In these next few chapters, Gooey gets to hang around with Dedede.

Also, they get chased down by Dyna Blade in this chapter.


Gooey couldn't remember how many days it had been since he's mutated, but he quickly adjusted to having a mouth...and what the others called a "tongue". And like the frogs, Gooey learned how to use his tongue like a limb. Thankfully, none of Kirby's other friends minded the changes that were happening to him. In fact, they seemed to welcome it. But even though Gooey started to accept it, he would sometimes think about how different he looked from other Dark Matter.

It gave him a mixed feeling...it was one that he didn't know how to describe. He was happy to know that his friends would still be his friends no matter how much he changed. But at the same time, he felt as if he was losing what little he had in common with his siblings. At this rate, his brother wouldn't be able to recognize him anymore should he be able to find this world.

Gooey had just woken up. And strangely enough, Kirby was nowhere to be found. Sometimes when Kirby woke up early, he'd go out for walk. However, he would usually come back at this point. Perhaps it wouldn't hurt to look for him, then? Gooey grabbed his parasol and headed outside. He made his way along the road and searched. Every once in a while, he would call out Kirby's name. But no matter how hard he looked, he was nowhere to be found.

Gooey sat there with a worried look on his face. Maybe it would've been better to stay home and wait for him? The only problem he had with this was that he couldn't remember where "home" was. He was so used to following Kirby that he never actually thought about how to get back.

He might not know where home was...but he DID see something interesting despite his frustration. There was a large red bird flying towards another bird...wait, that smaller bird was King Dedede! Not only that, he was holding onto one of his Waddle Dees. Before Gooey could ask anything, Dedede grabbed him with his other arm.

"GET OUTTA THE WAY, KID!" Dedede yelled as he kept running. The bird that chased him down let out a loud screech before she tried to grab him with her beak. Dedede quickly jumped out of the way.

"Hey, Gooey!" said the Waddle Dee as he waved. "You recognize me, don't you?"

Not really, most Waddle Dees looked the same. Although...come to think of it, there WAS something familiar about him...Wait, he must've been THAT Waddle Dee, except he was missing the cloth on his head.

"Where's your...?" Gooey pointed to where the cloth should be, though he couldn't remember what it was called.

"It got taken away by one of Dyna Blade's chicks," Waddle Dee said like it was a normal thing. "I tried to get it back without her noticing."

"Yeah, and look where it got us?" Dedede asked bitterly. He continued to run until he made his way into a cave. He dropped the duo onto the ground before pulling out a large hammer, "Now WAIT HERE!"

Quickly, the King charged out of the cave to fight Dyna Blade. He'd swing his hammer towards her whenever she tried to attack him.

"I thought Dedede was apposed to be a jerk," Gooey said bluntly. Waddle Dee gave him a stern look. "Where did you here that? From Kirby?"

"Uh..."

The stern look on Waddle Dee's face shifted into one of amusement, despite not having a mouth. "I know he might come off as a little selfish at times, but he's always trying to look out for us whenever he can. And honestly, I wouldn't ask for a better king."

"Huh..." Kirby always described him as a jerk, but perhaps they got off on the wrong foot when they first met? Or maybe they liked calling each other names for the fun of it? Their relationship was weird, but as far as Gooey could tell, Dedede seemed to have a good heart.

Dyna Blade let out a cry in defeat as she flew away. Dedede swung his hammer over his shoulder, he walked over to Waddle Dee with a stern look on his face.

"I don't know WHAT you were thinking, but I don't want you doin' that ever again!"

"But my bandanna-"

"I'll get you a new one, just...don't go near Dyna Blade's nest again, got it?"

"...Understood, sire!" Waddle Dee said while looking away in shame. Dedede looked at Gooey with a worried look. "Sorry I had to drag you into this, but Dyna Blade would've torn you to shreds if I didn't grab you."

"Dun worry 'bout it" Gooey replied. "By the way, have you seen Kirby?"

"No, not today," Dedede said while scratching the back of his head. "I figured he took off to help Meta Knight with something."

"With what?"

Dedede shrugged. "I dunno...something about a mirror? Either way, we might not be seeing 'em for a while."

Ah...so Kirby went on an adventure without him. But if it was something Meta Knight needed help with, then it was probably best that Gooey didn't get involved.

"Say, kid...You've got a place to stay, don't you?"

"Uh..." Gooey rubbed his head with his tongue as he tried to think. "Kinda...I been 'taying with Kirby for a while..."

I see...well, do you wanna hang out at my castle until Kirby comes back?" Dedede offered. "I know we're rivals and all, but I'm sure he won't mind."

"Oh," Waddle Dee said as a thought crossed his mind. "You can even hang out with the other Waddle Dees, I'm sure they'd love having you around!"

Gooey continued to think. Sure, it might be better to go back home. But since he can't seem to remember where it was, it wouldn't hurt to get to know Dedede or the Waddle Dees a little better. After all, they've been kind to Gooey ever since they first met him.

"OK," Gooey said while smiling. "I'll 'tay with you guys 'til Kirby comes back."

"Great," Waddle Dee cheered, "It'll be like a long sleepover."

"Just don't expect me to treat you any differently from the Waddle Dees, all right?" Dedede teased. With that said, the trio began to make their way over to Dedede's castle. Along the way, Gooey could see some creatures crawl out of their hiding spots, some even hesitated as they were worried about whether or not Dyna Blade would come back.

Gooey had learned so much about Popstar since he came here, He'd learned about some of the different plants and animals that lived around here, and he's learned about some of the food here as well. But there was still so much about this place that he needed to learn about. And what better way to do that than to stay at Dedede's castle for a bit?


Though the walk was long, the group made their way to a large building. Gooey was told that castles were huge, but this place looked like it was hundreds of times bigger than Kirby's house...maybe even thousands of times bigger?

"Make yourself at home, kid," Dedede said as he headed inside the castle. "I'm gonna go take a nap, the Waddle Dees'll help ya if you need anything."

Gooey tilted his head as Dedede left the duo alone, but he felt Waddle Dee place a hand on his back. "Come on, I'm sure everyone'll love to see you!"

"Ah...OK."

Gooey followed Waddle Dee through the castle and into the...what was it called again? A kitchen? There were Waddle Dees scattered throughout the room, some were eating their lunch while others simply talked with one another. It reminded Gooey of when he used to watch his siblings float by him back home, which made him worried about whether or not the Waddle Dees would welcome him.

"Hey. guys!" Waddle Dee said as he walked into the kitchen. "You remember Gooey, right? Kirby's friend?"

Suddenly, all eyes were on Gooey. They didn't look at him with indifference or malice like his siblings usually did. In fact, many of them looked at him with wonder and curiosity. Even the Waddle Dee with a single eye looked at him with an intense gaze.

"Wasn't he darker the last time we saw him?"

"Did he always have a mouth?"

"Why are his eyes so weird?"

Gooey had to admit, he was starting to feel uncomfortable. He held his parasol over his face in an attempt to hide himself. After all, it wasn't his fault he was changing...right?

"All right, you guys...Take it easy!" Waddle Dee said as he stood in front of Gooey. "I think we're starting to scare him."

"But if he's here, then where's Kirby?"

"He's with Meta Knight," Waddle Dee said. "So we need to make sure Gooey feels welcome here, all right?"

The rest of the Waddle Dees cheered in agreement, though Gooey wasn't used to getting so much attention at once. Back in his old home, he'd only really receive this kind of attention from his brother. And even while living here, Kirby and his Animal Friends gave Gooey his space when he needed it. But now, it looked like Gooey had more attention on him than he knew what to do with.

...What was he supposed to do, now?