. Not after everything that happened.
“Maybe I shouldn’t listen in.” She thought, reaching a hand towards Manju. All she was here to do was to simply save his life, nothing else, no matter how much she wanted it.

Manju on the other hand, felt anger. These feelings had never crossed his mind when she flirted with him in the past, but now that he knew Jagae was right there behind him, he didn’t want her to get the wrong idea. He was about to talk back when Jagae tapped him on the shoulder.

“Hey Manju. I’m gonna go into town.”

He looked down at her in surprise, then in slight horror. He watched her eyes drift to Strawberry Swirl cookie for a moment before looking down. Her expression was so unlike her. Maybe he was expecting anger, or maybe he was expecting annoyance. It was like.. she gave up.

“See you.” She muttered, before walking away from the two.

Manju watched her walk away with an expression in his eyes that even he couldn’t understand. He looked back at strawberry swirl, who watched her walk away with a hint of disinterest in her eyes. She looked back at Manju, only to be frightened by a sudden serious face before it changed into the usual smile.

“I’m going to make something clear. I’m not interested in a relationship with a client.” He looked at her, dead in the eyes. “Apologies, but it’s the truth. Now if you’ll excuse me..”

He quickly turned, putting his attention on Jagae once more, practically running after her.

Strawberry Swirl cookie stood there in confusion.

“Witches, just say you like each other and I’ll back off like a normal person.” She sighed in defeat.

—

Jagae had walked away from the two. Witches, what exactly was she thinking? First the almost kiss and then that whole situation? What type of drug was Manju and why was she affected by him?

She sighs, her heart still heavy. This wasn’t like her. She knew that. A fighter, not a lover, or at least, that’s what she believed before. Suddenly love was in reach for her, something that used to be so foreign. Was she going to act on it? Probably not. No.. she couldn’t. She won’t. She only had one mission now. Save that buttershelled fox from his fate.

Why? Because…

Just because. She didn’t know herself. It’s not like she was expecting a reward. No one would even know of it, since if she succeeded, it would have never have happened. Was she just doing it out of the goodness of her heart?

No, she knew it was because of a much more selfish reason. A selfish reason that she didn’t even know existed within her.

Psh, what the hell was she doing anyways? It’s not like her to impulsively do something, especially as big as this. She gritted her teeth.

“Jagae!” A voice came from behind her, sounding as if they were running.

She turned to see Manju moving towards her.

“..what are you doing here?” She asked him, shamefully staring at every part of his upper torso as he caught his breath. He was such an eyesore, yet at the same time was so much like eye candy. Jagae bit the inside of her mouth to contain herself.

“Did you think I’d let you go alone?” He composed himself, brushing off any dirt from his pants and undone kimono before looking at Jagae. She scoffed.

“I’m a grown ass woman, thank you very much.”

“Still.” He looked at her and smiled gently.

Witches, he can get through to Jagae so easily, it pissed her off.

“Right, before I forget.” She reached into her pocket to grab a small bag of coins. She pushes into his chest, making him take it. “It’s for the cakes. Thanks for that.”

Manju stared at her before grabbing her hand and trying to give the pouch back. She resisted strongly.

“What do you think you’re doing?!” She asked him and he leaned in close.

“I treated you, I don’t need reimbursement.”

This time, Jagae did move back.

“I don’t need your affection or help!” She angrily scolded him, yanking her hand out of his grasp. She huffed, her breaths coming out uneven. She watched as Manju slightly flinched at her sudden change in demeanour. He squeezed the pouch that was still in his hands.

She scowled at him before walking deeper into the kingdom. As she walked, her last sentence repeated over and over again in her head.

It was as if she wasn’t yelling at him, but instead trying to convince herself.

That’s right, she thought, she didn’t need him. She didn’t even have him for a whole year. Why would she now?

Behind her, Manju stood dumbfounded. Still holding that stupid bag of coins, he tucked it away in his pocket. He wasn’t going to use it obviously. He was going to return it when the time was right of course. That time however, was not now.

