What Max Would do for a Lifetime Supply of Cookies by flYegurl

I was sitting peacefully on my couch when I had the sudden, most urging urge to get up and go outside. So I did.

I ended up wandering the trails of the woods, watching the trees and the squirrels in the trees and the nuts in the squirrels (actually, I didn't see the nuts, but I did know that they were in their digestive systems). I realized, though, that this wasn't where the urging urge was pulling me. So I just followed it down through the woods, across a field of daisies, across a field of posies, across another field of daisies, across a field of honeysuckle, and across a field of dead grass.

Then, I suddenly reached a large clearing. In the center was a large, glowing crystal orb. There was a smiley-face on the front.

I stepped cautiously up to the smiley-faced orb, because that's where the urging urge was urging me.

"Hello," I said cautiously, awaiting a reply.

"Why hello there, child," the orb, indeed, replied. I grinned, because the mouth of the smiley-face opened and closed as the orb spoke. Plus, it just looked plain funny.

"What are you here for?" I asked. Of course, I had never before seen this clearing, nor the orb before in my life. It was intriguing.

"I am here to grant you something. Anything you wish. In return, though, you must do me a favor."

I thought for a moment about the orb's offer. "I wish for a lifetime supply of delicious cookies."

There was a pause, and the orb made no sound or motion. I waited, and then glanced around, wondering if maybe my wish had been already granted and the cookies were contained in some sort of bottomless container within walking distance. Nothing. I looked back to the glowing crystal orb.

"You are required to wait until I explain your situation fully," the orb suddenly answered, its smiley-face looking rather ticked.

"Oh," I answered. "Okay. What's my situation?"

"First," the orb began. "If you wish your wish, the wish you wished will have to be the wish you wish from the bottom of your heart. No other wish will be able to be granted. Wish a wish with all your wishing power. Wishes aren't cheap. It must be a profound, wishful wish. No other wish will suffice. Do you understand this first requirement for the wishing of wishes?"

I pondered the statement for a moment. "Absolutely. Only a wishful wish I have wished with all my wishful wishing power. Got it."

The orb nodded, if it was possible for an orb to nod.

"Right then. Second, the wish can't be harmful. A harmful wish, or an otherwise hurtful wish, is not allowed. In other words, any wish that harms or hurts a person, persons, people, animals, plants, or other organisms is not permitted. Hurting in a hurtful way, or harming in a harmful way, is against the rules. No hurting hurtfully, harming harmfully, hurting harmfully, harming hurtfully, or any other way possible to harm or hurt is not allowed. Do you understand this second requirement for the wishing of wishes?"

Again I pondered, but this one was easier. How hurtful was a lifetime supply of delicious cookies?

"Yes, I absolutely understand. My wishful wish I have wished with all my wishful wishing power must not be able to hurt or harm in any harmful or hurtful way. Got it."

The orb once more nodded, the smiley-face smile growing.

"Yes. Third, you are unable to take back the wish. This wish will be un-take-back-able. There will be no backsies, there will be no take-backs, there will be no change of heart or mind, and there will be no withdrawal. There will be no switching, exchanging, or wishing a different wish to negate the first wish. Do you understand this second requirement for the wishing of wishes?"

I pondered for the third time. This one took a little longer to figure out, but eventually my love of cookies grew too strong.

"Yes, of course I understand. My wishful wish I have wished with all my wishful wishing power that is not able to hurt or harm in any harmful or hurtful way I am not able to take back, exchange, negate, or withdraw. Got it."

The orb brightened, and I started to enjoy the cheery smiley-face.

"There is one final requirement. The favor I ask of you must be done without complaint or cheat. There is no way for you not to complete the favor and still accomplish your wish. The wish will only come true if the favor I ask of you is completed. There is no asking to change which favor I ask of you, and no alteration of any sort of the favor. The favor must be completed within twenty-four hours of the wishing of the wishful wish. Do you understand this final requirement for the wishing of wishes?"

