Shadow milk cookie, fount of knowledge to master of deceit (analysis?) part 2

PART  TWO

So, to continue the last part, I will elaborate on the paradox of truth and lies. Due to everyone's knowledge being truly limited, unless we treat shadow milk cookie as a being with perception beyond human comprehension (in which case he would surpass the witches, which would beg the question of how the fuck did they give him what they don't know? spells that don't depend on their own knowledge? Idk lmao), what sets him apart is having a better recognition of patterns that occur a lot in a subjective world, as patterns are the only reliable thing you can trust, WHILE keeping in mind the deviations. One common pattern is that due to truth as a concept meaning a relatively consistent product of how we see and define the world, and most importantly, is applicable in a specific set of circumstances (this is very important. patterns aren't always true in all circumstances), while it is objective to an extent, it becomes false when you don't consider context, or the angle from which you're viewing it. Because of this you can easily twist a truth into a lie rather seamlessly as most people prefer hearing what seems like truth, but is actually a lie either due to omitting/replacing certain details or putting it in the wrong context. And the same logic can be applied to lies too, as they can just as seamlessly turn into truths. Shadow milk seems to understand this rather well, because ironically, he is rather honest about him being a liar in a way you wouldn't expect. He is a liar, because he claims he is all about lying when instead he is juggling a bunch of truths and lies TOGETHER (boy who cried wolf, nah? except fun is a tertiary objective) in order to confuse you, and force you to think, to dig the truth out yourself, by putting it in various angles, whether it be mockery, or outright manipulation, or saying the truth right in your face when it will hurt most to confront your denial while seasoning it with a little lie, as we can see from the hell he put pure vanilla through. Although, to those who claim that eternal sugar lies better, as I said, shadow milk lies about his goal being lying. His goal is actually to teach you and make you seek out the truth yourself. Notice how candy apple cookie is a CANDY apple, not just a normal apple? An apple of knowledge coated with sugary lies, the offering of a satan who, at first glance, is offering you a sweet taste of deceit, but the forbidden fruit of knowledge still lies beneath. So, ironically, he stayed true to his virtue. That's why comparing them is a bit of an odd thing to do. Their motives are completely different, and thus, so are their methods. And you know what? Shadow milk's method, much to his surprise, delight, and ultimately dismay, worked on pure vanilla quite perfectly! Just in a way he wasn't expecting at all. Why wasn't he expecting it? Well this one's a complicated part to explain as I'm only recently coming to these conclusions and it might be rather messy, but let's jump into it. Bear with me.

PROJECTION

You see, shadow milk is clearly not the sanest cookie on earthbread. The reasons why were stated in part 1. But one side effect of that hellhole I didn't mention is pride. Immense pride. He was the only one who knew the truth, yet people only wanted a false version of it and rejected it like fools. His wrath must've been quite immense. And isolation can very much lead to hatred and pride, as one will naturally wonder, how could they be so blind? So pathetic as to reject the one who objectively knows more than them, let alone demand one to conform to their buffoonery like another sheep of the herd? That's bound to make you bitter towards the world, and much more, do a number on your self-esteem. Because on the flipside, if the sheep herd lives so peacefully and happily thanks to being so clueless, maybe the miserable know-it-all turns out to be the fool for caring so much and posing danger to the blissful heaven of ignorance because of the knowledge he holds? Either way, with that hurt in mind, he clearly needs a way to deal with it. A fragile ego tends to crave power and superiority in various ways, and an escape from responsibility. His snark and tomfoolery don't just serve as guidance, they also serve as a way for him to let out his anger, to feel superior, to finally get the chance to play the MAIN character much more unapologetically than he would otherwise when pleasing people and their silly wishes for ignorance. The theatrical demeanor also provides a good distance from his audience and allows for a better sense of freedom, while putting himself on a pedestal.