It seemed she needed time. For what exactly? He didn’t know. He prayed it wasn’t because of the awkward situation before, or because of the kiss they nearly shared.

All he knew right now is that Jagae was acting quite odd. He hoped it wasn’t serious.

He turned on his heel, walking back to the docks. A crowd had formed around them, but he paid them no mind. All that was on his mind was a certain dear rival.

He looked up. The clouds were starting to darken a bit.

They might need to leave a bit early this time.

Chapter Text

It didn’t take long for Jagae to return to the docks. She was her guilds leader after all, she needed to check in.

She was lost in thought the entire time coming back. She hadn’t noticed the change in the sky.

“Miss Jagae! We’re ready to depart!” A cookie from the shiny shell told her with a smile. She gave him a tired smile.

“I see, let’s head out then.” She replied, looking out into the horizon. She glanced beside the Iridescent, and noticed that Manju’s ship was still there. She silently sighed in relief, as she didn’t really mean to part in anger. She was about to look for him when a cookie came up to her.

“Miss Jagae, could I speak to you in private for a moment?” Gwapyeon stood in front of her. Jagae turned and looked at her. She had a bit of a mischievous expression on her face that made Jagae stiffen in curiosity.

“Of course, what is it?” She asked and Gwapyeon pointed to Jagae’s quarters.

“Just a moment ago, Mister Manju came to give you something. He put it in your room.”

Jagae’s face flushed in both anger and fluster. “You let him into my room?!”

Gwapyeon flinched at the change and straightened her back. “W-well it was more like he just came onto our ship and put it there..” she practically whimpered in fear.

Jagae sighed loudly. “Stowaways are never permitted without permission. That’s the rule —and you didn’t stop him.” She lectured and Gwapyeon nodded in defeat.

“I’m sorry..”

“..It’s alright.” Jagae found herself happy at the girl’s humbleness. She tried to hide the amusement in her face. She cleared her throat. “Did you see what he put inside though?” Jagae questioned and somehow that lifted the young cookie’s spirits.

“Oh he was only in there for like a second. He didn’t even go inside fully, just opened the door and placed something on your desk.” Gwapyeon recalled, a finger on her chin.

“I see, thank you.”

Jagae walked over to her room, carefully opening it as if it might’ve been boobytrapped. Her eyes glanced to her desk, only to see the familiar pouch of coins and a paper. Jagae scowled, recalling the moment she gave it to him. He had been so adamant on paying for her, and when she tried to pay him for it, he was so hardheaded and tried to give it back. What was his deal?

“Didn’t he hear what I said..” she muttered in frustration, opening the carefully folded paper. Inside read:

Apologies if I had offended you in any manner whatsoever, but I will not be taking any of this. Just take it as a treat, no ulterior motives. Take your time, we can talk when you’re feeling calm again.

- Your dearest and superior rival, Manju.

She rolled her eyes at his lame titles he gave himself. As for the money, it was a kind gesture, but Jagae didn’t like to be in debt to anyone.

Then again, if she did save his life, or something similar, that would be more than enough compensation right?

She hummed to herself before taking the coins back. That would be enough. Life is more valuable than coins after all.

Suddenly, an audible sound of wind blowing past her window muffled Jagae’s thoughts. She looked outside the window. They quite a ways away from the harbour. Just how long did she spend thinking of Manju?

She brushed the thought aside and walked out of the room. She scanned the area of ocean around her. She recognized Manju’s ship was a bit in front of hers.

She went up and took the wheel, switching with her second in command. They were on their way to a village farther south, when the clouds above took a sudden change.

“Were they always that dark..?” She muttered to the cookie beside her. The cookie seemed just as surprised as her.

Her mind immediately flashed to a memory of when Manju and Jagae had first met, and when they departed, they had seen a monster, bigger than anything they’ve ever seen in the sky. That time, they were lucky enough to use the winds to make their swift escape. If it happened again this time? Jagae wasn’t too sure.

