Mumbo was busy in the kitchen, wearing an apron and oven mitts as he fluttered slightly above the ground. The allay pulled a sheet of freshly baked cookies out of the oven. From the kitchen table, Bdubs, Grian, and Scar sat, watching as Mumbo happily continued to bake another batch of goodies.

"It's amazing." Scar said, his eyes lighting up and his smile wide. "It's like he managed to remove all the negative effects from a vex, while keeping all the powers! It's almost more impressive than Doc's original design."

"He's a genius." Grian spoke a bit dreamily, a smile across his face as he watched Mumbo shuffle between the oven and the stand mixer that was spilling cookie dough all over the kitchen counter.

Bdubs looked over at his boyfriend, placing a hand on Scar's hand. "Does that mean...you can survive?" He asked, the vex's blue eyes big and hopeful. Scar was a bit stunned for a moment, before he cast his gaze to the side.

"M-maybe?" He sounded hesitant, reluctant at the idea. To become an allay, he'd need to become a vex again, and that just sounded awful. The mayor shook his head. "It's not something to worry about right now. Why don't we get you changed back first?"

Bdubs looked a bit shocked. "O-oh. Right." He sounded sad, almost disappointed, as his gaze fell to the floor.

Scar frowned, placing a hand on his partner's chin. He lifted the vex's head, allowing for their eyes to meet. "Hey. Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I just...what if...what if I don't love you when I go back to normal?" Bdubs voice was quiet and shaky, his blue eyes filling with tears. Scar's heart hurt at the question.

"I...I thought you said you loved me before being turned into a vex." He mumbled, Bdubs quickly noticing his boyfriend's saddened expression.

"I-I did!" The vex quickly tried to assure, shaking his head. "It's just...I don't know. I'm just scared, I guess. I don't..I don't want to hurt you. I don't want to leave you, cause..well, cause I really like you, Scar. But...I don't know what thoughts are my own, and which are from me being brainwashed.."

Scar rose from his seat, pulling his hands away from his partner. He looked out the window for a moment, green eyes saddened. "Bdubs..I can't force you to love me, and I can't leave you brainwashed for the rest of your life. I wish I never did any of this in the first place, I wish I never went crazy with all that power...but one good thing came from it all, I guess.."

Bdubs felt his cheeks go a bit pink as he stood up, stepping a bit closer to the mayor. "And...what was that?" He asked, a smirk across his face, while his gaze was loving and dreamy. The vex already knew the answer, but he wanted to hear Scar say it.

Turning back to face Bdubs, the worry in Scar's green eyes faded away. He smiled, stepping a bit closer and cupping his partner's cheeks. "You." He said, pulling the vex closer to connect their lips in a warm embrace. Bdubs shut his eyes and leaned into the kiss, melting into the softness of Scar's lips.

They pulled away at the sound of clanging metal, turning towards Mumbo, who had dropped the baking sheet he had been holding in shock. "YOU TWO ARE DATING!?" He exclaimed, stunned at the sight of Bdubs wrapped in Scar's arms. Grian burst out laughing.

"Yes, you spoon!" He fell out of his chair from laughing so hard, shaking his head at the allay's cluelessness. "They've both been crushing on each other for like, all of season seven?"

Scar's cheeks went red. "Oh no, was it that obvious?"

"Apparently not to me." Mumbo shook his head, bending down and lifting the cookie sheet off of the ground. "Ah, well, cookies are done! Luckily they didn't fall off of the sheet...anyone want some?"

Bdubs shook his head, as Scar quickly pushed past his partner to snatch one off of the sheet. "Oh, it's been so long since I've had something sugary that wasn't cake!" He said while shoving the cookie in his mouth. Mumbo laughed.

"Yeah, it seems like these allays have a sweet tooth too. Except, instead of cake, I'm craving cookies!"

"So...what happened to all the evil magic?" Bdubs asked, "Magic can't be destroyed, right? So what happened to the magic that made you evil? That made you a vex?"

Grian and Mumbo shared a look, before the human walked over to a backpack they had brought along to Bdubs's home. Grian pulled out a glass butterfly jar, revealing a vex inside of the glass. It was trying its best to escape, with no success.

"It's like all the evil was sucked out." Grian explained, "We're lucky we managed to catch this thing, it might have flown off and found Cub."

Scar bent down to become eye level with the jar, tapping on the glass that separated them. "Aw," he cooed. " I forgot how cute little vexes are. And, hey—! Look! It has a little Mumbo mustache!"

Sure enough, the vex had a mustache, nearly identical to Mumbo's. Grian placed the jar down on the kitchen counter, looking into it to study the creature. "Hey, you're right!" He laughed, "Awe, he's like your little mini-Mumbo!"

The allay shuddered. "Ugh...don't remind me..that thing is just a reminder of all the bad things I did as a vex.." He mumbled, biting into a cookie to try and distract himself.

"So what? Should we kill it?" Scar raised an eyebrow, looking to Grian for answers.

"Maybe not. What if it's some kind of freaky soul-link? And if we kill it, we kill Mumbo?"

"That would not be good." Mumbo nodded, finishing off his cookie.

Scar shook his head, turning to the three. "We can find a way to get rid of these things after we help the other Hermits. Starting with you, Bdubs."

He looked a little sad. "And you're sure I can't stay as a vex?"

"Trust me, you'll feel so much better once you get all that evil magic out of your body." Mumbo said with a smile, trying to assure the vex.

"I promise, I'll be here with you. We can do this together." Scar promised his partner, pressing their foreheads together.

"Okay..I'm ready."

—

"And...you're sure this thing is safe?"

