Chapter 13: Now, Spread Your Wings

Ledo was the first to awaken the next morning. Even though he was told that he was allowed to sleep in, it seems that he was too used to his schedule of waking up early. He noticed a wall of softness on his left side until he realized that he had been using Dedede as a pillow in his sleep. He quickly looked around the room, noticing that the Waddle Dee and two puffs were still asleep next to him. Looking at Meta Knight made him curious about something. He remembered Kirby feeling soft and squishy whenever he held him, like whenever he grabbed him out of midair when he was about to hug-tackle him. Did Meta Knight feel the same way?

"…sorry about this, Lord Meta Knight." He gave a gentle poke, which felt…off. Then he gave a gentle pinch. "His body is more like toned arm muscles…?" he thought, gently poking him again.

"It's not polite to wake people by poking them, ensign Ledo…"

He flinched back. "H-how long were you awake?" he stammered into a whisper as he realized that the others were sleeping.

"I woke up when you started poking me. Would you care to explain why?"

Suddenly, the ensign felt extremely embarrassed. "I…was wondering if…you felt the same way Kirby did…"

The knight briefly hid his eyes for a moment, but the young man could've sworn that he saw them turn pink.

He leaned closer to him. "Forgive me, Lord Meta Knight, I…!" he was cut off by a gloved hand pinching his cheek.

"We're even now. We will not speak of this again, ensign." The young man nodded.

Behind them, they heard a loud yawn and turned to see Dedede stretching.

"Ugh…man, why do I feel like a log was sleepin' on me?" the king grumbled as he rubbed his eyes.

Another yawn from Bandana Dee followed "Sire…don't you…" another yawn "…don't you mean to say you slept like a log…?" the way he mumbled that made it sound as if he was still half-asleep.

"I know what I said...where are we anyway? I know we ain't at the castle 'cause I din't hear no loud piano playing to wake me up." The king stretched again while yawning "Oh…right, we're in Ledo's room. I forgot."

"O-oh, good morning, you two. Did you just wake up now?"

"Duh, we just did." Dedede blinked a few times upon looking at him. "Why you look so embarrassed?"

"…it's just your imagination."

The king looked at him in suspicion. "Yeah, sure, whateves. Where's that pink marshmallow?"

"He's right here. Let me wake him up." Bandana started by pushing Kirby, which only flipped him onto his back with no further reaction. He then walked over to the window "Come on, Kirby…" he then threw open the curtains, letting sunlight pour into the room, forcing the others in the room to cover their eyes. "Time to get up!"

The pink puff flinched from the sudden burst of sunlight, and scrambled to hide under the closest thing, being Meta Knight's cape.

"…39 more minutes…" the child murmured.

"Wait, why 39?" Bandana asked.

"Let me handle this." The knight turned to his student. "Come on, get out from under there." He tried to pull away his cape, but the pink puff just wrapped it tighter around himself.

"39 more minutes, Meta-sensei…"

The knight heaved a heavy sigh. "Kirby, it's time for breakfast."

Upon hearing that, the child immediately perked up "Breakfast!? WHERE!?"

"In the dining room, of course. We didn't go there because we were waiting for you to get up."

"Well, why didn't you say so?! Come on!" he grabbed Meta Knight and ran out of the room, dragging him along. Of course, that would make him get moving.

"Well, come on, you two! …or don't, more food for me!" Dedede said as he left. Ledo and Bandana Dee looked at each other.

"Well, we better get to the dining room before those two eat everything and not leave anything for us!" He nodded and they followed after the king.

Despite knowing otherwise, last night's existential crisis and mental breakdown had almost begun to feel like a bad dream to the ensign.

The group had the entire dining room to themselves that morning.

"HEY! GET OUT! YOU'RE A GUEST! YOU SHOULDN'T BE WORKING IN HERE!" they could hear Sailor Dee yelling from the kitchen.

"Do you remember who two of your guests are!?"

"Oh right…um…would you care to help?"

"Sure, hold on a minute!" Bandana Dee ran out of the kitchen.

"Hey, what do you guys want for breakfast?"

"I want chocolate chip pancakes with tons of fruit, chocolate sauce, and whipped cream!" the pink puff exclaimed.