—

Thunder echoed through the skies. Manju was right. A storm was coming.

In hindsight, they should’ve probably just stayed at the Kingdom docks, but old habits die hard. They had a schedule to follow and places to be. That came first.

Or at least, it should, especially since he had experienced his own death.

This storm was quite intense. For the Berry Kingdom, sudden weather changes were extremely uncommon.

Immediately, Manju checked the ropes of the lifeboats again. They were smooth and ready to deploy. That was good.

Suddenly, the ship violently rocked.

“We’ve hit a rock!” An Anko Bun guild cookie yelled in distress.

That wasn’t good. If they stayed in place, they were practically a target for lightning.

Manju was about to bark out orders, when an explosion came from the side of the ship. His eyes immediately darted over there, and he ran over to check it, only to realize the rock had been broken by a cannon ball. Behind him, he heard a familiar voice.

“Need a hand?”

He turned to see the shiny shell guild ship behind his, with Jagae laughing at the wheel. The cannon that was fired had Gwapyeon cookie behind it. She waved to the ship.

Manju made eye contact with Jagae before laughing himself. “It would be much appreciated.”

With those words, Jagae gave a nod to her second in command before grabbing her comically large fan and leaving the wheel to them. With a jump, she opened her fan and glided to his ship, landing right beside him.

“This reminds me of old times.” Manju chuckled and gave way to the wheel for Jagae.

“Yeah, since you’re so incompetent on the seas.” She jabbed and Manju scoffed.

“You need the map too don’t you?” He handed it to her and she looked at him before taking it.

“Whatever, just take this as compensation for the cake instead of the coins.” She told him, steering the ship away from the rocks with her own trailing behind them.

“That’s something I’ll accept.” He told Jagae, watching her skillfully handle the situation.

The crews were running around on the decks, constantly checking if everything was ok. The waves shook the boats, but nothing too serious. It seemed they’d be able to get out of it safely. The rain begun to pour, and since then, it has gotten a bit stronger. They were drenched, but nothing they couldn’t handle. If anything, they’ll only have to worry about getting sick.

As the storm got more and more similar to the one that took his life, Manju felt himself getting giddy, as if something was going to happen to him. He began to heave slightly, his breathing becoming more audible. His eyes flickered to every moving thing in sight, as if he was looking a sign that it was going to happen again. He looked up at the sky, letting the rain drops face on his face, trying to get him back into reality. It wasn’t working, until he felt pressure at his wrist. He looked down at it, only to see Jagae’s hand squeezing it. He moved his gaze to Jagae, who momentarily glanced at him, as if to say “get yourself together”, before turning her attention back to the storm at hand.

They didn’t need any words.

Manju took a deep breath in before looking straight in front of him.

That’s right, he thought, if he was going to survive past his fated death, he had to keep his attention fixated on that goal.

Suddenly, a deafening roar was heard from the starboard side of the ship. All heads darted over there. A large funnel had connected with the sea.

Luckily for them, it was quite far away from the two ships, but waterspouts travel fast.

Even more so if they are more tornadic than fair weather waterspouts.

“Is it moving?!” A cookie from the Shiny Shell guild yelled in question. “If it’s not, then it’s headed toward us!” He shouted, knowing that everyone on deck already knew that fun fact. That said, reminders didn’t hurt.

Manju stared at the visible storm. It was hard to tell, but it seemed to go in the opposite direction of the two crews.

“So? Where’s the damned storm headed?” Jagae asked him, her eyes still fixated on the ragged water in front of her.

“If anything it’s not coming towards us.”

“Well fuck, that’s helpful.” She deadpanned, rolling her eyes.

A large gust of wind blew through. The little droplets of water that were caught in it hit their faces like needles. It swayed the two ships, but not enough for them to capsize. It was however, rough enough for the goods below deck to be damaged, but that wasn’t exactly important now.

