Chapter 1, Part 4


It was not fifteen minutes before Dedede demanded a snack break, and Bandana Dee was forced to oblige. The quartet made themselves at home in Bandana Dee's 'backyard' of sorts, comfortable on the edge of the forest next to the Dees' homes.

"Ahhhhhh…Bandana, these dried fruit sticks are great. I NEVER want another gummy worm again." Dedede shoved one of the aforementioned snacks into his mouth whole.

Bandana Dee seemed somewhat stunned upon hearing this. "Why…thank you, Great King…I'm pretty sure you'll be eating those gummy worms once you get back home, though…"

Kirby merely uttered another 'poyo!' of delight, trying to savor his food and succeeding…well, mostly succeeding.

The Dee turned to Meta Knight, who was staring up at the sky. The sapphire puffball had been given a plate full of cookies and some breaded cheese sticks. "Hey, what do you think of your snack, Meta?"

No response. Bandana Dee tilted his head. "Hey…Meta…"

A voice echoed through a microphone in a giant presentation gym. "Running Numbers 17 and 18. Team 17, Team 18, please bring your project and team to the front, proceeding in the same order as the previous team.19 and 20, please…"

Meta Knight and Sailor Dee made their way forward, with Meta Knight grasping the little robot in his paws to make sure it didn't fall. He'd checked the sensors; his crew had confirmed that there was no way the device with the compiler would be harmed, and he'd taken care to wrap the wires up, unlike some teams had done.He had a spare battery, and he had a copy of his technical report, handwritten personal notes, and anything else he may have needed as he walked up to the obstacle course that his robot would navigate autonomously. So many hours and work…led up to this moment. These two minutes of glory—hopefully less, if he wanted to qualify for that free steak dinner. The sapphire puffball walked up to the launching stand, setting his robot on the starting point and checking it over one last time.The announcer's words and the noise from the crowd bounced around his mind, but the object that took up most of his attention was—

"Hey Meta!"

Dedede and Kirby swatted the puff at the same time, and he barely avoided taking a straight hit from both of them. His eyes narrowed as he sat up, the robotics competition falling into the far back of his mind.

"Yes, you two?" he asked, letting the annoyance lace his voice quite obviously. "What is it?"

"You were zoned out," the king stated bluntly. "Bandana asked you if you liked your snack."

"Huh?" Meta Knight glanced back down at his plate, as if he'd just realized what was on it at that moment. His eyes lit up—quite literally—upon seeing what was on it. "Oh yes, of course I do. I greatly appreciate you giving this to us, Bandana. They're really good; thank you."

"Whew, that's a relief." The Dee let out his breath before glancing at his feet. "Uh, hey, Meta…"

The sapphire puffball stared him straight on. "Yes?"

"…can you—well, if you don't mind—do you mind going back and checking on my dad? He's a surveyor for the chief tonight, and I figured since you have a sharp eye and are really smart, it might help him. If one of us helped him, he'd be able to get our fire set up quicker, and you could help him with that too. Uh, I can go, if you don't want to; I really don't mind at all; I just thought..."

"That's okay, Bandana." The sapphire puffball hopped off the stack of wood next to the tents. "It's no problem for me…" And probably not as much work, if we're going to be hauling logs… "I'll be on my way."

"Great. Thanks Meta." If Bandana Dee could have visibly smiled, he would have.

"Thanks, Meta!" Kirby chirped. Anything involving early dinner was enough to merit Kirby's thanks.

"You're welcome…"

The Dee and the puffballs directed their gaze to Dedede, with him being the only one who hadn't said anything.

"…Great King? Your thoughts? Did…you want to do it?" Bandana Dee offered hesitantly.

The penguin passively glanced over his shoulder toward Meta Knight. Then he simply waved his hand toward Kirby and picked up a stack of wood. "What he said."

"Okay, Meta!" Bandana Dee jumped off his seat and dashed up next to the puffball. "You're gonna need some directions, so here, let me tell you…"


"Ahah! Yeah, I can see why you wouldn't want to take that sort of a risk! I can definitely feel for the person who tried that, though. Like you said, building a helicopter to do a track robot's job definitely sounds like a risk."

