Chapter 3, Part 1
Let's see. Could I be a demon beast? I have the bat wings, but I grew those, so…questionable. Unless Nightmare's coming back AGAIN, due to everybody neglecting the Fountain of Dreams. Perhaps I can send Dedede and them out there so I don't have to risk possession. I hope to avoid that sort of thing.
But what if I was an experiment? Really though, how would Kajinara know about that? Did she…wait, I could be an experiment or a pet that she saved while she was out scouting, and she could've turned me in to the GSA! Maybe my parents—oh wait, I wouldn't have parents if I was an experiment…But Kirby isn't a pet, and nobody seems to have heard of our species around Dream Land. That isn't logical if I was a pet, unless there was some rich person who was keeping me captive.
…I hope that doesn't mean she slit their throat or killed them to save me…Actually, hold that thought—if somebody's keeping sentient creatures as pets with no respect for their lives, they're better off eliminated.
Meta Knight's fork and knife barely moved as he cut up his pancake. Dedede and Bandana Dee were fixing them over a small fire, and serving them to the puffballs as they came out of the pan. Kirby had already devoured seven, as Meta Knight was still working on actually eating his.
At the rate this was going, the pancake would be cold by the time he sliced it up, and it was already ten o'clock in the morning. His thoughts weren't as organized or on-track as they normally would have been; his focus frequently slipped or bounced around to other subjects. It was less than ideal to him.
What if I was a refugee that Nightmare kidnapped and experimented on? Kajinara wouldn't know about that, would she? Hey wait, Dakonyo crash-landed here—no, he already said he didn't know me—although maybe he just didn't remember at the time? I was such a stupid little kid; why didn't I ask?!
…Actually…considering all the math and planning I did in the GSA besides the fighting…I was a pretty smart little—no, wait; I can't really say I was THAT advantaged…I was just really good at asking questions on what I needed to do. That voice chip and that thesaurus really helped me out on my image, but strategy was really just looking at what types of monsters we're battling on what terrain, or whether the natives will kill us if we set foot on their planet. I guess it was a people's army, so it didn't really HAVE to be as formal…But hey, I don't have to tell that to any employers. Mindless monsters and really quick fighting experts are two different fields.
Ah, all those puzzles I did to pass the time instead of playing…I love puzzles… His mind drifted even farther from his original topic. I can't wait to get back and do that puzzle with the jelly beans! Everybody will think I'm insane until I complete it! All those logic challenges and such really DID help me out! …but it would have been nice to play with someone, too…
Why…couldn't I play with someone…
Well…I didn't have anyone to play with, remember? I didn't have any family. Whoever took care of me…didn't care…
Stop worrying about that. Even if your caretakers basically threw you out on a battlefield, you're what you are. Maybe…Maybe you were like Silva with her biology studies. She's a cool kid, remember? Maybe when she's older…I could take her to the Science Galaxy-Scaled convention with me; she's definitely capable of things. Me, and her, and Fumu…we're on the same page together. But…Fumu's biology, chemistry, physics, and math. And English. I'm engineering, and computer related.I wonder if I could corrupt Silva to be an engineer like me, or if Fumu would get her anyway. Then…maybe she wouldn't be interested in me any more than…
Something…felt wrong. He didn't feel any better than he did before he started hypothesizing about his background last night. After thinking (and re-thinking) what he'd just ran through his head…he felt worse.
Stop sulking, Meta. Aren't you happy with what you've become? You love being able to say you're a rocket scientist! And you did that when you were barely twelve years old! You didn't even need any parents for that!You did that by yourself, remember? That's what works best in life; doing things yourself so nobody can slow you down, and you don't have to disappoint anyone.
The puff couldn't help but sigh, even though he was around his friends.
Quit…Quit moping around. If you were an animal like a N'ruff, you'd be on your own after a year or two. Your parents wouldn't be there for you after that…In some species, your parents might be territorial enemies, out for your blood…
But…a lot of creatures have a shorter lifespan than I do…so that's not fair. And I'm not an animal; I'm a sentient creature with thoughts and feelings…last time I checked, at least. Not sure what I'd say with the experiment theory.
But that theory doesn't matter if Kajinara doesn't know me. She has to know me for the theory to be valid, unless she's bluffing, which would be completely useless for her to do! How else could she know me or hear about me?