"Make me some pancakes an' one of them omelets!"

"Same! Plus, some scrambled eggs!"

"Sunnyside up for me!"

The poor Waddle Dee was writing as fast as he could until Meta Knight entered carrying a tray of tea.

"You two, don't ask for too much, otherwise I'll start charging you for the groceries."

Dedede began to grumble while Kirby pouted.

"Ledo, what would you like?"

"I guess I'll just take some pancakes and fruit. Nothing too crazy."

"Very well, and you, Meta Knight?"

"Worry about yourself first, Bandana."

"I already did. I'm just going to have some pancakes and an apple strudel."

"…I'll have pancakes as well then. I'm sure it'll be easier for you both then."

"Oh no, if you want something else, it's fine!"

"No, I insist."

"Ah, very well then." The Dee walked back into the kitchen.

"You're not going to have your usual, Lord Meta Knight?"

"I had it while I was in the kitchen, ensign."

Ledo wanted to ask why he couldn't just eat it out here, since at least Kirby was aware of the knight's love of sweets, but he didn't want to pry too much. It was a likely case of he wants only a few people to be aware of that.

"Ensign, would you like your tea in the usual way?"

"I can make it myself, Lord Meta Knight."

The knight nodded in response, passing the tray over. "Just be careful when you drink it this time."

The young man shook his head, remembering when he spit out some tea because it was fairly hot. It wasn't scalding, thankfully, but it made his tongue feel awkward for a few days afterwards.

"So, did you sleep well last night, Ledo?" Bandana asked from in the kitchen.

"Yes, I did." That was when he remembered that morning. "Dedede, sorry for using you as a pillow last night."

The king huffed "Hmph! I only let you 'cuz I felt bad for you! It's not like I enjoyed being a pillow ya dolt! Even if it was kinda comfortable...which it definitely wasn't!"

"But Dedede, didn't you say he could do that?"

"QUIET, KIRBY!" he bitterly glared at his rival.

"I detect a rise in temperature, Great King, would you like me to examine you?" Bio Gale dropped down from the ceiling above, landing next to Dedede.

"WHY ARE YOU STILL ON THIS SHIP!?"

"I work here."

"CALM DOOOWNNNNNN!" Bandana shouted from the kitchen. There was something frightening about the way he said that, as it was accompanied by several loud chops. The king and pink puff immediately fell silent after that.

"Head Nurse, return to your post." The knight ordered.

"Understood." She stepped back into the shadows.

There was nothing but the sounds of cooking from the kitchen.

"Would you like to see a magic trick?" Meta Knight suddenly asked.

"What kind of magic trick!?" Kirby asked with excitement.

"Watch." He took a sugar cube and placed it on top of the tea. The cube looked like it was sitting on top of the tea.

"Wow! How did you do that?!"

"That's a secret."

"Huh?! Why can't you tell me, sensei?"

"Don't you know? A magician never reveals their secrets."

"Eh, I'd expect somethin' flashier from you."

"Well then, you perform something."

"Do ya really think I can do that on an empty stomach?!"

At first, Ledo was amazed by the trick, but it didn't take him long to notice that there was a tower of sugar cubes within the cup. He only continued to appear amazed, as to not ruin the trick for them.

Suddenly, a red light on the wall began to flash, with a siren blaring. It caused Kirby to cover his ears, the two Waddle Dees in the kitchen to jump in surprise, and Dedede to fall out of his chair in surprise.

"According to data received from the bridge, an enemy vessel has been detected. Reasonable course of action: prepare for combat." Chamber analyzed.

"Ugh…this early in the morning?" Meta Knight grumbled as he picked up a phone hanging under it. "Tell all crew to prepare for battle! What's the status of the enemy?"

"The enemy is moving extremely fast, sir!" on the other end was Mace Knight.

"Can you get a lock onto them?!"

"We can, but there's a chance our attacks won't hit! We'll be more likely to take them out if they're engaged directly! I've looked at the digital checklist. Our best option is to send out Chamber!"

"Request rejected; I'll head out myself."

"Lord Meta Knight?!"

