Oh boy, I love DL2!
Jokes aside, I did have some fun with this arc when I first started writing it. There are some parts in the next chapter that are basically an abridged version of DL2 (since Gooey had a VERY minor role in that game, but I hope you'll enjoy these chapters regardless.
"...Are you awake, brother?"
The Dark Matter shifted as he opened his eyes. His siblings should be sleeping as well, though it looked like sleep hadn't caught on to his brother yet despite being in their nest.
"I'm sorry, I just wanted to see if you were still awake," the brother said as he gently squeezed Dark Matter against his chest. He looked like he was thinking about something, and whatever it was it probably wasn't a good idea.
"If...you had to live anywhere else, anywhere that Lord Zero couldn't find you, would you do it?"
The Dark Matter glared. Of course his brother was overthinking things again. As loyal as he was to their creator, he was always worried about Lord Zero separating the two. So every once in a while, he would get these "rebellious thoughts". When he did get these thoughts, it would eventually lead to him getting beaten by their siblings or berated by Lord Zero should they find out.
"Oh, don't give me that look!" His brother grumbled. "I know you're as worried about Lord Zero as I am...Besides, we both know things will end badly if you don't improve. If not for you, then for the both of us."
The Dark Matter nodded. He let out a deep sigh as he lied down, he could hear his brother's heartbeat this way. Lord Zero was losing patience with each passing second, and given how slow progress was, the Dark Matter was one mistake away from getting killed.
"You know...if I could create a world of my own, I absolutely would," his brother said. "That way, we wouldn't have to worry about Lord Zero's orders. We could do whatever we want, no matter how 'defective' we were. Wouldn't that sound nice?"
Well...If the Dark Matter could live in another world with his brother, then he absolutely would. But he knew it was nothing more than a dream. And besides, right now, the two of them needed rest. There was a lot of training to get done tomorrow, and they were going to need some energy if they were going to get anything done tomorrow.
"...I understand, brother. We'll talk about this, later."
The Dark Matter nodded as he started dozing off. He knew his brother meant no harm in talking about such things, but if he COULD make a new world like that,then who's to say that Lord Zero wouldn't try to conquer it?
More time had passed since Gooey came to Popstar, so much so that the sun felt as if it was at its strongest. It was at times like this where Gooey wished he still had his parasol.
"Ugh...why is it so hot, today?" Gooey asked. He hovered over the road so it wouldn't burn him, though he couldn't understand how Kirby could to walk on such a hot surface. Shouldn't it be burning his feet?
"That's 'cause it's Summer," Kirby explained. "The days are longer than they usually are, which means it's gonna get very hot."
"Well I dun like it," Gooey said bitterly. He felt as if his skin would dry out.
"That's all right, a lotta people don't like Summer," Kirby said. "But it's not all bad, though. Longer days mean more time to play. And if it gets too hot, we could go swimming."
"Hm..." Gooey hummed in acknowledgement. He hoped that Popstar wouldn't stay hot forever, but from how Kirby described it, he was sure that the planet will go back to normal soon.
At some point, the duo strolled past Dedede's castle. And for a moment, Gooey could've sworn he'd felt some kind of aura coming from the castle. It was an angry kind of aura, but there was something familiar about it.
"You OK, Gooey?"
"...You dun sense anything, do you?"
"What do you mean?"
"Uh..." Gooey shook his head as he began to follow Kirby again. "Never mind, le's go."
There was something off about that aura, maybe it was just Dedede having a bad day?
...No, that didn't feel right. But whatever the case may be, he was sure that he would figure it out in no time.
Later that day, Gooey and Kirby ran into some of their friends. They decided that they were going to play a simple game called "Ball".
Like the name suggested, Kirby would kick a ball around with Rick, Nago, and Pitch. As for Gooey...he was the ball. And though most would've hated getting kicked around in the middle of a field, Gooey genuinely seemed like he was having fun. He laughed and hollered as his friends kicked him around. It actually helped ease the tension he felt from that aura earlier.
"I'm open!" Pitch yelled as Nago kicked Gooey towards his direction. Afterwards, Pitch knocked him over towards Kirby's direction, and then Kirby kicked him towards Rick's direction. But when Rick tried to kick him back to Nago, he managed to knock Gooey into a cliff, which caused him to bounce over to the dirt road.
Gooey still laughed, and he couldn't wait to go back to his friends. But despite his laughter, he was starting to feel the same angry aura that he felt by the castle. He jumped as he heard a harsh, yet quiet voice spoke to him.
"What do you think you're doing?"
Gooey looked up with his eyes wide open. King Dedede was scowling at him while Waddle Dee tugged at his arm. "Please, Sire. I know you're grumpy today, but you shouldn't take your anger out on Gooey!"
"W-why dun you play with us, instead?" Gooey offered.
