Hey, I managed to make pretty good timing with yet another chapter! I tried to fit in a few fluffy father-son-like moments in here, as well as stick a few jokes in too. Oh, and for the record, I like to picture Meta Knight and Kirby as father and son- whether it's blood-related or adoptive doesn't matter to me.
...I don't think I have anything else to say, other than a repeated thank you for all of your support! I really do benefit from reviews, as they help make me more eager to post chapters more often, so please be my guest to leave one after you're finished!
CallieSizemore601- Thank you so much! I really appreciate this little compliment, and I'm glad to hear you're enjoying the story! I hope you especially enjoy the fluffy moments in this chapter^^
MadameMirage77- That's perfectly okay if you're just familiar with the anime and not so much the games! I loved Hoshi no Kaabii as well: I think my favorite part was that they would sometime use music from Kirby's Air Ride in the backgrounds of some scenes! Honestly, at first I didn't see Meta Knight too much as a father/father figure to Kirby in the show, but I did notice that he still cared about the little guy and there was some kind of special connection between them. I'm a sucker for fluffy fanfics too, so you're definitely not alone on that opinion haha. I'm so glad you're looking forward to this story, and I hope you enjoy this chapter and those to play out in the future!
It didn't take the two puffballs long to reach Meta Knight's apartment, which was good since Kirby's stomach growled at least 3 more times. When the door was unlocked, Meta immediately went into his bedroom to grab his cell phone while Kirby sat patiently on the couch, taking in the new surroundings. So this is where Meta Knight lives, he thought. It's actually pretty cozy in here! This living room isn't big like Fumu's, but it's still nice and I like it anyway.
He waited in the room like a good boy for another minute or two until Meta came back from his bedroom with something in his hand. After looking closely, Kirby realized that the knight was holding his cell phone- it was small and red, and almost looked like a walky-talky. Putting the phone on the coffee table, the knight then faced the obedient child. "Okay Kirby, I have to call to Sword and Blade before I can make you lunch. While you're waiting, how about I turn on the TV for you? I can get access to shows outside of Channel DDD." The boy smiled and nodded. "Poyo!" So Meta turned on the TV, and after fiddling with the antennas, got the channel to switch to a program that was broadcasted from another planet. Once he knew that the program was age appropriate for the child, he picked up his phone and returned to his bedroom.
After Meta Knight shut the door, he first tried to call Sword, the older of his two esquires. The phone rang, but nobody picked up. He tried Blade next: it went straight to voicemail. He groaned. Oh yea, Blade never remembers to charge his phone. Why does he even bother to bring it with him anyway? He waited another minute, and then dialed Sword's number again, praying he would answer. Nova must've been feeling generous, because after 3 rings the young man picked up his phone.
"...Hello?" Meta heard a hesitant voice on the other line, and quickly reassured him, "It's me, Sword: Meta Knight."
A curse word was choked back, "Oh! My apologies sir! I was just surprised to get a call from you, since you don't use your phone often."
"Yea I know. I just called bec-"
"Wait, are you in trouble?!" Sword asked, suddenly worrying.
Meta heard the younger brother panic in the background, mumbling oh god, oh god over and over. He let out an exasperated sigh. "No, I'm not in any danger. Tell Blade to calm down."
Sword's voice became distant on the other line of the phone, but the knight heard him regardless quieting his brother, and asking him to stop pacing about before he formed a hole in the ground.
The line became silent, which Meta Knight assumed was his cue to speak again. "Now, I ask that you turn on your phone's speaker so that you both are able to hear me."
"Yes sir." Silence returned, but not for long until a confirmation was heard. "You're now on speaker, sir." A new voice piped up, "Hi, Meta Knight!"
"Hello Blade. Now listen closely boys, I'm postponing our training session that was scheduled for today. Just finish your patrol, and then meet me back at the apartment."
The brothers were confused. "The apartment? Why would you need us to return there so early?" Sword asked.
"I'll explain later, or rather, you'll find out soon enough."
"Okay then. We got a head start on our patrol this morning, so we'll just head back to the castle now. We shouldn't be very long."
"Alright. Until then."
Meta Knight hung up the phone, set it back on his dresser. He then headed out to start making lunch for his pink guest in the other room. Little did he know that he'd find the child asleep with the TV flickering softly.