"I swore I wouldn't force Ledo to fight, Mace Knight! I'm going to fight them myself!"

"I'd just have to disable their machines, right?" the knight turned to see Ledo standing up. "I appreciate your concern about me, Lord Meta Knight, but I said I'd fight if it meant protecting those I care about." He saluted, receiving a nod from his lord.

"Retract my rejection."

"Understood, sir." He hung up. "Ensign, prepare to sortie!"

"Yes, sir!" When Ledo ran out of the room, Meta Knight picked up the phone again, pressing a button to change it to intercom mode. "Attention all Halberd crew stationed in the inner hanger. Prepare for shifts in gravity, as we will be launching Chamber."

"Meta-sensei, why do they need to be careful?"

"Chamber distorts gravity to fly. If you're too close, you're going to be affected by the imbalance in gravity." He had experienced it during one of their test launches, where he nearly was thrown out of the hanger due to the gravity imbalance.

Bandana Dee stared silently from the door before speaking up "…um…I can't help but notice that you seem to be a bit more annoyed than usual…normally you wouldn't do such risky things like offer to go out and attack them yourself…"

"Oh, I'm not annoyed at all." He mumbled to himself.

"Yes, you are!" the Waddle Dee complained.

"Could ya blame 'em? We were haven' a nice breakfast 'till they showed up!" Dedede grumbled.

"Yeah!"

Bandana Dee could only sigh.

"You sure you gonna be fine out there, kid?" Captain Vul asked on Chamber's intercom.

"I have Chamber with me. I'll be fine." Ledo responded, putting his helmet on.

"Yeah, but I'm a bit concerned for you after last night."

"I was just a bit off last night. Don't worry."

The captain only sighed in response.

"I'm taking the beam rifle and harpoon-spear. That fine?"

"If you think you can beat them with those, knock yourself out. I don't know how Chamber works as much as you do."

"Alright."

Chamber's beam rifle was the only piece of equipment the Machine Caliber originally had that they could find after landing. The ensign and his mech managed to fish it out of the lake two weeks ago. The harpoon-spear was something designed collectively by the Meta-Knights, with their leader providing the blueprints to work from. It was an obvious solution to prevent the young man from doing a repeat of the Heavy Lobster incident, but it could also have been a sort of gift welcoming him to the crew.

The hanger opened up.

"We'll be back in a bit. Tell Sailor Dee to keep breakfast warm for me."

"Will do. Nova speed, ensign."

Honestly, the most surprising thing about these pirates was the fact that they had giant mecha. While they were nothing like Chamber, they were giant mecha regardless.

"Chamber how many are we dealing with?"

"I have counted 10 machines, all of which are piloted."

"Let's start by firing a warning shot."

Raising the beam rifle, the mech fired a shot into the air. "Attention. That was a warning shot. If you do not wish to fight, retreat."

A red machine seemingly ignored the action and charged forward.

"Ensign Ledo, negotiations have failed. I recommend immediate engagement."

Well, it couldn't be helped. "I see. Lock on to the one in front of us."

Pulling out the harpoon spear Ledo landed a decisive blow on the quick machine. That was when the young man noticed someone jump out before it exploded.

"Ok that one's down..." he was suddenly hit with fire. "Damn it! Chamber, status!"

"Minimal damage received."

Three of the machines had started to repeatedly fire on Chamber. Alone it would be no issue but being ganged up on is another matter entirely.

"You've got to be kidding me...!" Ledo aims Chamber's beam rifle and fires, taking 2 of the units out. The remaining machines start to retreat from the area as if panicked by the attack.

"Ensign shall we continue our pursuit?"

"No. They're leaving. Our main objective was to get rid of them." He pressed a button on the side of his helmet, lifting it off his head.

"They might come back Ensign."

"Then we'll deal with that when it happens. No worries." He opened up the comm channel to the Halberd. "This is Ensign Ledo. The enemy is retreating. Returning to base now."

"Copy that. Well done."

Breakfast was ready by the time Ledo returned to the dining room.

"Oi, princess, you know what us being slightly fueled by hunger into fighting reminded me of? The Gourmet Race!"

"First of all, please do not call me that, and second, what is the Gourmet Race?"

