There was a point when the blizzard no longer had its frightful affects. The howling wasn't worth worrying over anymore and the snow was now the norm. The winds did its best to detour the cookies of the kingdom, but now they were well adjusted.
A few more cookies walked around outside now, gathering up the courage to face the winds as they now were behind on their jobs and errands; they couldn't stop for anything now, not even for a blizzard. Latte had decided to be one of these cookies, walking amidst the forces of nature for her own purposes: another snowy day wouldn't stop her. She walked by some notable shops that had remained opened for the duration of the blizzard. She even noticed a little potion shop that had its door slightly open.
Walking past the buildings, she stumbled upon Herb's house and began to knock on his door. She started with three knocks, then spoke closely to the door.
"Hey!" She huffed, "it's me, Latte Cookie! Did you get my letter?"
Latte waited patiently, huddling herself as the winds crept up on her. There wasn't a response at the door.
"Herb? Herb Cookie? Hello?"
Her teeth chattered. After a few seconds, the doorknob began twisting on the other side. She smiled, awaiting the moment the door would click open, but it never did. The twisting stopped.
"Uhm, having problems there? I'll wait, don't worry!" She reassured the person on the other side.
She watched the knob, seeing as it no longer moved. Latte quickly observed her surroundings as she waited, then catching a glimpse of a window nearby the door. There was a curtain that was covering it within the house, but that didn't stop Latte's curiosity from wanting to see if she could take a peek inside. Before she did, see looked once more at the knob, seeing as it didn't move an inch.
It wouldn't hurt to leave just for a second, Latte thought to herself. She leapt down from the stairs of Herb's home, coming over to the window and stood on the tip of her toes in order to make herself tall enough to look inside.
Luckily, she was able to see just a little bit inside since the curtain didn't cover the window completely. To the side, she saw someone else trying to open the door, fumbling around with a key within their hands. It was a much larger cookie and its figure looked nothing like Herb, unless Herb started a very rigorous exercise routine the last time they met.
She quickly climbed back up the steps, hearing as the knob began twisting again. This time, as Latte had just made it to the door, the door opened revealing Werewolf Cookie on the other side.
"Oh," Latte had a surprised look on her face, "is, uhm, Herb Cookie home?"
Werewolf squinted at Latte for a moment, "why do you care?"
She stuttered on her words a bit, "Well, I... I sent a letter a few days earlier to him and I, uhm... wanted to stop by?"
Latte wasn't sure what fear overcame her at that moment. Whoever this was standing in front of her wasn't making her scared, but some kind of aura was admitting off of him that made her uncomfortable. He sighed before he responded back.
"Latte Cookie, right? That's who you are?"
She nodded, "yes! That's me! I wrote my signature on the-"
Werewolf interrupted her, "I know. I saw the letter. Come in."
Werewolf walked to the side, letting her walk through. The house was much warmer and comfortable, instantly putting Latte at ease as she removed her hat politely.
"Ah... so nice. Herb must feel great staying in here all day."
Werewolf didn't respond. He closed the door and went by Latte, signaling her to follow him.
"He's upstairs."
"Oh! Of course, of course..."
The wooden floor creaked as she walked behind Werewolf, following him up the steps and down a hall. The house was neatly lit with plenty of candles randomly placed all over the area, especially in front of Herb's room. The door had already been slightly opened, letting light seep into Herb's darkened room for Latte to see.
Werewolf simply just pushed the door open further for Latte, offering her an entrance.
"Herb?" Latte then turned to Werewolf, "is he sleeping?"
"He wasn't when I you arrived, but he could have fallen back asleep."
There was shuffling on the bed, "I can hear you two, you know?"
Latte looked back into the room, seeing a sickly Herb completely wrapped up in blankets. He smiled at her, but his pale face weakened his cheerful charm.
"Oh... my- Herb Cookie," she walked closer to the bed, "what happened? You poor-"
"Yeah, yeah," Herb calmly dismissed her, "I know. 'You poor soul', am I right? I'm okay though!"
"Are you sure? You seem so sick!"
"Well, I am sick, but not in the deadly way thankfully."
She sighed, "I appreciate the optimism, but you should really get that checked out."
"I'll be fine, I'm just having a bad reaction to the cold."
"Once again, optimism is greatly appreciated, but you seriously need to go somewhere for some help. You can never be too careful!"
Herb snuggled back into his little cocoon of blankets and laid down, looking disappointed at his current situation.
