When King Dedede had arrived to Meta Knight's home, the warrior wasn't sure what to think.

The self-proclaimed King of Dreamland was already well known as being a gluttonous, lazy penguin. The Waddle Dees certainly seemed to like him well enough, catering to his every whim. Meta Knight had been planning on checking in on him, and making it clear that when it came to power, he was number one, and if Dedede dared do anything harmful to Dreamland, Meta Knight would take care of him personally.

That was why Meta Knight had hesitated to even open the door. What was Dedede doing here-

"Would ya stop staring at me like that already?"

Dedede was leaning on his giant hammer- Meta Knight hadn't quite seen it in action yet. Obviously, the 'King' was just as uncomfortable as Meta Knight was. Which really brought about the question about why exactly the penguin was here in the first place.

"Alright, Alright, I know that this isn't the world's best timing, but I wanted to ask you a favor."

A favor? Just what sort of favor could be asked by this fake-king?

Meta Knight had to admit he was rather stunned when Dedede pulled out what looked to be several pieces of The Star Rod. It was the source of all the dreams in Dreamland, and what made sure that there wasn't a single resident on the entire planet that had a bad dream.

The Galaxia Sword was drawn in a split second, blocked the next second after by the giant hammer. Dedede wielded it with only one hand, eyes narrowing at the sudden attack. "Just what was that for?"

"Is that not a piece of the Star Rod?"

"Yeah, it is-"

"You dare make the citizens of this planet sleep without dreams? I will defeat you here and now, and restore the Star Rod to its rightful place."

Dark, angry eyes glowered back. "Yeah, and lead the Nightmares right too us!"

Nightmares? Meta Knight's eyes narrowed beneath the mask. "Explain yourself. Now."

Dedede didn't lower his hammer, but some of the tension in his eyes left. "I was taking a bath in the Dream Fountain, when I saw something black oozing out of the Star Rod. It was a Nightmare."

There hadn't been a recorded instance of a nightmare in a hundred years. "It probably followed the dream currents to here. Which means there's probably more where it came from."

Meta Knight sheathed his sword, staring at the glimmering pieces of the Star Rod in Dedede's hand. The penguin sighed. "I figured no dreams are better than nightmares."

"Yes, I suppose so yes." But if Dedede had already broken apart the Star Rod to keep Dreamland from being overrun with Nightmares, then why was he here? "Why are you here then?"

"You're a pretty powerful warrior- especially according to the Waddle Dee's. Could you protect one of these pieces until we figure out some way of combating the Nightmares?"

If Meta Knight was in the habit of showing emotions, astonishment would be written all over his face. As it was, he remained standing without flinching. Dedede didn't move either. "How many pieces are there?"

"Seven. I figure that will be enough pieces to keep anyone from being able to gather them all."

It made a surprising amount of sense, which was so very surprising when you realized just who these words were coming from. Meta Knight regarded Dedede for a long, long few moments, noting how stiffly the penguin was standing, and how tight of a grip was on the giant hammer. Despite the fact that it would be easier for Dedede to rest the mallet on his right shoulder, he didn't.

If the King had been bathing in the Fountain of Dreams when a Nightmare had appeared, what ought to of happened next?

Meta Knight reached out slowly to pick up a single piece of the glowing, shimmering crystal. Its edges were rough, despite their apparent smoothness. The breaking of the Star Rod had not been a deliberate act. Probably something more of desperation.

Meta Knight held onto the piece of the Star Rod, and looked Dedede in the eyes. "I will protect it with my life."

The penguin smiled slightly at that, relief appearing for a brief second. It was hastily covered up by haughtiness. "Hah, I guessed as much!"

The hammer was switched from right hand to left hand, and shouldered on the left. The Parasol Waddle Dee spun its parasol happily as it chirruped softly. Meta Knight watched as the two trotted off, the remaining three pieces lying in Dedede's hands.

Maybe perhaps, the selfish king wasn't as bad as everyone had originally thought.

Dedede waited until he was securely in his chambers where no one could see him before actually taking a look at his wound.

Floating unarmed in the Dream Fountain when an enemy attacks does not mean you could escape unharmed. Dedede hissed softly at the burning sensation spreading through his arm.