A shocked expression appeared on Dedede's face. "Wha? No one told ya 'bout that?" he turned towards the knight "Yo, MK, what gives?!"

"It's too trivial for me to care about…" he uttered in a slightly judgmental voice.

"Well, fine. What 'bout you, Kirby?"

Upon looking over, the puff had already downed his plate of pancakes with Sailor Dee staring at him from the corner as if he was about to cry. "I forgot!"

"I kind of doubt that."

"But I did!"

"Lord Meta Knight, what is this Gourmet Race about?"

"It's an excuse for those two to run a marathon while eating."

"That…sounds horrible."

"I cannot comprehend the logic in having such a meaningless event."

"Nobody asked ya, tin can! Y'all are just like that 'cuz you never tried it!"

"But I don't want to try it."

"Too late! We're havin' a Gourmet Race today, an' you're gonna try it!"

"Or what?"

"I'll tell people 'bout that sweet tooth of yours."

"I will straight up murder you, Dedede." Huh. So they did know about his sweet tooth.

"Both of you calm down! How are we going to get the food for such a massive event in such a short amount of time?!" Bandana shouted.

"Eh…can't we just call Kawasaki or something? He likes doing 'em for extra restaurant exposure."

"I do not understand the logic of such actions. I believe that the number of calories both of you have ingested greatly surpass the recommended daily value. Reasonable course of action: perform exercises designed to burn calories. I believe the ensign can assist with that if needed."

"Shut up, tin can!"

"If you're going to force me to do it, I refuse to with such a large crowd!"

"Huh? I thought you said you didn't want to do it, Meta-sensei!"

"I figured that Dedede wouldn't stop annoying me about it if I didn't..."

"Ya darn right 'bout that!" Everyone gave a collective sigh. "Yo, Bandana! I gots an idea! Call the Waddle Dees and tell 'em to make the food for the race!"

"Yes, your highness! When do you want to have the race, sir?"

"Go with...uh...maybe in four or so hours?"

"Understood!" he raced off to go talk on the phone.

"Ensign Ledo, what do you intend to do during this?"

"I'll probably watch it. I've been interested in studying how Kirby's metabolism works anyway. I assume you're the same way, Chamber."

"Affirmative."

Meta Knight seemed to avert his eyes, as if knowing that Ledo was also slightly alluding to him as well.

"It's just very fast isn't it?" the pink puff asked.

"I'd like to know exactly how fast it is. I notice that you tend to eat a lot of food, especially sweets, yet you don't gain any weight."

"Doesn't that also have to do with that metabolism thing?"

"Yes. That's what I'd like to study."

"Okay!"

"Yeah, but how you gonna do that?"

"Taranza and Bandana can help me keep track of what you guys eat."

"Geez, you really tend to think ahead, don't you?"

"Doing otherwise is an inadvisable course of action."

It was then settled. The Gourmet Race would take place this afternoon.

The starting line was in a place called Pumpkin Grand. It was a mostly hilly area situated at the top of a cliff. There was food spread out along the path.

"I believe this violates several sanitation rules. The reasonable course of action would be to place the dishes on tables."

"Shut it, tin can! We've never got no germs from doin' it like this!" The others could only sigh. "Now take a look at this weather! It's a perfect day for a Gourmet Race if I've seen one. Which I have!" the king laughed.

"Why do you have me joining this stupid event again?" Taranza grumbled.

"I need you and Bandana to document everything Kirby eats. It's for my research." Ledo replied.

"What kind of research, dare I ask?"

"Something about metabolisms." The pink puff replied, jumping up and down as if to warm himself up.

"And what will you be doing during this event?"

"I'll be responsible for observing Lord Meta Knight since he's also part of this study."

Upon hearing that, Taranza's jaw would've hit the ground if it could drop that far. "Huh?! You're studying HIM?! AND he's participating in this event?!"

"Don't remind me..."

"I believe that the ensign gave you the option to opt out of this study, Lord Meta Knight."

The knight covered his eyes with a faint groan. He had forgotten that was mentioned on the way to this location.

"...Lord Meta Knight?"

"I'm fine...Dedede won't stop annoying me unless I participate in this thing anyway..."