“Captains! There’s a wave accumulating in our direction!” A cookie yelled, and the two immediately turned to see. Lo and behold, a wave was approaching them. It was about more than half the height of the hull, and it had debris within it.

That made it dangerous.

“Brace for impact!” Someone yelled, and no one hesitated. They all grabbed onto something, one hand holding it, the other covering their heads and faces.

Jagae took cover on the wheel, resting the top of her head in the middle of it, a hand still firmly keeping the ship steady. In the same moment, she felt weight on her back and a hand on her waist, and for a moment, she didn’t feel any rain drops on her head. Manju was covering her.

As the wave slammed into the ship like a wave into a rocky shore, a few screams and grunts were heard. The impact was heavy, and Jagae felt herself sway along with the ship, though not as much a she would have anyways, since Manju was holding on to her.

The wave was wide enough to hit both ships, but unfortunately for Jagae, it seemed the Iridescent had taken more of the force. She heard more panic behind her than in front of her. The most memorable sound was a terrified scream.

The second the wave passed, she looked up and behind her, and checked on her ship, pushing Manju off of her. As she looked, she heard a splash from below them. That confirmed her worst fear.

“GWAPYEON COOKIE!” someone yelled from her ship’s quarterdeck. Crowds formed at the sides of the ship. On Manju’s ship, violent movements could be heard. “GET OFF ME! LET ME GO!” A cookie grunted.

Manju glanced over at the source of the sound, watching his crew try to hold Daifuku cookie from jumping into the water to save her. Even under the heavy rain, he noticed his eyes were damp.

“Gwapyeon!” Jagae screamed as she watched her desperately trying to get above the water to breathe. Planning to go in herself, she began to take off her jacket when a firm hand grabbed her wrist. The next thing she knew, both of her hands were bound to the steering wheel behind her.

“Huh?! What the hell do you think you’re doing?!” She struggled, trying to release her hands before looking up and realizing who did it.

In the next moment, Manju’s kimono was off, and he was jumping into the water.

Jagae felt her heart stop.

Her mind flashed to the letter she received on that day. The words that’s were written in black ink repeated over and over in her head.

“..gave his life to save ours..” she reckoned in her head, her legs giving out.

It was happening again, and he had stopped her.

It was happening again, and she couldn’t do anything about it; again.

What was the point of learning from mistakes if she didn’t have a chance to fix it?

What was the point of going back in time to save him if in the end she was just going to watch him die anyways?

What was the point of living any longer knowing she failed him again..?

“MANJU STOP!” She screamed, her throat burning because of the tears threatening to fall out and because of the strain she had put on it to say it as loud she as could.

More voices joined hers, all screaming in horror. The sounds had overlapped with the noise from the storm, creating a cacophony that definitely could be heard from miles away, but Jagae couldn’t hear it.

She strained her head so much to listen for splashes below, splashes that meant both of them were above water and alive. Her ears couldn’t make out any other sounds other than what she was praying for.

Her mind wandered to wondering what exactly happened that day. How did he pass? If he drowned, why couldn’t he just swim up? Why did he jump if he was actually an ass swimmer? Why did the rope get stuck when they tried to deploy the life boats? Why did she get sent back in time?

Why did he tie her up?

Chapter Text

The second he heard that scream, he tightened his grip on Jagae’s waist slightly.

A few days before —

Nighttime sailing had to be one of Manju’s favorite times of day. If it was a particularly warm night, then the crew would put lanterns us and light them, warmly illuminating the deck. It was gorgeous and so cozy, Manju could spend all his time then.

Sure it was scary to look out at the endless dark abyss of ocean and sky, but a warm light never fails to guide.

After a cup of tea, the Anko Bun guild was getting ready to turn in.