"About 75% sure." Mumbo said, pulling his pair of goggles over his eyes as he worked at the control panel. Scar nudged the allay in the ribs, causing him to flinch. "A-ah! I mean, 90. I'm 90% sure."

Bdubs fiddled with his hands, standing awkwardly in the center of the machine. He peered out of the glass, staring into the eyes of his partner. "Scar...I'm scared.." Bdubs said quietly, his blue eyes saddened and afraid. The mayor pressed a hand to the glass.

"It'll be okay." He cooed, "I'll be here."

Mumbo looked towards the pair, his hand hovering over the button. "Are you two ready?" He asked, watching as Bdubs gave a reluctant and slow nod.

"Alright then. Here we go."

He pressed the button, which caused the machine to jump to life and activate. It let out a low rumble, prompting Scar to step back in surprise. Bdubs stared through the tiny glass window, which was beginning to fog up from the steam on the inside. After a few moments, Scar could no longer see the vex, as the fog had completely covered the glass.

The allay was working at the machine's panel, tapping the screen and adjusting settings as the machine continued to rumble and shake. His gaze was firm as he focused on the work, flipping a couple switches before typing in a command.

"I upgraded the control panel a bit since the last use," Mumbo explained as he worked. "Hopefully that should make this transition a bit easier."

"It doesn't sound easy." Scar mumbled in worry, flinching at every sound the machine made.

"Progress is at 78%...82%...almost there." He spoke while entering more commands into the panel, his brow furrowed in concentration. The machine rumbled a bit more, though it slowed, before coming to a stop.

The mayor looked at Mumbo. "Is it over?" He asked, worried for the safety of his partner.

Mumbo pressed the button that activated the machine once more, causing the metal door to slide open. Steam rolled out as Bdubs stumbled forward, practically collapsing in Scar's arms. The transformation seemed to have worked, as the same changes that Mumbo went through had now happened to Bdubs.

He no longer had claws or fangs, his wings seemed less ripped and shredded, and the color of his eyes and wings were much more vibrant. The machine had worked once more, changing Bdubs from a vex to an allay.

Scar helped his partner sit down on the floor, allowing for the newly-transformed allay to rest his head on the mayor's chest. His eyes slowly opened, and Scar held his breath, waiting for Bdubs to come back to the moment.

Bdubs took a shaky breath before opening his blue eyes fully, gazing up at Scar. He gave a tired smile before leaning in, pressing a short kiss to his partner's lips. "Guess I had no reason to worry," He said, resting his head on Scar's chest once more. "I feel like I love you even more than before, actually."

The mayor's eyes filled with tears as he wrapped his arms around Bdubs, pulling his close while kissing the allay's head. "Oh Bdubs," he mumbled between peppering his partner with kisses. "I love you so much."

"Heh, Scar...you're embarrassing me.." He blushed, watching as Grian and Mumbo giggled.

"I don't care, I'm gonna cover your entire face with kisses!" Scar declared happily, pressing his lips to the tip of the allay's nose. Bdubs gave an embarrassed scoff as he pulled away, cheeks red.

"I definitely feel like myself again," He said, relaxing in his partner's arms. "I felt like before my brain was just filled with thoughts that weren't my own, that were just put in there by someone else...It feels nice to have my head back."

"I'm glad you're back too." Scar kissed his partner on the forehead, his arms still wrapped around him.

Mumbo stepped forward, carrying a tray of cookies. "Sorry to interrupt," He said a bit awkwardly, bending down to offer the baked goods. "But you might want to eat something. That machine basically drained all the vex magic from your body."

"Speaking of which.." Grian grabbed another glass jar, jumping up and snagging a vex that was trying to fly away. "Gotcha!"

"Did that..come from me?" Bdubs asked, eyes wide in curiosity.

"He's your son!" Scar giggled joking, as the allay rolled his eyes with a scoff.

"Hey! He's got that little rope.. belt... thingy.. around his head! Like you!" Mumbo pointed out, tapping on the glass. The vex seemed to get angry, trying to bang on the glass before flying around in circles.

"Awe, he's throwing a little temper tantrum! That's definitely your child, Bdubs." Grian smirked.

"I DO NOT THROW TEMPER TANTRUMS!" The allay huffed out angrily, his wings flapping in annoyance. Scar giggled as he leaned forward, pressing kisses along Bdubs's neck.

"I think it's cute." His partner said, immediately calming Bdubs down. He blushed, trying his best to hide his embarrassment.

"Come on, it's been a long day." Mumbo said, offering his hand to the allay in order to help him stand. "Tomorrow, we can work out a plan. But we all need some sleep."

"Sleep sounds amazing." Bdubs sighed, swaying a bit on his feet.

"I agree." Grian yawned, resting his head on Mumbo's shoulder as they stood. "We only have two beds here, hopefully that won't be much of a problem."

"I like cuddling." Scar smiled as he came up behind Bdubs, wrapping his arms around his partner.

"Wait, but what about you two? We're still short by one bed."

"Gri and I can cuddle as well." Mumbo blushed a bit at the idea, "It would be nice, actually."

"Wait, are you two—?!" The allay's eyes went wide in shock.

"I..think so?" Grian gave an awkward chuckle, looking up at Mumbo. He took the allay's hand, before looking back at Bdubs with a more confident smile. "Yeah. We are."

"I didn't even realize." Bdubs shook his head.

"Well, to be fair, quite a lot has been going on." Mumbo awkwardly laughed, looking down at Grian with rosy cheeks.

"We can discuss everything more when this whole 'situation' is over. Come on, let's get some sleep."