A megaphone screech came from the starting line. "Is this thing on?" Bandana Dee asked, megaphone in hand.

"You're good!" the king gave a thumbs up.

With a nod, he began to clear his throat. "Welcome to the smaller event sized Gourmet Race! Due to the specific circumstances of this event, Allen was unable to be the host, so I, Bandana Waddle Dee, will be your host for this afternoon."

It took a moment for Ledo to realize that "Allen" was likely the name of the Waddle Dee that usually did this event. He remembered hearing that the Dees that worked in the castle had plain-sounding names.

"Let's go over the rules..."

"We already know the rules!"

"Yes, but we have some new faces to the event, so I thought I should review them. The object is to eat the most food and reach the finish line first! Each food is worth one point, and if you reach the finish line first, you will earn bonus points. You can use weapons and copy abilities, but you can't use them to directly harm the other participants. And... that's about it."

The rules sounded simple enough.

"Now, take your places at the starting line. When I set off this popper, that will mean to start the race!"

Everyone positioned themselves at the line and waited for the signal. Bandana set off the party popper and the first round began.

The next course in the race was a place called Corn Hall. Based on what Ledo could see from the starting line, the terrain of this area was a lot more mountainous. There was a brief rest period before this next race. According to what Bandana said, this was implemented specifically for this race, since they usually just did them back-to-back. While Kirby didn't mind this change, it made Dedede more impatient.

Ledo stared at his tally in suspicion. "...Lord Meta Knight, these numbers are a bit..."

"No, I believe they are fully accurate." He cut him off.

"They are less than my calculated predictions. Unless my predictions are wrong, I have hypothesized that you are purposely throwing the race."

"Chamber's right! At least try to enjoy yourself and put in a bit of effort!" Kirby pouted.

"Oh no, you both are so much faster than me when it comes to this."

"Meta-sensei, you aren't even trying!" his student continued to pout.

"Yes, I am Kirby."

"The race will begin soon!" Bandana Dee spoke through a megaphone.

"Now unless you want Dedede to win this time, you better not worry about me."

"AHHHH! YOU'RE RIGHT!"

The group met back up at the starting line, where Taranza and Bandana Dee were talking and reading over their tally and notes.

"Why'd I agree to this again?" the spider mage grumbled.

"Oh, I'm sorry, did you have anything better to do?"

"Not really, and I guess this is kind of interesting. Besides, I guess it's fine if it's to help out Ledo. Honestly, I'm also curious about how his majesty can run that fast. He doesn't strike me as the type."

"OI, WHAT'S THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN!?" They didn't even flinch at Dedede's yelling. Likely because they were used to it.

"Normally you would be right, but when it comes to competitions, especially ones with Kirby, his majesty gets super competitive."

"I see. Say, how many times has He won this thing anyway?"

Bandana Dee paused for a moment to think. "...none."

"Oh, how many times have they done this race?"

"I stopped counting after fifty. You'll have to ask Allen if you want an exact number, since he normally oversees this event."

"Well then, you think this time might be any different?"

Bandana looked again at his notes. "Maybe. Kirby does seem to be distracted by something, but who knows?" He could feel the gazes of the participants beating down on him. "Oh, uh, is everyone ready?"

"DUH! We wouldn't be standin' 'ere if we weren't!" Dedede crossed his arms impatiently.

The Waddle Dee sighed as he readied the party popper. Everyone bolted from the starting line the moment he set it off.

The final course was called Onion Garden. Not much could be seen from the starting line, but at least it appeared to be sheltered. There was another brief rest period beforehand.

"Ensign Ledo, my current tally for Lord Meta Knight is..."

"They aren't matching up with what you predicted, are they?"

"Affirmative."

Bandana Dee and Taranza both talked to him about each participant's score for the race, and it just didn't seem right to him. While Kirby and Dedede both had a massive total, Meta Knight's was still strangely low. The knight had a bit of a competitive streak in him, according to the pink puff, and something like this should've triggered it.

"Lord Meta Knight, I know you aren't enthusiastic about this, but at this rate you aren't going to win."

