At the fell beast's disappearance, Pit hollered and pumped his fists. "Now that's how you take care of monkey business!"
Neither one of the Kongs gave his cheesy line much recognition. They were too busy finally enjoying their reunion, each one dancing in place while pounding at their chests. Pit smiled at their antics and turned to see if Lucina was watching. He met with a sharp glare.
"…Er… Lucina?" he faltered.
She silently sheathed Falchion, walked over to him—and struck him across the face with the flat of her hand.
The angel reeled, clutching at his stinging cheek. "W-what was that for?"
Her face grew flushed as if flustered by her action, but she didn't apologize. Rather, she demanded, "What were you thinking?"
Pit blinked, completely dumbfounded.
"Do you have any idea what I just went through?" she continued, an angry scowl growing on her expression.
"Um… n-no…?" he answered tentatively, taking a step back. He was vaguely aware of Diddy and Donkey Kong watching apprehensively in the background. "You k-kinda just… disappeared."
"Disappeared? I fell down a trap! When you took off after that… thing—"
Donkey Kong made an offended-sounding grunt.
"—the ground beneath me gave and I fell into…" She stopped, shuddering. "I don't know what—magic barrels? They blasted me through the dark until I landed in a deep cavern. I doubt I would have found my way out were it not for Diddy."
Magic Barrels? They were a real thing? If Pit wasn't so shaken by Lucina's wrath, he would have been intrigued. As it was, he felt increasingly like a child receiving a bad scolding—even though he felt sure he did anything wrong. What should he say?
"…Oh."
Unfortunately, that only incited more of her anger.
"'Oh'? Pit, this isn't some game! What if I had been injured? What if you had been? How would we have found each other again? Your rash actions could have cost us severely—perhaps with our lives!"
Pit thought of the momentary flash of panic he experienced when DK jumped from the cliff, but he quickly brushed the memory aside. He could feel his face growing warm with his own pent-up frustrations. She had been treating him like a nuisance since they started working together, despite his best attempts to be friendly, and now she was blowing up on him! What exactly was she accusing him of, anyway? He was an angel, and he was committed to helping those in need. He had done nothing wrong; if anything, it was her own fault for getting separated.
Feeling emboldened, he retaliated, "What was I supposed to do? DK was in trouble! The Heartless were after him!"
Lucina pinched the bridge of her nose, apparently trying to reign in her temper. "We're supposed to work as a team. We didn't know if…" she gave the giant ape a wary side-glance, "…he… was friend or foe."
"He's Donkey Kong! Of course he's a friend! Well, unless you're Mario—but that's beside the point!" Pit frowned back at her, remaining defensive. "He needed our help! What would you have done?"
She narrowed her eyes, scowl returning. "I would have used my head. There's a difference between bravery and stupidity."
Pit's wings flared, and he tightened his grip on his bow. "Are you calling me stupid?"
"I am saying that we should not leap into situations like that without thought."
"So what, you wanted us to just stand by while the Heartless ganged up on him?"
"No, that's not what I meant."
"What did you mean, huh? Cuz that's what it sounded like! We're supposed to help people!"
"We can't help them if we're dead!"
"Stop saying that!" he shouted hotly, surprising even himself with the outburst. Silence followed, with even Lucina looking startled, until Pit grumbled, "Everything worked out in the end, didn't it? We even found and took out the Heartless Boss! Why are you making such a big deal out of it?"
Lucina took an even breath, lowering her voice. "Because we won't be so fortunate next time."
She was right, and Pit knew it. Luck would only carry them so far—less far, with his brand of recklessness. But acknowledging that didn't help with the injustice he felt.
"You're a fine one to talk about teamwork!" he retorted. "You've been treating me like garbage since day one!"
She paused, her mouth frozen mid-word.
Continuing, he said, "You've been ignoring me, acting all annoyed and stuffy all the time, and just… treating me like I'm stupid! I'm not! I am the Captain of Lady Palutena's Army, an angel and messenger of the gods! Sure, sometimes I walk into traps. Sometimes I go for a treasure chest and it happens to be a Mimi-cutie. And sometimes, I don't brush my teeth before I go to bed. I have an illogical fear of eggplants, and I never learned how to read. I know I may not be the brightest feather in the flock, but I have it where it counts: in heart."
Lucina listened quietly, her expression once again unreadable. She glanced to the jungle floor when he finished, becoming very interested in the large tropical leaf under her boot.
In a gentler tone, Pit added, "I feel like you're not even giving me a chance."
Her silence continued only a few moments longer. At last she sighed, her shoulders sagging. "You're right."
"No, listen! You—wait, what?" Pit staggered, hardly expecting that kind of reply.
"You're right. I haven't been giving you the respect you deserve. It's just… It's difficult for me because you act so… childish. To me, that is. And you must admit that what you did today was absolutely reckless."
"I'm not a child," he asserted, feeling defensive again. He could not keep the guard up for long, however. Gods and angels could not measure age the same as mortals. Gods were timeless, while angels matured very slowly. Though he had lived longer than most humans, he was still young for an angel. Aloud, he admitted, "At least… not by your human standards."
She looked at him closely before continuing, "No, I suppose not. You are a strong and capable warrior. I've seen it for myself. Forgive me for the way I've mistreated you."
He blinked at her, at a loss for words. He hadn't expected an apology, not so quickly. The angel had pegged the princess as haughty, but the young woman before him now seemed sincerely humbled. Maybe he had mistaken her solemnity for pride. He could tell that she had a deep sense of duty, which she carried with severe, if not gloomy, determination. Palkia had called her grave, and Pit now understood why.