It was at this moment that Meta Knight realized that any more ideas he could think of would have a higher chance of being absurd or irrelevant to him. In a logical sense, this meant that they would be almost useless to him. His eyes narrowed briefly as he refocused his frustration to chopping up the pancake.
What does she want from me…? What would she gain by telling me all this? Is it so bad that she just wants to get it off her shoulders…or, did someone tell her to tell me? Maybe it's a trap, and I'm being lured out by being fed false information, and then kidnapped. Although I doubt that would happen in the middle of a Waddle Dee party.
The sapphire puffball yawned. How many times had he thought this over since last night? More times than he could count. He may or may not have stayed up the better part of the night thinking about it, and he just maaaaaaaaybe might have seen dawn breaking before he fell asleep. Or maybe he was just delirious.
…Or maybe Dedede and Bandana Dee weren't staring at him in concern when he hadn't held his plate up to take the stack of pancakes they'd been offering him for probably the last twenty seconds, and now were dropping on Kirby's plate instead.
"Hey Meta, are you okay? You seem kinda off—well, more than you usually do."
The sapphire puffball glanced up at his Waddle Dee friend. While Bandana Dee was not actually wearing his bandana yet, Kirby and Meta Knight could still pick him out from a crowd, with Dedede having a very similar degree of this skill, despite being higher than the Dees and not being able to see them as well without bending over.
"Oh, uh? I'm…I'm fine," the puff murmured, somewhat dazed. "I…" He yawned. "I'm not accustomed to sleeping with several other people…"
"He's talking fancy," Dedede pointed out, giving Meta Knight a suspicious look. "That means he's hiding something."
"He's tired because you snored all night," Kirby giggled. "Seven more, please!"
Dedede shook his spatula at the pink puff. "Hey. Be careful of who's cookin' your pancakes, puffball. Oy Meta Kni—er, Meta, you done ye…?" The king stared at the puff's pancake, which he'd just finished cutting up. "Uhhhh…What've you been doing, thinking? Do that as you're eating; maybe I should cut them up. I'll get them done quicker. Oh hey, here's some more. Get some so that you have something to eat before Kirby steals them all. You're not the only one who loves these things…"
The sapphire puffball stared at the large stack of pancakes that Dedede was offering to him. Then he sighed, closed his eyes, and pushed the plate away. "Okay. Guys, I'm sorry, but I'm not that hungry. You eat them, Dedede."
The penguin king's mouth fell open, and he dropped his spoon before whirling around to face the puffball. "WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!"
Bandana Dee's eyes were wide as well. The Dee and the king stared at the blue puffball in stunned silence, while Kirby quickly picked off a few of Meta Knight's pancakes.
"B…But Meta…" Bandana Dee began. "Y-You love pancakes! Silva even suggested we should make them for you!"
Guilt piled on top of worry and candy. "Um, that's…no problem…I can still eat them, you kno—"
Meta Knight glanced down at his plate. Then he, the king, and Bandana Dee directed their glances toward Kirby.
The pink puffball licked his lips. "Poyyyy…!"
"Meta, you weren't up all night thinking about Kajinara, were you?"
Meta Knight stiffened, hoping that the mentioned Dee wasn't around to overhear them talking about her. Apparently, Bandana Dee didn't particularly care if she was listening to them at the moment. Then again, they were…no; since they were still at the bonfire they'd eaten dinner at last night, she could be listening without him noticing. And so could Cody. Meta Knight was seriously going to watch how he replied.
Kirby and Dedede perked up, staring at their sapphire friend. Dedede poured some more pancake mix in his giant pan, with Kirby savoring his snatched pancakes. Why Dedede was cooking instead of letting Reggie do it was a mystery. Perhaps the king secretly enjoyed it. Or perhaps he didn't want to wait for the Dees more reliant on the chefs' services to eat first.
"Hey Meta. Who's Kajinara?" the king asked. "Usually I remember names that begin with 'K'…"
Kirby smiled innocent at this comment. "Poyo~"
Bandana Dee glanced at Meta Knight, wondering what his choice of response was. The sapphire puffball had to stop and think about this himself, which to the others, simply appeared as if he was staring intently at the pancakes cooking.
Hm. If I tell them too much, they'll talk about it all over camp. OR, they'll get themselves wrapped up in this! I don't want them messing with my affairs until I sort them out myself.