As he said that, the knight sighed "It's fine, ensign. Even if I did take this seriously, there's no way I could beat Kirby at this. He's an expert at dining and dashing so to say." From what the young man has seen of the race so far, that seemed to be true.

"Speaking of, I'm surprised that they missed some food. I was sure it would all be devoured considering both of their appetites."

"Kirby purposefully left some behind for me."

"What makes you think that, Lord Meta Knight?"

"Call it... teacher's intuition."

"If that is the case, then the results of this study are skewed. If we are to obtain accurate results, we would need to start the race over."

"I don't think there's a need for that. I want at least a rough idea."

There was another megaphone screech before Bandana Dee started to speak again. "Will all participants please line up at the starting line?"

The knight turned back to him. "Now come along, the final race is about to begin."

As he walked over to the starting line, Ledo began to think of something. "Chamber...about what Meta Knight said...why do you think Kirby is leaving food for him?"

"While I lack sufficient evidence, my current hypothesis is that he is aware the bonus from finishing first can help him achieve a victory."

There was a point to that. Bandana clearly said that one of the rules of the race, plus Kirby had been the first to cross the finish line on every course so far. But could that really be the only thing?

There was no time to think further, as Bandana Dee raised the popper and set it off.

Upon the conclusion of the final course, Ledo, Bandana, and Taranza began to tally up the final scores.

"Well, I think we've got it then." The Waddle Dee looked at the paper.

"Chamber, do you have an approximate calorie count for all of the food in the race?"

"Affirmative."

"Alright, then scan these papers and begin your calculations." He held out the communication device and Chamber scanned the papers.

"So, who won?!" Dedede demanded as Bandana walked over to announce the results.

"Calm down! I'm going to get to that!" he cleared his throat. "So, according to our calculations, the winner of this Gourmet Race is...Kirby!"

"Yay!"

"WHAT?! HOW?! HE DIDN'T EAT NEARLY AS MUCH AS HE NORMALLY DOES!" the king shook the Dee, who seemed unfazed by the action.

"Your highness, we were only following normal tallying protocol. The only thing that changed was we had a break between each round."

"GRRR! I knew I shoulda banned him from usin' that there Wing ability on the final course!"

"He would've just used a different copy ability..."

"SHUT UP! THEN WE SHOULDA JUST BANNED HIM FROM USIN' COPY ABILITIES PERIOD!"

Meta Knight, Ledo, and Taranza only watched the king's rambling in annoyance.

"Is he normally like this when he loses?" Taranza turned to Kirby, who had joined the group.

"Once in a while. He usually just cries in a corner."

"Guess this is what losing over fifty times does to you..."

"Uh-huh. Even though he got in second this time...because SOMEONE wasn't trying." He pouted as he gazed towards Meta Knight.

"I wouldn't be able to beat you if I tried Kirby. Besides, I was able to notice that you've gotten better at using the Wing ability to maneuver."

"Thank you for the compliment, but that's not the point! You probably could've beaten at least Dedede if you actually tried!"

"Also, using Dive Bomb to quickly descend was quite clever..."

"Did you even hear what I just said?!"

"You know, I might have us practice with Wing at our next training session instead of...I believe it was Staff I said we would work on..."

"META-SENSEIIIIIIIIIIII!" the pink puff shook his mentor in frustration. Of course, his mentor had no reaction to it and continued to murmur to himself about their training schedule.

"...well, that was a thing. Did Chamber finish his calculations?" Taranza looked at the young man.

"Chamber, what's the status?"

"My calculations are complete, ensign."

"Alright, let me hear it."

"Due to the circumstances of obtaining this data, assume that my findings are merely a hypothesis. Taking into account what was eaten at breakfast, I have hypothesized that Kirby and Meta Knight's species may require at least ten times the maximum calorie intake of humans to function."

"That's approximately twenty thousand..." he then did a double take "Wait, did you say "at least"!?"

"Affirmative. Furthermore, assuming that Kirby has consumed plenty more in previous Gourmet Races like Dedede and Bandana Dee have mentioned, combined with what Kirby himself has mentioned to have eaten before, they could eat as much as fifty times the recommended calorie intake of humans and remain at a healthy weight. Kirby especially might require more due to his use of Copy Abilities."