The robotics competition had a chance to resurface once Bandana Dee had left Meta Knight with his father. Apparently one of Silven's jobs was to survey the land after it had been scouted, and to make sure that nobody had set their tents up in a bad spot. Of course, it seemed more like he was just wandering around checking to see if the tents were set up correctly rather than being in an undesirable or unsafe location.

"Ohhhh Meta…I'm glad you get that opportunity; you seem like a smart guy." Silven casually tugged on a tent rope, glancing down at the stake. "Oh! But off topic here; I've been meaning to ask…What's your family like back home?"

"Huh? Um…" The sapphire puffball considered his response to this statement, disappointed that the robotics competition had once again taken a side seat. Maybe he could finish at their dinner that night, or maybe nobody was interested… "Um, well sir, I don't really have any family to speak of…I live with my coworkers. We do computer tech, mechatronics, and engineering work for some money wherever we can find it."

The Dee turned to him as they continued walking, somewhat surprised. "What? Oh, it's selfish of me to think that everyone would follow our customs. When Bandana told me you had no family, I just figured you lived with people who'd taken you in, and they were your family—legally, at least. If we'd known that you lived like that, we would've offered you to live with us. You aren't out on the street, are you? Part-time work is hard to live on."

"Hm? No, I'm not. We built a ship and we live out of the base. An airship, I mean."

"An airship? Ha!" The Dee chuckled. "Ambitious, aren't you! Well, if you ever find yourself falling on hard times, you can always come back here. I don't mind another family member. With my boy gone, you'd be almost as good. If you or your pink buddy ever needs a backup family, we'd be happy to have you all here. You could even move in; all we'd need is a spare room, and you'd be set."

Meta Knight blinked in surprise at the offer. "Thanks, sir. I'll keep that in mind. I'm not sure if I could take you up on your offer anytime soon, though."

"But that's good," the Dee commented. "It means things are going well for you at the moment. It's just an offer to consider before you go to your last resort."

They walked for a slight bit longer in silence before Silven took up the conversation again.

"So…do you adventure a lot? Travel on foot, or do you have a fancy car or a bike, or do you use your ship? Do you have a wing cap, like in those fancy adventure games?"

Meta Knight thought for a moment before answering. He noted three—no, four—possible answers he could give if probed, so he decided to continue. "I have the ability to fly. That's pretty useful at times."

Silven stopped for a moment, staring at the sapphire puffball in surprise. "You can fly…You? Forgive me, but…" If the Dee could smile, he would have. "…us Dees…we can conquer land, snow, mountains, and sea; pretty much any terrain that's thrown at us…but we have yet to dominate the air. It's beyond us and our pudgy little bodies with no wings. I should've guessed that something was up with you though; you don't have fur. That means you'd live in a special condition or something; at least, that's along the lines of what my daughter likes reading from her science books. She's very interested in biology and the way different species live." Bandana Dee's father seemed very pleased at this fact. "That's probably why she responded the way she did to you all; she mostly sees Waddle Dees and forest animals around here, so you and your pal Kirby are pretty new to her. To us adults, you guys just kinda blend into the crowd; you look pretty similar to us. But to Silva, well, she lives to pick out trivial details and find new species. Hopefully she ends up finding one someday…"

It was at this point that Meta Knight remembered something. "Hey, Mr.—"

"No, no, Meta. Don't be formal." The Dee waved his paw dismissively. "Call me Silven, or Uncle Silven. You boys aren't foreigners; you're part of our family, as friends. Don't worry about relations and what to call people. Most of the Dees here are pretty lenient on the rules, especially to those who may not necessarily know our rules. You'd be on the same generation as Bandana, almost, so you and Kirby should just call everyone the same thing that he'd call them. Though most Dees just go by their first name, if a lot of people know them. That's where Bandana comes in. Of course that's not my son's real name; his real name's Taylor. But that's the name he made for himself, so most people just call him that. It depends on what his preferences are."