Kirby tried to focus into the TV show his mentor put on, but it seemed as if his head was trying to focus on everything at once. He still couldn't get over that he was in Meta Knight's apartment! He was also surprised at how comfy the couch was. Meta Knight has a good taste for couches! The coffee table was clean, and there were a few shelves on the wall that held photos from old times. The room overall was simple, yet calm- just like his mentor! As the commercials kicked in on the TV, Kirby smiled in pure happiness. I'm really lucky, he thought, For the whole week, I'm not going to be lonely. I never realized how much Meta Knight cares for me- does he know I care about him too? He started to get drowsy, and no matter how hard he fought it, couldn't keep himself awake. Before the next show started, he was already out like a light.
Meta Knight exited his room, and saw Kirby slumped over on the couch. Concerned, he walked over to the child to make sure he wasn't injured or sick. After noting the child only took a nap, Meta's eyes went blue at the sight. He looked so peaceful- he was going to wake him up to ask what he wanted to eat, but the he had no heart to do so. Instead, he let him be and headed into the kitchen to prepare something or another.
While Meta Knight was an excellent sword fighter, he wasn't exactly the world's best chef. He didn't think his cooking was that bad, but every time he mentioned cooking dinner to Sword and Blade, they'd either hurriedly offer to prepare dinner themselves or coax him to order takeout. When they let him whip up something, they usually seemed to choke the food down, although that wasn't always the case. This didn't really bother Meta Knight, but he wanted to make sure he made some kind of a tasty dish for baby Kirby. Determined to succeed, he got out an old cookbook a friend of his got for him for a birthday, saying he really should use it. He skimmed through the book, until finally deciding on a recipe for corn muffins. He knew already that these alone wouldn't hold off the boy with the almost never ending appetite, so he decided to make some blt's as well.
Sometime later, Kirby woke up to the smell of something delicious. He couldn't identify what exactly it was, but his mouth still watered nonetheless. That must be Meta Knight in the kitchen. He remembered that his mentor offered to cook. I wonder what he made? I hope he comes in here soon! And sure enough, his prayers were answered, as the said knight came in the room to check to see if he was awake.
"Poyo!" Kirby happily chirped, making Meta Knight smile. "I see you're awake, little one. I'm guessing you'd like your lunch now?" The child's eyes sparkled as he nodded frantically, and his stomach gave another loud rumble. "Okay then. You'll have to come in the kitchen and eat at the table. I'd prefer not to make a mess in this room." So Kirby got up, and followed his mentor into the kitchen.
The kitchen was definitely different than the living room, but it still had that simple feel to it. The floor was tiled, and the walls were one color, just like the living room. The table was at the one corner of the room, and Meta Knight ushered the child to one of the chairs facing it. There was just a small problem (literally): Kirby wasn't big enough to reach the table. Well, he could technically reach it, but he'd have to go on his tippy toes, and that gets uncomfortable after a while. Meta noticed the problem, and thought for a solution. He didn't want to have the child eat on the floor, no matter how clean it was, and he didn't exactly have a high chair. As Kirby looked at him as if waiting for an answer, he mused for a moment until it hit him- he didn't have a high chair, but there was one in the castle! He knew for a fact that Memu kept the high chair she used for both of her children in the storage room. He faced the longing (not to mention hungry) child and said, "Kirby, I'll be right back. Please don't try to inhale that food while I'm gone, or anything else in the matter." And without any pause in action, Meta Knight ran to the old storage room to retrieve the high chair.
Kirby stared at the top of the table with a sadness in his eyes. I really want that food...but I know Meta Knight said no, and I can't disobey Meta Knight! ...Is this another one of his tests or something? I hope he doesn't take too long to come back...but wait, where did he go? Before he could play 20 questions with himself any longer, he heard a knock on the door. Is Meta Knight already back?! He hopped off of the chair, and ran into the living room. He tried to hide behind the armrest of the couch, and muttered the bravest, "Poyo?" he could. Who's at the door? He listened closely, and heard not his mentor, but two voices he didn't recognize. Oh no, are these people thieves?! I have to protect Meta Knight's house! ...But how? He heard one of the voices call out to him on the other side of the door, "Who are you, and why are you in Sir Meta Knight's room?" At this point, the poor little guy was shaking in fear. Uh oh, these people know Meta Knight's name! What do I say?! I can't say anything! So the answer was silence- not even the smallest poyo was spoken. The voice now sounded angry. "Open this door, or we'll bust it open!" I can't just open the door! What do I do?! Before he could think, he saw the doorknob twist and turn. H-how are they able to get in?! They didn't even break the door open! I gotta protect myself! But...how?!