"Is... that so...?" Ledo uttered.

"I must reiterate that this is only a hypothesis based on inaccurate data, ensign."

"That only means the number can be higher!"

"Affirmative. This data also matches up with what Lord Meta Knight told us about their species having a speedier metabolism."

The ensign could only sigh. If their metabolism is really that fast, it would explain why they seem to enjoy a lot of sweets. They were perfect for an extra boost of calories as long as they are still able to get in their recommended value of vitamins and minerals.

"Those two both amaze and scare me..." he shook his head in amazement.

"Agreed."

"Is there any reason why you followed me back to my room?"

Upon returning to the Halberd, Kirby had followed Ledo back to his room. Of course, Dedede, Bandana Dee, and Taranza had returned to one of the king's castles, if only so he could cool down after how furious he was earlier today.

"I'm still worried about you after what happened last night! I don't really want to leave until I know that you're fine!" the puff had a concerned expression on his face.

The ensign could only sigh. "I'm fine now, Kirby. Don't worry."

The child's expression didn't change, but he tilted to the side as if questioning the statement. "You promise?"

"I promise."

Well, while the puff's here, he might as well do something he's been wanting to do for a while.

"Here's a gift of thanks for last night." He gave Kirby one of the Hideauze claws he had in his pocket. It was more cleanly made than the one he had been working on constantly.

"Wow! This was the one that Sailor Dee had played before! Ledo, did you make this one?"

The young man shook his head. "No, I believe it was made by my younger brother."

"Huh?! You have a younger brother?! Why didn't you mention that?!"

He hesitated for a moment, trying to decide if he wanted to discuss it, before continuing "Did Meta Knight tell you what happens to those the Alliance deem too ill or weak to fight?"

The pink puff looked down at the ground. "I…think I heard you say…they're disposed of. Was that what happened to your younger brother?" There was something that...hurt...about the tone the child used.

"Right, I believe you may have been there when I mentioned it to Sailor Dee. To the Galactic Alliance, those who cannot fight cannot have any desire to live."

"But that's not fair! They have a right to live just as much as anyone else!"

"While that's true, I can't change their practices."

For a moment, Kirby hesitated to speak, as if unsure if what he was thinking was right. Then, he spoke up. "Do you agree with them?"

"Not anymore, no. Of course, I used to just do so because it was as I was ordered. But now…"

"If it's in the past, you shouldn't worry about it!" the pink puff smiled.

"Can you really move on from the past that easily?" he asked.

"Yup! If I didn't, I wouldn't have as many friends as I do now!"

That's very true, based on what he was told. Kirby had a strange ability to be able to befriend just about anyone, even if he was betrayed or threatened with death. Heck, one of those people was his own mentor!

The child suddenly yawned and rubbed one of his eyes. "Well, I should head home then! I'll see you tomorrow!"

"See you tomorrow, Kirby."

The puff left the room, likely to go say goodbye to his mentor.

Shortly after that, Sailor Dee knocked on his door.

"Um...I'm sorry to ask, but..." he fidgeted a bit. "Can you help me with dinner? I'm really sorry for asking you but..."

"It's not a problem. I'm sure you enjoy the company."

The Dee seemed to squeal with glee upon hearing that, grabbing his hand and running off with him.

The young man was tired the next time he returned to his room. While he honestly enjoyed helping Sailor Dee make dinner for the rest of the crew, it tired him out more than usual, possibly due to the combination of the pirate attack and having to run during the Gourmet Race. Overall, today was a long day and all he wanted to do was rest right now.

Shortly after he laid down on his bed, he heard Chamber speak up. "Ensign Ledo, incoming message. The encryption is only used by the Galactic Alliance."

The young man turned pale. "Can you figure out what or who sent it?"

"The signal is similar to that from X3752 Striker." The Striker? That could only mean one thing.