"Um, well…" Meta Knight tried to stall. There…There was a Dee watching them, who seemed somewhat familiar to him. Had he seen her watching them before? She was almost hidden among the tents and scenery—…no, she had to be just standing there; who would she be spying on and for what reason? But still…he figured he'd take a mental note, even if the others called him paranoid. She was wearing a blue headdress; unfortunately, he couldn't pick out any more details without staring, and he didn't want her to notice. He also didn't want to appear rude by dropping his conversation with Bandana Dee's father, so he tried to ignore the staring. All the Dees stared, maybe. It was natural; he was new here.

Now what had Silven said—?

Silven glanced back over his shoulder, noting how uncomfortable the puff appeared. "What, did I miss something?"

"No sir…" Meta Knight rubbed the side of his head, slightly embarrassed. "It's just…that name system is somewhat different than what I've been used to. Are you sure I can use that level of formality?"

"Formality? What formality? You don't mind calling yourself 'Meta', do you?"

The puff shook his head.

"Well then, nobody else will mind what you call them, either. You're almost an adult, now; if you have their responsibilities, you may as well talk on the same level."

Meta Knight blinked, somewhat surprised. "Um, I'm about twenty-five…I think that's considered past an adult, isn't it?"

"Hm? Yeah, I know your age…Oh, but…wait, you have different age standards in the real world?" Silven cast another glance over his shoulder.

"Well, I believe some places around here use 18 as a legal adult, and on intergalactic levels, 21 is more of the standard…" Meta Knight stated.

Silven shook his head. "Wow. Just wow. Kids keep growing up quicker and quicker these days. Well, Meta, in our tribe 25 to 26 is when you're a legal adult. You'd be just past the limit, honestly; don't know about Kirby. Is he older or younger?"

"I'm guessing younger." Meta Knight made a face. "Why would he be older?"

"I heard rumors that Kirby was in some sort of time stasis for a while before coming to Popstar. I wasn't sure how long he'd been in there before he landed. I mean sure, you have his mental age, but he's just a general, happy, optimistic type of guy. He doesn't take any more than he needs to seriously. I…" He rubbed the side of his head awkwardly. "…I just feel that's a kinda irresponsible way to judge someone's age, on first glance. I mean, no offense to you, but I'd naturally think you were far younger than Bandana, when I first saw you. To be honest, I kinda assumed Kirby was older, because he was more outgoing. Common stereotype, I guess." Silven shrugged.

"Don't worry," the puff brushed off. "I'm sure it's not the first time I'll hear it."

He said that hoping that he'd jinxed himself out of hearing it again. Unfortunately, this would not be the case in later adventures.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I realize I've gotten you pretty off track." The Dee nudged a tent stake with his foot, barely managing to catch it and hand it to one of the older children working on setting up the tent. He simply nodded at the boy before moving on and turning back to Meta Knight. "Were you going to say something before?"

Meta Knight pondered this in his mind.

No…what he was going to say wasn't really worth saying; just doing. And considering very carefully before he did it.

"Hm? Um, no…" The puff pretended to pause briefly, as if thinking about what he'd been wondering about. "I forgot it. Probably wasn't worth anything important, anyway."

"Huh, I feel bad now. I made you lose your train of thought." If the Dee could frown, he would have. "Well, I'm almost done here…"

What did I really do, anyway? Meta Knight wondered ironically. Most of the Dees' tents are set up well enough.

"…so if you wanted to, you could head back to our house, or to help out your friends, or just look around. I really don't mind if you do; we'd planned to have this set up before you all arrived, actually." He prodded the puff's cheek. "Go on, we don't bite. We don't have mouths—that are visible, anyways."

"O…Okay, sir."

"Silven, or Uncle Silven, please." He shoved the puff again. "Come on, Meta; I already told you about that."

"Um…" The puff stiffened, still uncomfortable. "Yes, Uncle Silven."

"Good! There you go! Okay, I'm done. Make sure you're back for dinner, Meta; we'll wait for you."