"And why should I?"
"Uh..."
Dedede shook his head, he continued to stomp along the dirt road. He spoke again in that unusually quiet tone. "I have no time for such childish games today."
Well that was weird. From what Gooey recalled, Dedede was a lot nicer than that. He was sure that the bird would've loved to join in. If not for Gooey, then at the very least he would've joined in order to show off to Kirby or something.
"Sorry," Waddle Dee said quickly. "His majesty hasn't been acting like himself today, I'll see you guys later!"
With that said, Waddle Dee ran in order to catch up to his king. Gooey made his way back to Kirby with a confused look.
"What was that all about?" Rick asked bitterly. Kirby replied with a shrug. "I don't think I've ever seen Dedede get angry at Gooey before, it's almost like he didn't recognize him."
"That's because it wasn't really Dedede." said another voice. The group looked up, they could see Meta Knight standing on top of the cliff.
"How can you be so sure?" Nago asked as he tilted his head. Meta Knight hopped off of the cliff before he wrapped himself in his cape. "From what I've observed, he seems...angrier than usual. It's like he's angry with everyone around him."
"So what should we do?" Kirby asked.
"I suggest that we should keep an eye on Dedede just in case something DOES happens" Meta Knight replied. "And when it does, we'll have to take care of it as quickly as possible."
Gooey couldn't help but worry. He wanted to find a way to help Dedede in any way he could, but he wasn't sure how he could do that. He didn't want to fight Dedede. And even if he had to, he didn't have the same abilities as his other friends did. Perhaps if his brother were here, he would know what to do?
"What do you think we should do, Kirby?" asked Rick.
"Well..." Kirby tried to think. "I say we should look for the others and see what they think."
"Wait, what about Gooey?" Nago asked.
"He's...not much of a fighter, is he?" Pitch asked while tilting his head. Meta Knight walked towards Gooey before looking back at the group. "Don't worry, I'll take him back home."
"Thanks, Meta Knight," Kirby said as he dashed towards the dirt road. "C'mon, guys! We gotta go find the others!"
Gooey watched as the rest of the gang took off. Once they were gone, he extended his fins and flew behind Meta Knight.
"Can I ask something?"
"That depends on what it is."
"Um...How do I become stronger?" Gooey asked. "Do I have to do a lot of fighting?"
"Why do you ask?"
"Because I wanna help Dedede," Gooey replied. Meta Knight looked away, though it was hard to tell what he was thinking. Nonetheless, Gooey glared so hard that he would've shot lightning out of his eyes if he could.
"Gooey, listen!" Meta Knight said as he looked back at the Dark Matter. "I know you mean well, but I don't think you should be involved in this."
"But why?"
"Because I think Dedede might be possessed by another Dark Matter...perhaps even a sibling of yours."
"And how would you know?"
"Because I've fought one myself," Meta Knight explained. "I've had to help seal him in a chest before he destroyed Popstar. I know you want to help, but I think it's best that you stay out of this."
"But I wanna help!" Gooey complained. "I dun care if a sibling possessed him, I wanna help Dedede!"
Meta Knight stopped walking, he looked at Gooey with an intense gaze. "So you would rather help us than to help your own kind...Is that what you're trying to say?"
"Yes, exactly!" Gooey replied.
"...I still think that you shouldn't get involved," Meta Knight explained. "But...perhaps you might be more useful than I realize?"
"So does that mean I can help?"
"Er...How about this. If Kirby isn't back by tonight, come meet me outside of Dedede's castle and we'll discuss what to do from there."
Gooey smiled. Though he would have to go against one of his siblings at some point, it didn't seem to bother him. After all, he was sure that Dedede would've done the same thing if Waddle Dee or even Kirby were the ones in trouble.
It was almost night time, yet the sun was still bright. Gooey waited patiently at Kirby's house to see if he would come back. So far, he had yet to see him or any of the Animal Friends. Of course, he was willing to wait a little longer before going to the castle. He still needed to meet with Meta Knight, after all.
He had to wonder how they were going to help Dedede, though. They would need to find a way to coax the Dark Matter into coming out of the bird's body. Gooey wasn't well-liked amongst his siblings, so talking to them might be out of the question. Once again, he tried to think about what his brother would've done in this situation, but he probably wouldn't have been much help either. So how was anyone going to get the Dark Matter to leave Dedede's body?
Suddenly, the sky darkened, but not in the way that it usually would when night time happened. Instead, the sky looked as if it was invaded by dark clouds, and that angry aura was getting stronger by the second. The clouds outside were the kind of clouds Gooey used to see in his old home, they came from the direction of Dedede's castle.
Gooey wasted no time in leaving the house. Meta Knight was probably on his way to the castle right now, it was time that they got to the bottom of this.