…but, thinking realistically, I don't have to tell them what's going on. How about, you know, actually asking them for information? They'll tell you without even thinking about it.
"Well…" Meta Knight hesitated. "…To put it in simplest terms, you haven't seen a Waddle Dee with a sparkly, transparent-blue headdress around, have you?"
Kirby blinked.
"Hm? Nope. Not me." The king checked the pancakes. "What's so important about her anyway; are you—" Dedede lifted his head, and Meta Knight instantly knew from the look on his face what was coming…and he hated it. "Ooooooo, you're interested in her, aren't you? You couldn't find someone until they had a blue cape like yours, huh? Hmmm, let's see…" He put his hand on his chin, still grinning. "I bet she's quiet and mysterious just like you, and it can be like a hero-and-princess quest where—"
"This is getting out of hand," the puff interrupted, hoping to preserve his dignity. He seriously hoped that Kajinara was not there listening to them. "And it's the opposite; I have reason to believe that she could be following me. I've barely spoken to her."
"You haven't even talked to her, Meta," Bandana Dee interrupted, giving him a look. "How can you call that 'barely'?"
"How do you know she hasn't approached me since?" Meta Knight countered.
Bandana Dee blinked. "What? When did she talk to you?"
"Use your brain. And don't even attempt thinking of what she wanted to talk about. She didn't ask anything beyond what we've already hypothesized and discussed, which is next to nothing."
"Hey, why did you go to him instead of us?" Dedede asked, annoyed. Kirby also looked slightly upset. "Don't you trust us?"
"Definitely not with any candy or money of mine," the sapphire puff sniped. "And my reasoning for asking him was that he lives with these Dees. I highly doubt either of you can say that you've lived with them longer than he has."
Kirby smiled again, relieved, and went back to eating his pancakes. Dedede simply made a face. "I guess you have a point, Mr. Smarty-Pants. But what's up with a girl following you? That chef's assistant seemed to think you guys looked pretty cool…" The smirk returned to his face, and Meta Knight barely had enough self-control to keep himself from punching something out of irritation. "Maybe this Kajinara girl likes you, too! Or maybe…"
His grin grew even bigger, and he thrust an accusing finger at the sapphire puffball. "…You're really her long-lost boyfriend with amnesia!"
Meta Knight simply blinked. "…What…would possibly give you that idea? I believe she's older than me. Highly improbable, unless I dated her when I was six."
"Well then, genius, tell US some of what YOU know! 'Cause right now, we don't know—"
"Excuse me." Kirby held his plate out to the king. "I'm out of pancakes."
"Ahhhhh!" Dedede's face fell in a comedically-dramatic way. "I'll be here cooking pancakes until dinner! That's enough for you!" He shoved the pink puff back onto his bench before turning to the others. "Meta, Bandana, did you want any? He's going to starve you guys. Here Meta; you haven't eaten any. Let me show you how to cut your pancakes."
In the end, Dedede managed to persuade Meta Knight into eating three sliced-up pancakes. The king handed the puff the syrup jar, and he absentmindedly spread some around the pancakes. The amount he poured on earned him some questioning glances from his friends, but at this point he was accustomed to it. Even when he went back for syrup three more times.
"But uh…anyway, Meta…" Bandana Dee turned toward the puffball, who returned his curious look. "Kajinara really doesn't talk to anyone here. What'd she want to know about? You didn't have any armor or weapons or anything on, did you?"
The puff's wings twitched irritably. "Nothing, outside of my cape."
"Was she wearing anything orange? That might tell you something?"
Meta Knight thought for a moment. "It was dark, but she might have had an orange wristband on. …What would that mean?"
"Okay, whew." Bandana Dee relaxed. "All scouts have to wear orange material from something knit when they're on a mission. It's an identifier to take them seriously. Maybe she thinks you're a threat."
Dedede briefly glanced up from his pancakes before staring back down, unimpressed. "You don't look like much of a threat, to be honest. And even with all your equipment on, you still didn't look that threatening. If anything, you just looked professional. Maybe."
Meta Knight, having no comeback, chose to ignore this.
"Why don't you give her something, Meta?" Kirby suggested. "If you're friends with her, she won't hurt you, and she'll trust you."