Taking off his kimono and kumiho cord, Manju crawled into bed, relaxing himself as much as he could. It didn’t help that he knew exactly what his fate was though. He’d never admit it, but every time he closed his eyes, memories of that night floods through his mind like the undertow. It was exhausting. The only thing that was pushing him forward was the fact that he’d be seeing Jagae once more at the Berry kingdom Harbor.

Quite obsessive yes, but who could blame him?

Noticeably, the amount of letters he’s been sending and getting has increased dramatically. Most of which, are either addressed to the Shiny Shell guild, or from them, with the occasional letters of commerce requests from clients. Manju glanced at his desk, letters cluttering it. The guild members are getting their suspicions from it, but it’s not like they can say anything.

Manju sighs before urging his body to fall asleep. He shuts his eyes, letting himself drift off.

Except.. he can’t.

He opens his eyes again, only to be blinded by a bright yellow light. The sounds of clocks can be heard all around him. His ears instinctively flatten to try and muffle them. Looking around, clocks of all different shapes and sizes surrounded him. No wonder it was loud.

His hand moves without direction to his wooden sword at his waist, resting itself on it, but ready to pull it out if need be.

Speaking of which, didn’t he take it off before he went into bed?

He clenches his jaw. How did he get here? His eyes darted around his new surroundings, looking for any clue as to why he’s here. The gold of the clocks reflected light all around the room, but left some corners and crevices completely covered with shadow. Manju found himself glancing there ever so often. Who knows what was hiding there?

Manju looks up at the biggest clock. No doubt it was making the most noise. He watched as the hands aligned at 12 o clock. His ears flattened even more as if they knew what was coming.

And to be fair, he was right.

Deafeningly loud dings and dongs came on cue. Flattening his ears didn’t cut it, he had to put his hands on them as well to prevent any long lasting damage.

As the noise died down, he heard shuffling behind him. Planning to get them by surprise, he leapt backwards, his hand ready to use the wooden katana.

In front of him was a cookie. They smiled at him, but the smile held no emotion.

It reminded him of his.

The cookie had quite the eccentric look. A tophat that looks like an owl, a giant key like staff in her hand, gears acting like a monoglass on her face. The most confusing part was that she smelt like buttery bread.

“Who are you?” He quietly asked, just loud enough to be heard over the noise.

The cookie just laughed before speaking. “You don’t need to know that. All you need to know right now, is that you are quite stupid for someone going back in time.”

Manju looked at the cookie in distain. He had quite a few questions, but three rang out the most. First, this cookie knew that he traveled back in time? Second, exactly who are they? And third—

“Stupid?” He said out loud.

The cookie laughed out loud again. “Correct.”

Manju clenched his jaw. “Did you send me here? Were you the one who sent me back in time to before my death?”

“Questions, questions. Everytime I meet a new cookie, it’s all just questions!” She rolled her eyes. “The answer to both is yes, duh! You see clocks all around you and you ask “did you send me back in time?” Of course I did!”

Manju still kept a defensive position, but relaxed ever so slightly. “Why?”

“It’s because you two are quite entertaining to watch. I can’t read minds but I could tell that the regrets that lingered were a lot, so I decided to play hero!” She giggled, spinning around, ending up facing away from Manju.

He looked at the cookie in confusion. His eyebrows furrowed and his ear twitched. The cookie in front of him began to walk forward towards the giant clock, and he felt the sudden urge to carefully follow after her.

“You two? Who’s the other— and what regrets?” He pried, a certain cookie’s image fluttering in his mind. It couldn’t be, right?

The cookie stopped and turned around abruptly, looking at him like he was stupid. She groaned before picking up the pace and walking forwards again. “I only brought you here for one thing. I needed to make something clear before you killed someone by accident.”

Manju but the inside of his mouth in frustration. The cookie just switched the topic. He opened his mouth to get them back on track to the conversation he wanted to hear, but the eccentric cookie continued.

“The timeline will stay no matter what. The same storyline will always be followed no matter what.” She started, finally getting to the destination she wanted, which was right below the giant face of the clock. She messed around with some of the gears in front of her, clicking them into place. She then clicked a button which began to turn them in unison. Manju watched her as her words sunk in.