The Dee turned and started walking away, picking at one or two final tents. Meta watched him, but as soon as Silven caught his eye, he quickly decided to continue walking. The tents that the Dees were setting up…they must not have normally lived this close to the beach, or at least, they must not have normally set up their tents on the beach. It didn't stop them from setting them up effectively, and probably far more easily than most inhabitants of the land would. Meta Knight resisted the urge to chuckle; how many cappies would know how to live like this? If they did this just for an old tradition's sake, they'd probably give out after a night or two. With the Waddle Dees being wanderers, though, this style of life was genetic. Even the houses they lived in could easily be taken apart and moved.

Even the children seem happy living this life, he thought to himself, watching a group of young Dee children square off against another 'tribe' of little Dees. I can see why Bandana Dee enjoys living here so much.

He stopped for a moment and closed his eyes as a nice breeze from the sea swept around him. The noise from the children faded into the background; his brain simply filtered their noise out.

It's so peaceful. The ocean is beautiful; I know that myself. And there aren't really any dangerous storms that hit here; there are other islands off the peninsula. What a safe place to live…especially since the Dees know how to move in the water.

All these tents are sort of charming, really. He opened his eyes briefly to scan the area's neatly-placed tents. And they organize them so well! They line up almost like a machine measured them out.To think that even those younger Dees will know how to do things that way when they grow up.

Huh. I wonder…if Silva will set up tents like her father, or if she'll end up wandering like Bandana did. Or will she raise a family? I guess she's too young to tell what she wants now…besides bats. Meta Knight blushed ever-so-slightly upon remembering how innocent and open the Dee child had acted with them. Oh geez, I remember when I used to act like that…Maybe if I'd grown up here, I'd have never grown out of that.

He frowned. But hey…maybe if I'd grown up here, I'd have never had to go through everything I did. The puff glanced back at the children playing. I'd have loved to play with those kids; I remember. There wasn't…anybody to play with when I was younger; just fighting and doing math work. Silven—no, Uncle Silven—he offered to let us stay with him now any time we needed him…Why couldn't I have had that opportunity then?

It's their fault. Whoever made me…is to blame for this. It's because of them that I had to put up with everything I went through, and why I ended up like I did. His eyes darkened, and he couldn't help but clench his paws slightly. Then he blinked.

What was he thinking? He didn't want to be in a bad mood just because he didn't have a family…Kirby and Dedede's parents had died, too! Kirby lived almost the same life as he had…but…he'd only spent a short amount of time on the surface of their war-torn planet without his parents; possibly no more than a few seconds after his mother died. When he'd woken up, he'd arrived in Prism Plains, in Pupupu Village…Yes, he'd had to put up with the simple-minded villagers, but it was still a far better life than he'd had. His parents—or, whoever had made him or created him—they dumped him into a war-torn lifestyle from before he could remember. Either he was a bad child, or his parents were bad people themselves. After all, what loving parent would let their kid just go through everything he had?

Huh… Meta Knight mused, lapsing back into his thoughts. Hopefully, if he thought about this now, it wouldn't come up again…even if he was being surrounded by perfect families for two weeks. Perhaps that was unlikely. It really is their faul—

"Oof!"


C/N:

Destiny: The only Waddle Dee OCs I can think of are from TechnoDee's Minion series.

Cos: That awkward moment when you've been off FFN so long you forgot a series you were reading. -facedesk-

On other notes, if you happen to think of any critique, hit me up—I tried not to over-edit this to oblivion (being a shameless perfectionist), but I don't have a beta. This is NOT obligatory at all, because I've gotten behind-the-scenes feedback on other projects and soon realized that sometimes the person I was working with was pulling out a lot of stuff that wasn't really wrong in the first place and then saying 'It's fine whether you change it or not' or 'I liked it the original way better' after I took their advice. If it's not broken, don't make me fix it. -.-

And YAAAAAAAY I just love it when one of my two top-favorite characters has similar tastes to mine. Actually, both of my two top-favorite characters have interest in machines, so I'll always be sure to exploit that. Mainly because not everyone's interested in that sort of thing, so somebody's gotta do something with it!