"I made you dinner." Meta closed his door behind him. He hadn't expected Dedede over until long after he'd returned, but he didn't mind the early arrival.
"Did you now?" he said, sliding dirt spattered boots off and hanging his helm on a coat hook. He entered his kitchen and took a look at his dinner. A partially charred hot pocket sat in the center of an ornate platter.
"I tried" Dedede supplied sheepishly. Meta sighed, and walked over to his sink, pulling off his gloves.
"It's the thought that counts" he murmured. He paused as he spotted a charred pot lying there, with some sort of amorphous, black mass cemented inside it. He tapped at it cautiously.
"I tried to make mac-n-cheese" Dedede explained. Meta looked at him with mild surprise.
"That's mac-n-cheese?" he asked incredulously. Dedede crossed his arms and huffed, slumping forward slightly.
"I'm not a chef" he grumbled. Meta flipped the faucet on, washing his hands.
"Neither am I. But I've never managed to create a new life form whilst cooking" Meta teased. The sound of rushing water ceased, and Meta grabbed a towel to dry his hands.
"See? I've got more skills than you" Dedede quipped. Meta sat across from him, flashing a wry grin.
"I don't think I want my food biting back" he drawled. His eyes were far less piercing when they weren't obscured by his helmet's dark visor. They looked a lot like that multicolored pale gemstone Escargon had been bragging about the other day. What was it called? Opal?
"Ah come on. That's the fun bit" Dedede said.
"I suppose some people enjoy such things" Meta said, shrugging. The king was still getting used to seeing him without his typical helmet. Meta had sharp, defined features and prominent cheekbones, with wild navy blue hair that stopped several inches below his pointed ears. Two deep scars ran across his face. He finally registered that Meta had said something.
"Enjoy what things?" Dedede asked.
"Biting" Meta deadpanned. Dedede choked on nothing, and stared at him.
"Uh… no offense but… your fangs are kinda scary" he stammered. Meta rolled his eyes.
"I was making a joke" he sighed.
"Of course! I knew that" Dedede huffed, reddening. A moment passed, and Dedede found a hand being held out to him over the table. He looked at it, puzzled.
"You… need somethin'?" he asked.
"Your hand" Meta snapped. He winced at how harsh he sounded. "Please" he amended. A large warm hand enveloped his own.
"Yer hands are always so cold" Dedede whined.
"And yours are quite warm. It works out well" Meta said. He paused for a moment, before adding "For me."
"So that's why ya put up with me" Dedede laughed. Meta gave him a mischievous look.
"I thought I kept you around because you're pretty" he snickered.
"Yer the pretty one" Dedede puffed "I'm sexy." Meta pressed his head to the table laughing, before looking up to see Dedede giving him an odd look. He tilted his head.
"What is it?" Meta asked. Dedede crossed his arms.
"I can be sexy" he muttered. Meta narrowed his eyes at the other's dramatics.
"That isn't what I meant and you know that" he chided. The king didn't just fish for compliments. He went dynamite fishing for them. "You're sexy, alright? Can I stop feeding your ego now?"
"Nah. Tell me how great I am" Dedede quipped.
"You are great at annoying me" Meta said. He remembered the charred pastry on his plate and eyed it, wondering if it was at all edible. "How did you burn a hot-pocket?"
"Skill" Dedede said. He wilted a bit when Meta gave him a harsh stare. "I forgot about it" he admitted.
"Right" Meta sighed. They sat in comfortable silence for several minutes, before Dedede suddenly piped up.
"Oh yeah! I got you something!" he said, pulling a plastic wrapped box from his spacious inner pockets. Meta was disappointed as the other pulled his hand away, until he was handed the gift and read the label.
"Is this really every season?" he asked.
"Yup. You said somethin' 'bout really liking it, so…" Dedede rubbed the back of his head, suddenly sheepish. Meta looked up from his new Mythbusters DVD set. Dedede found himself pulled toward the other with surprising force. He wasn't sure he would ever get used to the other's spontaneous ways of showing affection.
"We could have a marathon tonight, if you find that agreeable" Meta said, breaking the kiss.
"Yeah, sure" Dedede said. "I was hoping to do somethin' else though…" Meta lightly smacked him, chuckling.
"Isn't it a bit early to have your mind in the gutter?" he sighed dramatically.
"Oh come on" Dedede groaned.
"I suppose I can tolerate some distraction" he said, feigning resignation. The two made their way to Meta's couch, and Meta slipped the first DVD in as Dedede sat, carefully avoiding a deep sword gash in the side of the couch. A familiar theme song started playing, and the king let out a pained sound and Meta sat directly on him without warning. He leaned back to look him in the eyes. "Oops. Didn't see you there" he snickered. Dedede gave him a long look, before proceeding to occupy the other man's lips in a way that didn't involve sarcastic comments at his expense.
It was a good thing Meta owned the DVDs, because watching them wasn't really a thing he did that night.
(Author's note: I was poking around a bit and apparently a lot of people don't care for this pairing. It figures, though. I always manage to love the least popular ships. Also Meta would 1000% watch Mythbusters and you can't convince me otherwise. Anyway. hope you enjoyed! -Poecilotheria)