Of course, this one was the easiest to answer. I hardly had to ponder at all.

"Yes, of course I absolutely understand. My wishful wish I have wished with all my wishful wishing power that is not able to hurt or harm in any harmful or hurtful way that I am not able to take back, exchange, negate, or withdraw will not come true unless I have completed your favor that is unchangeable and un-alterable within twenty-four hours of wishing the wish. Got it."

The orb gleamed the brightest it had ever gleamed to my immediate knowledge, and the smiley-face smiled widened so very wide.

"Brilliant. Then, repeat the words 'I wishfully wish that this wish be granted' three times, then wish your wishful wish. I will then ask you my favor."

I clicked my heels together three times because it seemed appropriate, then did as the orb bade of me.

"I wishfully wish that this wish be granted. I wishfully wish that this wish be granted. I wishfully wish that this wish be granted." Then I took a deep breath and spoke aloud my wish. "I wish for a lifetime supply of delicious cookies."

There was a burst of light, and suddenly the smiley-face orb burst into purple fire.

"Your wish will be granted once my favor is completed," the orb spoke, its color darkening by the second. "You must murder each member of your flock. If this does not occur within twenty-four hours, the wish is undone, and you will never see a cookie again."

I gasped in horror, and the orb vanished in a puff of ash.

I love cookies more than any other food or object in the world. Chocolate-chip cookies, peanut-butter cookies, sugar cookies, Snickerdoodles, chocolate cookies, cookies with M&Ms, cookies with toffee, cookies with caramel. Soft cookies, hard cookies, chewy cookies, crunchy cookies. Cookies with sprinkles and cookies with icing. Freshly baked or even stale. I loved eating them for breakfast, lunch, and dinner as well as dessert, brunch, luncheon and supper. And snacks. I loved cookies so much my heart ached. I loved cookies like I loved my wings, maybe more.

But my flock was my only family. The members were my only friends. I had known them all since they were babies. I had watched them grow and mature. Iggy with his bombs and sarcasm. Fang with his silence and black clothes. Nudge with her chattermouth and her fashion sense. Gazzy with his, well, gas and his eager-to-please attitude. Angel with her cuteness and her powers. They were all incredibly dear to me, and I loved them so.

I flew back home through the clouds and over the trees, remembering how scary the smiley-face orb had looked as it burst into purple fire. I remembered the dread that had appeared in my mind as soon as it disappeared in a cloud of ash.

After all, what was worth a lifetime supply of delicious cookies?

When I got home, Iggy had dinner ready. Everyone was already sitting at the table. Angel looked up at me with her big blue eyes and my heart melted.

"We've been waiting for you," Fang said quietly, and my heart pounded.

"Eat," Iggy said, shoving me down in a brotherly way into my normal chair.

"Wow, you look weird," Gazzy suddenly said. "And you smell like flowers and ash."

"Guess what I made for dinner?" Iggy suddenly asked. "Cookies!"

He set a big tray of assorted cookies into the center of the table, then sat down in his chair without even feeling for it in that unnerving way of his. I could remember when he wasn't blind, and he had actually been clumsier then.

I reached forward and lifted a chocolate-chip cookie from the tray, and stared at it. The chocolate-chips were still melty, the cookie still warm. My mouth watered. What would I give for a lifetime supply of these.

Then I looked around at my family again. Adorable Angel, cute Gazzy, sweet Nudge, cheerful Iggy, silent Fang, and realized that some things in life are more important than others.

That night, I sat comfortably on the couch in front of the television, utterly happy. I reached forward as if to ruffle Gazzy's hair (the little guy usually sat on the floor in front of me), grabbing a delicious cookie from the bottomless jar that contained my lifetime supply. The bodies of my flock lay rotting at the bottom of a canyon. But, as I said, some things in life are more important than others.

Hmm. That was an interesting and random fic. Review?