"Commander…Kugel…"

There was only one person who had that specific unit number: Ledo's unit leader and direct superior in the Galactic Alliance, Lieutenant Colonel Kugel. During the battle that triggered the chain of events that led him to Popstar, Kugel had tried to fight off some of the attacking Hideauze to allow Ledo to retreat to the ship and prepare to warp back with the rest of their unit. However, they were both swarmed by the attacking Hideauze, causing them to fall into the wormhole. The chain reaction that Magolor theorized probably happened after that, which led them to landing in Dreamland. It seems that if he wanted to escape from the Alliance's clutches, it would be harder than he imagined. Something about them continued to loom over him like a dark cloud. He had to get rid of it.

Maybe…if he could talk Kugel into becoming a citizen of Dreamland…?

No, that wouldn't be possible. He's probably too set in his ways.

But, there's no harm in trying, is there?

Ledo quietly entered the inner hanger at 1 AM. He looked around to make sure that no one was there, and behind him to make sure no one was following him. Having someone see him was the last thing the ensign wanted. Chamber had left a message on the Halberd's computer explaining the situation. All he would have to do is open the hatch and leave. There was a heavy feeling in his heart. Although he was only on this ship for a few weeks, he had begun to feel more of a sense of belonging here than he ever did while he was a soldier in the Alliance. However, there was still something within him that told him to return to Kugel's command. It grabbed onto him and wouldn't let go. This was the only option he could think of to stop it. He pushed a few buttons and the hanger hatch began to open. Moonlight poured in, covering the whole hanger in a pale blue light.

"Ensign Ledo?"

He jumped a bit. He turned around to see that it was, of course, Meta Knight.

"What are you doing up so late?" he inquired.

"I could ask you the same thing."

"I was taking a walk since I was having a hard time falling asleep."

"I believe that is an ineffective way to trigger the sleep process."

The knight gave a sigh "What about you, Ensign?"

As much as Ledo didn't want to tell him, it would probably be better to tell him in person. "Chamber received a message from my superior in the Galactic Alliance. As much as I want to just ignore it, I just get this feeling that I have to go back. Like something over me is telling me to go back. I feel like this is the only way for me to say goodbye to my past."

"I…see…" the knight's eyes briefly flickered orange before returning to their normal yellow. "Well, ultimately, it was your decision if you wanted to stay. If you want to go back, I won't stop you." His voice sounded a bit strained while saying that.

"Lord Meta Knight, this isn't goodbye forever. Just for now." The ensign gave a sad smile, hoping he would understand.

"Very well..." He seemed to be disoriented, as if he was still getting over the shock of what was said. He then turned around, as if he was about to walk off. "Ensign, please, take this."

The young man turned around and caught a grey gauntleted glove. "Lord Meta Knight, is this...?"

"It's a spare glove I carry. Keep it as a reminder of this: no matter where you go, you will always be part of my crew."

The ensign looked down at it. "Thank you, but...could I wear it?"

"Try to put it on."

Upon doing as he was asked, it suddenly adjusted itself to fit to Ledo's right hand. "How did it...?"

"The material is magic, like my cape. It changes its shape to match the wearer."

Something about that phrase was quite peculiar. He had recalled the knight's striking resemblance to Kirby. If that's the case and the glove changes to match the wearer, would that mean Meta Knight has actual hands under his gloves, or does have stubs like Kirby and he uses additional magecraft to give that illusion? He could try to pry into it, but after what happened with his mask, he might just continue to leave that a mystery.

"I know what you're thinking, and I do not like it." The blue puff suddenly uttered.

"I'm not going to pry this time."

The knight nodded, giving a slight sigh of relief.

They should stop postponing this.

Ledo stepped into the mech's hand.

"…may the light of Nova always protect you, ensign."

"Thank you."

The hand raised the young man up to Chamber's cockpit, allowing him to enter. Shortly afterwards, the robot's gravity engine activated, floating slowly into the sky. Thankfully, the blue puff remembered to hold on to the railing, as he had begun to feel himself being pulled upwards by the change in gravity.

As he watched the mech fade into the distance, Meta Knight began to wish that what had just occurred was all a dream that he hadn't woken up from yet.

Unfortunately, he knew in his heart that wasn't the case.

Sorry for those of you expecting a detailed description of what happened during the Gourmet Race. I honestly feel that making such a thing interesting without repeating several phrases would be a bit difficult.

It looks like a lot more people have been enjoying this story, and I'm extremely grateful for that.