"Give her a love letter!" Dedede interrupted, laughing. Somehow, he just knew that romantic teasing got under the blue puff's skin.
"Kirby, that's a good idea, but I'm fairly certain that I don't have the time to make a friendship with her. Look how long you've known us." The blue puff took a bite of his pancakes. "You're good at making friends on contact, but not everyone is going to like that."
"Hey, don't worry your little head over that army person," Dedede offered. "We'll help ya figure it out. How can you go wrong with, uhhhhh…Waddle Dee—"
Bandana Dee blinked.
"—a handsome king…" Dedede flexed his muscles. "…a pink marshmallow—"
Kirby stuffed an orange in his mouth, peel and all.
"—and a…blue…marsh…mallow…"
"I don't necessarily need collaboration to figure out what she wants…"Apparently, Meta Knight had chosen to ignore Dedede's description of him and jump straight to what he needed. "I'd just like some new ideas. Is there something I'm missing? I have so many theories, but my evidence for one could work just as well in ten others. I've thought things through so many times that I have them memorized."
Though the other quartet members didn't show any signs of their thoughts, there was one word on their mind—'overkill'.
"Well, Meta…" Bandana Dee tried to venture out and say what he was thinking. "…you know, you've probably thought of every problem and solution for that at this point…"
"No, I acknowledge that I can't think of everything." Apparently, the hint had flown over the puff's head. "But honestly, you guys don't have much to hypothesize from anyway…"
"I still say you likes you," Dedede suggested, going back to cooking more pancakes. "What about soap operas? You could be her lover reborn as a puffball, and she's the only one who knows."
The king started snickering upon seeing the brief flash of annoyance across the puff's face, and the faintest tint of red on his cheeks. "Ha, it's true! Why else would you be embarrassed?"
"Cut—Cut this out. You and I both know that's impossible." The sapphire puffball crossed his arms. The action always made him feel more secure and at ease, and he was starting to wish he hadn't started the discussion on Kajinara. "You know, I do tend to keep things to myself for a reason, and that reason is because of things like this. I've gotten nowhere and I just wasted my time."
The others genuinely frowned at processing what that statement probably meant. Dedede, as per usual, was the first to say something. "Hey, stop being so sour about things. We're just joking around. And you aren't even telling us anything, so how are we supposed to help you? Well, sorry, but we can't. You're wasting your own time."
"Uh, that's kinda true, Meta…" Bandana Dee played with his paws. "You know, you didn't really tell them anything they could use to help you out…"
Kirby didn't even bother adding a 'poyo' just for fun.
The blue puff sighed. "I understand. I'm just…I'd prefer some more information myself, at this point. Let's forget everything we said."
"Sorry, Meta," Dedede said. "You know, I understand, but not everyone is going to be a rocket scientist. And we were busy working our butts off yesterday, while you were busy strolling around. Just pointing that out. We don't know who you're talking about, either. She could've fallen off a boat from another tribe, for all we know."
Meta Knight blinked, thinking of something from that statement. "Hey…Bandana, is she natively from this tribe?"
The question caught the Dee off guard. "Huh? I, um…Well, I guess I wouldn't know…" He looked uneasy now. "Sorry."
"It's nobody's fault." Meta Knight sighed. "You don't need to apologize."
The group ate in silence until they finished eating and cleaning up, with Meta Knight still pondering what he'd do if he ran into Kajinara.
Perhaps it would be better…if I just got all this over with. I brought Galaxia, so if she wants to kill me, I'm not too under-defended…
But if she wanted to kill me, who would she know that I was related to? Sailor Dee? Maybe she's a long-lost relative of his…But I treat him well, and I don't seriously know any other Waddle Dees. Why—
"Hey Meta, a little help?"
The sapphire puffball quickly looked up to see Dedede struggling with the cooking supplies. "Kirby, could you—"
Meta Knight felt like smacking himself. Metaaaaaa, you made a stupid suggestion again!
"POYO!" Kirby cheered, a mischievous glint in his eyes. Bandana Dee jumped up, hoping to avoid a fight between the two food rivals.
"No no no; guys! Let me help you with that!"
"Do I need to come?" Meta Knight offered.
Bandana Dee barely glanced over his shoulder. "Put out the fire, and then come. Or stay right there and we'll be right back—no, Kirby, please!"