"I know... I already thought of those opportunities, but you don't get why. I'm this way because of the cold outside! If I leave, I might as well drop dead!" Herb whined.
There goes all of that optimism from earlier, Werewolf thought. Latte frowned in pity for Herb, sitting beside him on the bed, resting her hat down.
"That explains all of the sheltering, hm?" Latte spoke to Herb but whispered so quietly that it seems like she was speaking to herself.
"My next option could be to bring someone here, but I don't know anyone who specializes in... plant cookie sickness?" Herb struggled to find the right words.
"There's always someone out there that specializes in whatever you're looking for."
"Yeah, like myself."
Latte chuckled, "I mean, you're not wrong. You're probably the smartest botanist in this kingdom."
Herb wiggled his way back up from the bed, "see? I can help myself! As far as I know, I am my own doctor!"
"Fine, you beat my logic there. Aside from that, I hope you get better."
"Thank you, I'd say it's going pretty smoothly."
Herb laid back down, slamming himself down with such force that the bed bounced a little. Latte picked back up her hat, returning it to her head.
"Isn't Snow Sugar around here? Where are they?" Latte mentioned.
Herb muffled within the blankets, "oh, they're with Clover for now. I didn't want to leave them stuck with me the whole time knowing that Clover has more time on his hands. I wouldn't want to babysit Snow Sugar like this."
"I see. Well then," Latte straightened her posture, "shall I go do what I came here for?"
Herb was taken aback by Latte's comment, "huh?"
"In the letter, I said I'd be able to put a spell on the plants. Do you want me to go do that while you stay here?"
"...well," Herb lowered his voice, "it's a little too late for that."
"Oh, I'm sorry. Did they... you know, go on?"
"Yup. My plants are gone," Herb said sorrowfully.
The honesty shocked Werewolf upon hearing it from Herb. The atmosphere in the room became heavy but was interrupted by Herb shortly after.
"Can I ask a question?"
Latte tilted her head, "what is it?"
"How long does that spell last? Like, at the minimum?"
"I'd say at the minimum... like, for a plant the size of a tree, maybe one day? Why do you ask?"
"Let's say, hypothetically, you put the spell on a plant MY size, how long would it last?"
Latte was silent, "Herb, are you suggesting... that I put the spell on you?"
"Maybe."
"Herb, I hate to burst your bubble, but the spell doesn't work on cookies. Only plants."
"Who knows? Maybe I'm more plant than cookie. You can cast the spell and find out."
Latte pulled her staff from behind her back, thinking of Herb's proposal. Werewolf leaned against the doorframe of the room, still listening to their conversation.
"I'll try, but don't get your hopes up."
"Perfect! I'm ready when you are," Herb exclaimed.
Latte thought about her decision as Herb broke out of his blanket cocoon and set them aside. He sat comfortably on his side of the bed, urging Latte to stand up and hold her staff up from the floor.
"Ready?"
"Yup," Herb confirmed.
Werewolf became a little nervous seeing Latte perform her spell on Herb, but seeing Herb be so calm with the situation made him settle down a bit; if Herb was fine with it, so was he. Herb closed his eyes, keeping himself contempt as Latte casted the spell onto him. He didn't want to be too distracted or cause anything to go wrong during the casting, so he closed his eyes and relaxed his muscles. Sitting as still as possible, he felt the shifts in the air current as Latte moved her staff around, the staff making a strange noise as she did so. Staffs make weird noises all of the time, Herb thought, this case shouldn't be too different. Maybe, I'm just not used to it...
"Herb? You can open your eyes."
Hearing Latte, Herb opened his eyes and looked at her, "what? Is it over already?"
"Spells this simple don't take long to cast," Latte tucked the staff away, "and you really didn't have to close your eyes."
Herb looked at Latte and Werewolf, seeing if their expressions changed at all: Werewolf was the first to notice a difference. His nose twitched, now squinting at Herb as he looked back at him.
"Werewolf? What's up with-"
Werewolf walked past Latte and went down to Herb's level, getting awfully close to his face. Herb attempted to lean away, but only could go so far before he would lose his balance. He held himself up as long as he could, letting Werewolf observe him.
Werewolf suddenly brushed his hand against Herb's face, causing Herb to blush from the contact of Werewolf's hand. He felt his skin, smiling.
"I don't know what that did," Werewolf explained, "but you look so much better."