The wound, blackened around the edges from Nightmares corruption, balefully stared back at him. It was aggravated by Meta Knight's attack, but Dedede knew this was something that couldn't wait. While Popstar's inhabitants were usually laid-back and willing too allow life roll over them, they wouldn't stand for having no dreams at all.

Hopefully, now there wouldn't be any Nightmares invading the planet…

Dedede finished bandaging himself, and glanced sideways. His trusty mallet, never really put to the test before, lay propped up against the wall next to a black box. There, in the sealed box, lay the nightmare he had fought.

His mallet wasn't enough to completely vanquish the creature, but a passing Waddle Dee with a chest had provided the opportunity needed to trap it instead. It only took a few hammerings to force the Nightmare into the box, and the other Waddle Dee carrying the key had nearly cried when it was snatched from him to lock the box before the Nightmare could escape.

Even now, the box lay next to his bed innocuously, just taunting him. Dedede knew he'd have to get rid of it eventually, but the question was how. Well, he could leave it for now- it wasn't like it was going to be stolen by some roving band of thieves and opened by some idiot who thought it was cake.

First things first- he needed to figure out some way of defeating Nightmares that didn't require piecing back together the Star Rod. While he could retrieve the pieces, it was better if there was another way to fight the Nightmares.

Dedede slumped towards the bed, and fell onto it.

Exhaustion overtook the king in a matter of minutes, sending him deep into the throes of a nightmare. Popstar exploding, its inhabitants dying by the score, and the inky blackness that swirled in to wipe out even the tiniest rocks-

Dedede woke up in a cold sweat, and the Nightmare in his shoulder throbbing like a drum. He groaned as he sat up, beak hidden in the palm of his hand. It had been so long since he had a bad dream. He had them when he was younger, a child, before he found the trick of bathing in the Dream Fountain chasing the bad dreams away.

Even if the Star Rod wasn't there, maybe the waters still had enough healing power to make the pain die down a little. Something to ease the bad dreams…

Dedede didn't notice the Waddle Dee's and a few Waddle Do's gathered around his door and nervously chattering to each other. If he had bothered to listen carefully, he'd of heard them discussing the fact that they couldn't have any dreams, and how their King wasn't sleeping well either. How obviously, there was going to be an attack, and obviously they needed to protect the castle and King. He didn't listen, too intent on climbing upwards.

The shimmering, rippling, rainbow-colored waters of Dream Fountain were always a sight to behold. Dedede grinned at the sight, a glove-covered dipping into the water, cupping it up to the wound. His shoulder's pain dimmed in response. It was a welcome relief, and Dedede quite happily bathed his shoulder in the water.

He had earned it after all.

For the next few days Dedede remained up on top of his castle, nearby the slowly normalizing fountain. The dreams were slowly disappearing from the waters, leaving it nothing more then a normal fountain. His hammer, already an impressive piece of work if anyone was willing to believe the fat penguin, became even more impressive.

The rumblings of discontent were reaching his ears- No one on Popstar liked finding themselves without dreams, especially after decades of sweet, peaceful dreams. There were even rumors of someone collecting the pieces of the Rod Star.

Dedede had an idea on who that might be… Kirby- a pink fluff ball. He had met him once before, and the meeting had not gone well for him. He'd just have to hope that Meta Knight could keep Kirby back long enough for Dedede to figure out a way too keep back the Nightmares from the Star Rod…

The forlorn hope was shattered when a Parasol Dee drifted down from the sky with a note from Meta Knight that Kirby had taken the sixth piece of the Star Rod from him. There was only one left- the one that Dedede had himself.

Dedede looked down at his hammer, and felt a familiar throb from his shoulder where the Nightmare refused to leave.

The self-proclaimed King of Dreamland wasn't about to allow anyone to destroy his kingdom, for any reason. It was time to fight for the fate of the Kingdom.

-end-

a/n: Well, one thing I've noticed is how different characters Game!Dedede and anime!Dedede was. Plus, well, Kirby's Adventure was rather amusing to play. So here you go- a missing piece to the beginning of the game, if you managed to get the true ending. Anyways, if you liked it, please leave a review!