The sapphire puffball didn't protest…although he did start thinking about what could happen because of it.
If Kajinara comes around…Oh boy; I don't have any excuse to get away from her.
Wait! Why WOULD I want to get away from her? I wanted to figure out what was—
"Hello there, Meta. Do you have a moment?"
Meta Knight turned around when he heard the quiet voice. Talk about bad luck…As soon as I start thinking about her, she shows up right behind me!
Sure enough, Kajinara had appeared out of seemingly nowhere. Meta Knight instantly searched for the knit, orange wristband, but…it wasn't there. Her boots were absent as well, though she still wore the headdress. And something about her…it was…different than the other Dees.
Maybe it was because Bandana Dee had warned him that she was cold…and unemotional, and unwilling to talk to people. Meta Knight had just shown up, and didn't know anything about the scout. The first time he'd heard her, she'd been panicked and somewhat emotional, but quick to hide it. Last night, she had indeed kept her cool quite well, but he still didn't believe it—perhaps from his first impression of her. Now…she was apparently intending to drop some formality while she was around him. And she didn't have as cold a demeanor as he imagined she should.
"May I have a word with you?" the scout asked, almost seeming worried about something. She glanced around at the Dees in the other tents, who fortunately hadn't noticed them yet. "Alone, perhaps? It may take a while to explain, but I only have fifteen minutes. You coming?"
Meta Knight hesitated.
What does she want with me?
What if she attacks me while I'm out there?
What's she gonna tell me? Something bad? What if she's secretly psycho?!
COWARD! She's a scout! She protects her tribe; why's she want to hurt you? She was debating on telling you something…now I just hope that it's not something romantic…
The blue puffball nodded. "Of course. I've got all day, really."
"How convenient." She spun around, grabbing the corners of her headdress in her paws and holding it around her. "Come, follow me."
C/N: Well! I didn't let this story die after all...for too long. While a lot of factors contributed to the lack of updates (college + job at the same time; currently working overtime sometimes; on call at five in the morning...), the reason THIS particular chapter was delayed had nothing to do with life. I actually had this chapter written WAY back in February of this year (future readers, it is now July), but I really feel like I slopped it, and couldn't figure out the best way to rewrite it. It originally had QUITE a bit more thought pattern as well, because I was attempting to cheat and show some of Meta's personality traits in this story, but I cut it because it didn't have anything to do with what he was thinking about. So this is the rewritten version. Cos just can't screw up quartet moments.
Speaking of rewriting, I might rewrite the chapters before this once I'm done with the story. I've changed a few things about the characters, and a few moments in previous chapters were a bit off.
BTW, there's juuuust enough backstory in the next chapter for you to guess Meta's past, so this is your final chance to fairly guess what it is in this story.
-ooo-
At this point, I don't remember who I've responded to and not (outside of one particular response), so if I haven't replied to you, accept my wholehearted thanks. I've just been really busy and have been living on four hours of sleep every day. So for now, I'll just respond to everyone here:
Meow: You don't have to be sorry...I've taken a fairly long time to upload anyway. That chapter actually isn't the end of the story though; there's more to come!
I've not yet decided whether it will only be in this story, or in general. I don't usually bring up backstory in most of my stories (just because there are a lot of backstory fics on this site, mainly for Meta Knight/Kirby), but if I do ever use it, there is some time manipulation involved...and all the characters in this universe exist in both timelines, so this could qualify for a timeline that was erased.
Oh, I see it! Those little guys are so cute! Of course, I love penguins anyway, if the username wasn't a giveaway. ^-^
I was really split on Bandana and Sailor being siblings for a while. I held the theory for a while, so I don't really know why they suddenly aren't siblings in my work anymore.
I got Robobot! I was kinda expecting to see the HR-D3 in it, though...! Have you played it?
Dedede has a soft spot for taking care of his friends...but he's not too fond of letting people see it, so he tries to only step in when he really needs to. That doesn't always work though; after the assumed bonding over the years between the quartet, the king can get a bit overprotective at times.
Indigo Puff: ...Maybe. Maybe. What were you thinking?
MyKnightLife: Don't worry, you get a raft full of cookies just for reading. It's cool when I can surprise people!
Storystosee: Thank you! That means a lot~
APleadingFAN: Thank you! I hope you enjoy the update!