“Do you mean to say that whatever I do I’ll always die in the end? And if that was to be true, the how come some things have already changed? I don’t reckon taking Jagae to go out for cakes in my original past.” He told her, still skeptical of the whole situation. The cookie stepped back, watching the gears turn before talking to him again.

“You didn’t let me finish. The events will always stay the same, but the people who are involved can be switched out accordingly.” They held their hand out, explaining. Then, she snapped her fingers, and on command, a projection appeared in front of the two. Manju jolted in surprise at the sudden sight. The video began to show the man at the dock, the same one who destroyed his anniversary gift. The cookie pointed at him and turned to face manju, whose face was still bewildered.

“For example, the broken vase.” They said. “Originally, it was never supposed to break. Before, he had went and gave it to his wife, and they went on a little date after that. That guildmasters order was supposed to break.”

Manju assumed they were talking of Jagae.

“But that never happened in this present, because he broke something instead.” The cookie continued. “So instead you two went on that date. Get it?”

Manju began to connect the dots. That made sense, rather than his own theory, which was simply: things in the timeline were going to change, because it’s time travel. This was much more consistent, but complicated.

“The other one already got that figured out. I could tell from their actions. You? Not so much.” She sighed.

“So my death.. if I don’t find someone to take my place, I’d eventually die again?” Manju theorized, his eyes glancing at the cookie, then to the projected screen.

“Now you’ve got it.” She said.

“But I’m not an assassin, how am I supposed to do that?!” He gritted his teeth, his anger beginning to show. In fairness, it was a pretty frustrating situation.

The cookie shrugged. “Recognize the other time traveller in your midst. They’ll help you out with that.”

Manju muttered insults under his breath, but the cookie in front of him pretended not to notice. “How am I supposed to figure that out?” He grumbled, not asking the cookie in front of him, as he’d already come to terms with the fact that they were not telling him anything they didn’t need to.

“Though..” the cookie suddenly looked seriously at him. He stiffened. “With the way that things are going, it’s not looking good for you.” They snapped their fingers again, the screen on front of them changing abruptly to a storm.

A storm that Manju knew all too well.

“If you don’t find someone, then fate will give you their own replacement.”

The screen shifted to horrified faces of his crew members, then to clients, then to friends, to Gwapyeon Cookie, to Daifuku Cookie, and then finally, to her. They all looked as he had at the time of his death.

They all looked helpless, scared, given up almost.

He couldn’t stand watching Jagae’s face change into something so terrifyingly peaceful, as she slowly sank deeper and deeper into the cold, dark depths of the sea.

His fists clenched and his ears twitched with rage, as he looked back to the cookie with fury.

“How do I switch spots with someone of my choice.” He muttered, loud enough for the cookie to hear him. He didn’t bother with having a polite tone or having a smile on his face, those traits were long gone. All he needed right now was information.

The cookie in front of him laughed in response. “On the day of your death, someone will need to go. The only requirement is that the must be on your ship, then drown in the sea due to the storm. Simple no?”

“That’s it?”

“Yep! Now that I’ve told you everything I needed to, I’ll send you back now.” She says smiling, about to snap her fingers again. Manju tries to protest, but the cookie doesn’t let him talk. The second he heard the snapping of her fingers, the world went dark.

—

When he opened his eyes again, he was once again in his room, only now, it was daytime.

He looked around for a moment before looking down and staring at his hands. Even if it was just a dream, it seemed all too real. Even if he had imagined the entire interaction, he wasn’t about to gamble his life and everyone else’s to figure that out.

His head pounded the same exact way it did when he first travelled back in time. The memory of Jagae flashed in his mind over and over again to the point he could still see it if his eyes were open. His hands trembled, his ears all the way flat on his head, and his tail was eerily stagnant. Imagining any picture of Jagae would trigger the image of her drowning, and he couldn’t do anything about it.