Latte kneeled down with Werewolf, taking a peek at Herb's face. He was flustered at the amount of close contact he was receiving from Werewolf as Latte watched, now letting Werewolf hold up his hand.
"Your hands, look."
Herb followed Werewolf's instructions and looked down upon his hands. His dough had returned to its previous color with bits of pink where his jam flowed in his veins. Herb stared at his healthy hands, his eyes sparkling with happiness.
"Why, it worked! Didn't it? Latte, how does my face look?"
Despite Herb asking her, Werewolf answered, "alive and well."
"So, I am more plant than cookie... what a discovery."
"Not exactly," Latte added, "honestly it might be because you're purely made from a plant, not that you have a larger ratio of plant than cookie."
"So... would this work on Clover as well?" Herb questioned.
"That's a good question. I should ask him to test your theory..."
Herb was silent, then his face morphed into a moment of realization and excitement, "does this mean I can go outside!?"
He didn't even bother waiting for an answer, Herb immediately stood up from his bed and rushed out the room.
"Hey! Not yet!" Werewolf called out.
The cookies followed Herb, seeing him quickly run down the stairs and make a turn for the exit. He carelessly ran to the door and whipped it open, throwing himself out into the freezing cold. Worryingly, Werewolf ran out with Herb to protect him from the winds but then stopped himself by the top of the stairs as he watched Herb.
It was like watching a little kid discover snow for the first time, falling down into the snow making snow angels as he giggled to himself. He rolled around in the snow, not feeling a bit chilly whatsoever. Herb turned over to Werewolf, his face covered with fresh puffy snowflakes.
"I feel so alive! I've never been able to play around in snow like this before!"
Werewolf's face turned red seeing Herb's moment of joy, adoring every bit of Herb's happiness as his eyes continued to sparkle with innocence. Herb got up from the ground, rushing over to the steps to his house where Werewolf stood.
"Come on," Herb held out his hand, "join me you grumpy wolf!"
Normally Werewolf would have taken offense to that statement, but he was too distracted by Herb's youthfulness to argue and took his hand. Herb pulled him down the steps into the snow, guiding him to the middle of the snow-covered street. Herb couldn't help but laugh the whole time, having so much fun just being able to feel the snow under his feet.
"Make a snow angel with me! Come on, lay down!"
Herb lowered himself, dragging Werewolf with him and spooking him in the process.
"Are you trying to drop me into the snow?" Werewolf said concerningly.
"Actually, yes!" Herb tugged his hand, "yes I am."
By the door, Latte emerged from the house and stepped into the cold, holding onto her hat for dear life. Latte grinned watching the two in the snow.
"You seem to be enjoying yourselves!"
Herb shouted back, "of course! Thank you for everything!"
"Now hold on! This won't last forever you know."
Herb laid his head back, "how long will it last then!?"
"About three days. On the third day, you better be back inside!"
"That's enough time for me!"
Herb went right back into the fun, waving his arms up and down to create an imprint into the snow. The blizzard roared, but had no effect on Herb anymore, it was like the blizzard was angry at this newfound happiness. Latte walked over, addressing Herb one last time.
"Shall I see you again another time?" Latte asked Herb.
Herb had his tongue out, trying to catch a snowflake. He quickly shut his mouth, then paid his attention to her.
"Sure! When the spell wears off, I suppose."
"Alright," Latte tipped her hat, "see you until then."
"Bye!" Herb waved.
The snow crunched as Latte trotted off, leaving Werewolf and Herb in the snow. Herb returned to his snowflake catching duties, opening his mouth once more.
"Have you really never been able to do this?" Werewolf spoke up.
"Technically, yes. It's just that I've never been able to go out without wearing multiple layers of clothing. Feels good not having to wear three coats..."
Werewolf chuckled to himself, "so this is all new to you?"
Herb nodded, opening his mouth and catching a few snowflakes. He glanced over at Werewolf, seeing as he was just watching him.
"Hey! You can have some fun too," Herb yanked him down again.
Werewolf had been forcefully laid back onto the snow, the fluff on his cape supporting his neck from the street's hard surface.
"What if don't want to make a snow angel?" Werewolf questioned Herb's intentions.
"Too bad. You're making one."
"I just won't move."
"Just have some fun, will you!?"