He didn't get a moment to come up with a plan when the door suddenly swung open, entering in two young men with their faces hidden with masks. The child gasped at the sight, and the one man instinctively smacked him against the opposite wall with his sword. Kirby fell on the floor, and looked at the two men who were running to him. Then it hit the man who attacked him, "Kirby?" Kirby was still dazed from the attack, and the aftershock was taking its good old time. "P-poy…" The young man put his hand on the child's head, and chuckled a bit, "Oh my nova, I'm sorry buddy! It's just me, Sword!" After saying this, said man took off his helmet, showing Kirby that he wasn't a thief. "I didn't mean to scare ya like that! My reflexes just kinda kicked in…" The second young man took off his helmet too and then proceeded to speak, "Well at least Meta Knight doesn't have to worry about security with you around!" He then faced the child, who seemed relieved now and smiling once more. "It's good to see you again Kirby!" He looked around the room, and then asked, "...Do you know where Meta is by any chance?" Though the little boy didn't seem worried, he still shook his head. The brothers thought about where the knight could've gone to, but they didn't have to think about it for very long.
It didn't take much time finding the high chair, but the walk back to the apartment was slower. As Meta approached the apartment, he noticed from a good distance that the door was open. Well that's not a good sign, he thought, suddenly becoming fearful. I know that Kirby didn't open it...oh no, is he okay?! Meta Knight picked up the pace in his step, and the sight he walked into wasn't the one he was expecting.
Kirby was on the floor, and his two esquires were knelt beside him, looking at him as though guilty of something. Remaining calm, the knight slowly set the high chair on the floor, closed the door, and walked over to the...scene. "May I asked what happened in the few minutes I was gone?" He looked at Kirby, and immediately noticed that the child's left cheek was cut and bleeding a little. "What happened to you, little one?" It became extremely difficult not to show the panic in his voice.
Blade smirked at his older brother, and said in a sickeningly sweet tone, "Sword, why don't you tell Meta Knight the whole story?" The older brother started visibly sweating, and his face turned bright red. "Eheh, well, y-you see, it kinda went like this…" He proceeded to retell everything that just happened, leaving Meta Knight speechless. After Sword was done, he only then realized that there was a high chair near the entrance of the living room. "...What's up with the high chair?"
Meta then told them his story. "I tried to be as fast as I could about it, but I wasn't fast enough apparently."
The brothers hung their heads in shame of attacking the innocent, but missed their mentor give a tired smile. "No need to feel ashamed boys, I'm glad to see how far you've come with training, though I wish you didn't harm Kirby in the process. I'm going to feed him lunch now and patch up that mark on his face, so consider this to be break time for you both." He picked up the high chair once more, and motioned the little boy to follow behind him back into the kitchen.
The high chair was set on the floor, and the legs were adjusted to that it was a more...approachable height for the puffballs. Without giving much thought to it, Meta Knight scooped up a very surprised baby and set him gently in the chair. He then moved his plate over, and quickly said, "Now Kirby, the only thing I ask is that you don't inhale your food: you don't want to get sick later, ok?" The boy nodded eagerly. "Go ahead and eat, I won't keep you waiting any longer."
Finally! He took his first bite, and let out a very happy squeal, informing Meta Knight he was enjoying it. His eyes turned blue as he watched the baby enjoy himself to all means. When he was done, he babbled out a few content poyos, and let Meta wipe his mouth. "Before I let you out, I want to cover up that cut on your face so it doesn't get infected." It was only at that moment the child realized how much it actually stung at this point. A wet towel was brought over, and with great tenderness, Meta Knight started to softly clean off any dried blood around the cut. He then dabbed a small bit of peroxide onto the inflicted area, making Kirby lightly flinch and whimper just a bit. To finish the job, a special band-aid was put on that would not only help heal the wound but prevent the pain that comes when it's time to remove the band-aid. After putting away the dishes and equipment he had used, he let Kirby out of the high chair.
When the two walked back into the living room, Kirby was holding Meta Knight's hand. The older of them called out to his esquires, so were lazily watching the TV and seemed happy to be just lying around. They saw their teacher at the doorway, and looked at him slovenly. "If you two are ready, let's head on out for training." So they complied- they shut off the TV, and closed the door.
Like a shepherd to his sheep, the two esquires walked obediently behind their leader, who was holding the hand of an eager little boy who was giggling and babbling away as they walked to the training field.
One last note before I go- I got the reference in regards to Meta Knight from the show, episode 82 (Cooking Up Trouble is the English name, but I'm not sure what it is in Japanese...). I remembered Sword and Blade saying, "of course, anything smells delicious compared to Meta Knight's cooking."