Well, he could do one thing; or a few other things that went against his core values and the law.

But one thing was clear to him.

There was absolutely no way he was going to let that happen.

Present —

The second he heard that scream, he tightened his grip on Jagae’s waist slightly.

No doubt about it, someone just fell overboard. If it was someone from the Shiny Shell guild, then there was no doubt Jagae was going to try and save them.

Normally, he wouldn’t have much problem with that, as she was a master at navigating through oceans of storm and physically fit. In fact, she was probably the most suited person to save whoever fell.

But like hell was Manju going to let her do that.

The memory flashed in his mind around the same time he heard Daifuku scream Gwapyeon cookie’s name, and with that, he began to move.

He took off his kumihimo cord, specifically the smaller one that secured the wooden katana to his side. He grabbed the wheel in front of him and in one swift motion, grabbed Jagae’s two hands and tied them to it. He then moved to the railing, looking for where the young cookie was moving towards. When he spotted her, he took his kimono and bigger kumihimo cord off, and dove into the water in that direction.

The familiar feeling of the terribly cold water filled his senses, but this time, he was able to move his limbs.

Swimming as fast as he could, he quickly reached Gwapyeon and grabbed the sinking cookie’s arm and pulled her up towards the surface.

Now that she was breathing, it was his turn. Luckily, he knew how to tread water.

The two gasped for air, Gwapyeon violently coughing, careful not to cling too hard to her rescuer otherwise they’d both sink. She silently thanked Jagae for putting mandatory swimming lessons on the requirements for becoming a Shiny shell guild member.

Unfortunately for them, it wasn’t over yet. The waves were still pushing them around like ragdolls, showing no sign of mercy. Waves upon waves water boarded them, making air seem more as a luxury than a necessity. Manju tried to keep Gwapyeon above water, as it turned out that she didn’t have the endurance that he did.

When the waves died down for a moment, Manju looked over towards the ship, letting himself slightly relax at the sight of a life boat headed towards them.

The lifeboat he never received.

“Mister Manju! Gwapyeon!” A Shiny Shell merchant yelled, extending his hands. “Get closer!”

With no hesitation, Manju dragged Gwapyeon in front of him, practically handing her over to them. They quickly pulled her on the boat, before reaching for him.

When everyone was onboard, the merchant turned his attention back towards the ship. “Pull us up!”

Manju glanced at the sides of the vessel, noticing the ropes were still attached. When the lifeboat got close enough to the main ship, he felt the boat begin to rise upwards.

As he watched the raging water get farther and farther away from him, he suddenly felt the adrenaline leave his body, realizing just how cold the water was and how hard he pushed himself.

Upon getting on the deck of Jagae’s ship, cookies handed warm water and blankets to the two.

He momentarily glanced over at his own. Cookies looking at him in concern and in relief, Daifuku cookie looking as if his world just crashed down and got built back up in one moment, some crew members still clutching his arm as if he was going to try and jump the gap between the two ships.

Naturally, his eyes wandered to where he was originally standing, the steering wheel. He saw two figures. One of his members and the other was Jagae.

The two made eye contact, Manju expecting something like anger in her expression since he noticed she was already untied. Instead he was met with a look he hadn’t even seen before.

She looked horrified, her shoulders rising up and down faster than his. She was practically hyperventilating, shaking uncontrollably. Her eyes, looking concerned and terrified at the same time. There was also anger, but it didn’t seem to be for him. Staring at her, there was something else he couldn’t recognize. A feeling so deep that it couldn’t be expressed, but maybe explained.

They hadn’t had their talk yet, the one he said they would have when she’s ready. Now? Now it seemed he needed to talk to her—no, listen to her. Something was off with her lately, and Manju found himself fully realizing just how deep it ran. It wasn’t just something “off” with her. Something was most definitely wrong.

She needed him, but what exactly for was unclear.

Manju just knew he absolutely hated that look on her face.