Herb, now laying down alongside Werewolf, was holding his hand and began swinging it up and down against the snow. Herb giggled as the movements pushed the snow around, creating the snow angel. Werewolf noticed the warmth in Herb's hand, proving how resistant Herb was to the cold, but that wasn't what he was paying attention to. Werewolf glanced at Herb's expression, seeing him smile and his cheeks light up with a pinkish tint from all of the excitement he was experiencing. Werewolf couldn't help but think that Herb was beautiful in that moment.
"What are you staring at?"
Werewolf snapped out of his trance, now making complete eye contact with Herb. He still had the sparkle in his eyes, but his brow shaped an expression of concern for Werewolf.
"I... uhm," Werewolf stumbled, "I don't know. I was just daydreaming."
Herb supported himself off the ground, letting go of Werewolf's hand, "well, get up now. We need to see how our snow angels look!"
Werewolf did as he was instructed, standing up from the ground and walking away from the imprint left by the two of them. Werewolf's snow angel was immediately recognizable by the absolute mess that was made, any attempt of an angel by Werewolf was a disaster.
"That's... definitely not a snow angel," Werewolf frowned.
"It's okay, I kind of like it."
Werewolf went to Herb's imprint next, seeing as his was a more accurate version of the iconic snow angel look.
"See? It should look more like that," Werewolf pointed.
"Awe, don't say that. Mine's basic anyway, yours looks so unique compared to mine."
"My cape ruined it."
Herb placed his hand on his shoulder, shaking him, "be proud of it! I'm proud of you for making an interesting snow angel!"
Werewolf silently stared at the snow angel, "still looks like a mess."
"And that's your opinion. Personally, I like it."
Herb kneeled down to the ground, cupping a pile of snow right next to Werewolf.
"What are you doing now?" Werewolf watched Herb from above.
"Declaring war on you."
"Really? Because it just looks like you're making a snow man-"
Herb interrupted Werewolf, throwing a snowball directly into his face.
Herb laughed, "snowball fight!"
Werewolf smeared the snow off, his mouth cracking into a smile, "I see how it is..."
The two began the fight immediately, running around and grabbing as much snow as they could while hiding around the area. At first, Werewolf took all of the hits without returning fire to Herb, but at some point, he finally started hitting back. Herb was completely covered in snow and yet wouldn't stop the battle despite them being in quite a harsh environment. Herb felt so free in the dangerous weather though, it almost felt more enticing to be in a dangerous environment than to be anywhere else.
As Herb hid behind a crate, he felt his breath weaken and become harsh against the cold air. He watched as puffy clouds exited his mouth, now hearing footsteps creep up upon the crate.
"There you are!" Werewolf shouted, throwing a snowball.
The snowball hit Herb's head, causing the snow to splatter all over his leaves. He reached upwards, failing his attempt to cover himself before the hit.
"Hey! Let me catch my breath," Herb barely spoke out.
"Oh? Giving up?
Herb turned to face him, "no, I'm just tired from all of the chasing..."
He nodded, "should we stop now?"
"Sure. How about we do something less... intense," Herb laughed it off.
Werewolf looked around the area, the snowflakes swirling around them. Werewolf tried adjusting his sight to see through the snowy fog, but to no avail.
"Not sure anyone could be opened in this weather..." Werewolf added.
Herb lifted his head with a sudden idea, turning over to a different direction.
He pointed down the street, "I know a place we can go! I can revisit a few friends of mine as well."
"Where?"
"Sparkling's bar! He's always opened during this time. If anything, I'm sure plenty of people are trying to get drinks."
"...in this weather?"
"You'd be surprised how determined some people are to get a drink."
Herb brushed off chunks of snow from his shoulders, preparing to travel to the bar. Werewolf mimicked Herb, seeing if there were any large chunks of snow on himself as well.
"Let's go, the time is ticking, and I only have three days. Make this a fun three days for me, will you?"
Werewolf thought about Herb's comment, "I'll try. No promises."
"Why won't you keep promises? It's only for three days."
Herb lifted up his pinky to Werewolf. Werewolf frowned with a face of disappointment, making Herb giggle.
"Please?" Herb urged his pinky further towards Werewolf.
"Fine."
In defeat, he wrapped his pinkie around Herb's, successfully making a pinkie promise with him.
"Good! Now, it's time to visit Sparkling cookie!" Herb announced.
Herb grabbed Werewolf's hand and ran down the street together. Not even the blizzard could stop Herb's adventurous personality anymore, Herb was free from the burden of being a plant. Snowflakes placed themselves upon the two as they kept up their pace, laughing and smiling together, feeling like nothing could stop them.
Herb cookie had three days.