 Now let's get to the interesting part, how he treats fellow cookies like little toys, ESPECIALLY pure vanilla! One fella on twitter shared an opinion that I still cannot get out of my head as I agree with it wholeheartedly, but unfortunately I still can't find the post (should've bookmarked it, stupid me) so I'll try to explain it myself. Basically, shadow milk treats pure vanilla quite like a doll to project onto, much like how traumatized children tend to recreate said trauma through their dolls and toys to process it. Interesting, no? It's visible from how he drove pure vanilla to what is quite like a pair of existential and identity crises. The confusion the spire of knowledge reflects, a world that has been shaken up where reality is completely twisted and you cannot tell what's truth and what's a lie. The hopelessness of never being able to know, and the fragmentation of pure vanilla's self as we can see from truthless recluse and the fortune teller existing simultaneously despite being the same cookie from different periods of time and reality. This reflects a LOT of dissociation. And you know what's particularly interesting? Shadow milk, directly quoted from the game, saying "been there, so to speak". I'm sure you understand what that means. And I believe this sets a good foundation for the theory I presented in part 1. It also greatly reflects just how much he is projecting, how desperate he is to break pure vanilla, to make him awaken to the truth that wrecked his world. To be less lonely, to be understood. Shadow milk toys with him so much because he sees a lot of himself in pure vanilla, and uses him to cope with his own hurt. And yet, simultaneously he dehumanizes (or decookie-izes?) him greatly. Because it's easier to avoid the responsibility of the pain he is inflicting that way, and also because he sees him as a little fool whom he can play with to feel a little better about himself, to assert that he is truly all-knowing and thus superior. This shows his pride once again which was one of the biggest reasons behind his reaction to pure vanilla's request. He fulfilled his goal by awakening pure vanilla to the truth and opening his eyes (metaphorically) by having him hit rock bottom and resurface to accept that he also harbors deceit within, yet he didn't lose hope, in fact, he gained a new faith in the imperfections of the world and especially himself. Here's a fun fact from the crk wiki to further highlight pure vanilla's fresh new acceptance of the coexistence of truth and lies, and ultimately his own flaws: 

• Pure Vanilla Cookie (Compassionate)'s original Korean name (이해자: 퓨어바닐라 쿠키, ihaeja: pyueobanilla kuki) more directly translates into English as Pure Vanilla Cookie (Comprehender), the term 이해자 (ihaeja) more so describing one who understands something rather than one who cares or feels empathy for others.

(I believe both translations fit very well, just for different reasons. comprehender for his newfound understanding of the world and compassionate for his acceptance and love for himself and those around)

Shadow milk seeing pure vanilla go through the same things as him and not only regain his hope but also display such great mental strength and resilience must've dealt quite the blow to his ego paired with the fact that his little toy, his new coping mechanism escaped his grasp and even took his soul jam, as he quite literally lost all control. It's no wonder he took such great offense at pure vanilla's request to be friends, cause he clearly felt extremely betrayed. Not to mention he had to face the fact that someone DOES in fact understand him that deeply and sees right past his barrier of grandiosity, beneath which lies someone who also has weaknesses and flaws, just like anyone else. And friendship would demand much more closeness than the comfortable and safe distance of simply treating pure vanilla as a doll to play with would offer, so naturally, shadow milk simply snapped. Yet there was hesitation behind his rejection. His yearning still remains, and yet, the biggest lies he has ever told and proceeds to tell are all to himself. Quite ironic, amirite? Managing to enlighten your enemy when you have yet to enlighten yourself! 

 Welp, I'm terrible at concluding stuff so uh. That's it! Also I may or may not be taking a silly little cookie game FAR too seriously for my own good, especially since all of what I said here is really just my interpretation, a headcanon if you will. Either way, I hope you fellow readers and especially cookie run fans found this to be insightful and not just me spewing bullshit to cope with my own experiences! I wish you a lovely day/night.

<part 1

Credit to @roseraris on tumblr for cookie divider! :)