Scratching the back of his head, he admitted, "I… guess I had you down wrong, too. I'm sorry that I ran off like that. And made you worry. And… the barrels thing. You're right, I shouldn't have done that. I guess I'm just so used to working by myself that my own teamwork skills are a little rusty."
She nodded graciously, before letting out a bitter-sounding laugh, "Look at us. So much depends on us, and yet here we are, bickering at each other. We're comrades in arms, Pit. We need to trust each other and act with one accord, if this quest of ours is to succeed. I admit that I'm struggling with the former right now."
"You mean you don't trust me?" he frowned.
"I want to, but it's difficult for me, especially when you jump into action so flippantly. I don't have your knowledge of the outside worlds. I'm not so sure I fully understand how you have it. How, then, can you expect me to follow along without explanation? Blind?"
"I guess you have a point there. Alright, how's this?" He held out his hand. "I promise I'll try to keep you better informed, and I'll try really hard not to leap before I think. Really, really, hard."
At that, she smiled—a sight Pit felt sure he had never seen before. It stunned him almost as much as her apology.
Taking his hand, she said, "And I promise I will be more patient and considerate."
They shook on it, sealing the deal.
Grinning, the angel straightened. "Well, I don't know about you, but I feel a lot better getting all that off my chest. Hey, DK!"
He turned around, ready to apologize for the drama, and found the two Kongs watching them intently, eating from what appeared to be... a bag of peanuts.
"Wha…? Hey!" the angel shouted at them.
The Kongs quickly hid the evidence behind their backs.
"What do you think this is?" Pit gave chase. "A soap opera? Get back here with those peanuts! …I want some."
Lucina watched their goose chase with a sigh. This was just a side of Pit that she would have to learn to accept—the part that left her eternally confused. She imagined it would be some time before she got used to it, but she swore to herself that she would try to have a little more patience.
Turning her attention away from the threesome, she glanced up to the bleachers of the stadium. Above, she could see the shadowy forms of Heartless slowly slinking away, just as they had when they defeated the Boss in Pit's world. Their goals in this world seemed accomplished—except, they had failed to find anything about the Keyblade.
Admittedly, Lucina wasn't sure if there was anything to find on this world. The structures she had discovered were primitive, if not entirely abandoned. Any civilization that had lived here couldn't have been advanced enough to forge magical weapons, she thought.
Was it time to move on?
Lucina cleared her throat to catch Pit's attention. The angel stopped his pursuit to look over at her.
"Pit, I believe we have done all we can here. We should call for Palkia."
He glanced at the jungle around them, scratching the back of his head. He looked reluctant, but he conceded, "Yeah, you're probably right. There's not really much here, is there? At least we took out the Heartless Boss, though. Say, can I give the pearl a try?"
Lucina fished the orb out of her satchel and tossed it at the angel, who promptly rubbed its surface. The pearl responded immediately, glowing with a pale white light.
"Hey, Palkia! How's it—" Pit stopped short, his face twisting into a grimace. Apparently, the dragon had some choice words to say to him. "Okay, okay, sorry! Sheesh! We just beat the Boss in this world. And we met Donkey Kong! Er, no…? Hey, give me some credit! Fine, whatever. Wait, really? Right. We're ready whenever you are."
The light in the pearl faded, and Pit handed it back to Lucina. "She's going to open a portal outside of this arena-thing, so we should probably say our good-byes."
They turned to see the Kongs regarding them questioningly, their bag of peanuts mysteriously absent.
"Well, we gotta jet," Pit said to them. "Glad we could find your bananas. Er, or at least, some of them. I think most of them got eaten by that Boss."
Donkey Kong furrowed his eyebrows, as if he had just come to that realization. Diddy patted his thick arm sympathetically.
"Thank you again, Diddy, for helping me out of those caves," Lucina added, kneeling down to offer her hand. The little chimp didn't just take it—he went through a series of complicated gestures that ranged from claps to bumps to odd shaking movements. Lucina dumbly suspended her hand in midair, uncertain what to make of all it.
"No, no—you gotta do it like this, Luc," Pit interrupted. What ensued was what Lucina could only call the most bizarre dancing ritual she had ever seen for a handshake. They were slapping hands back and forth, bumping fists and wrists, even twisting around to do it behind their backs. In the end, Diddy fell on his back rolling with laughter.
When Pit turned back to her expectantly, she just blinked. "Um, right."
Donkey Kong rescued her by coming up behind the angel and ruffling his hair, seemingly over his loss.
"Thanks for the help, big guy!" Pit said, bumping knuckles with the ape's massive fist.
"Yes," Lucina added. "I'm sorry that I doubted you."
The giant ape nodded with a snort. With a beefy hand, he tugged at one of the angel's wings.
"Hey!" Pit flicked it free, before heaving a sigh. "I know, I know—I won't be flying anytime soon. Don't worry. Shall we get going, Luc?"
She hesitated, part of her still cringing at the use of the nickname. All the same, she couldn't quite bring herself to stop him; not after all they had been through. They were trying to turn over a new leaf. What could it hurt? Nodding at her comrade, she bowed to the apes. "Farewell."
Pit followed up by using his own style of leave-taking, waving, "See ya later!"
Diddy and Donkey Kong waved in return, and watched the duo headed for the arena's exit. As they walked, Lucina glanced down at her hand curiously. Curling it into a fist, she turned to Pit curiously, "What was… this?"
"Huh?" he sounded confused.
"When you and Donkey did… this." She imitated the motion, bringing her two fists together briefly.
"Oh, you mean the fist bump?"
"Fist bump?"
"Yeah—don't you do that in your world?" When she shook her head, he scratched the back of his head. "It's kinda like a high-five. You know, something you do with your buddies when you do something cool. It's like a 'GOOD JOB!' or 'ALRIGHT!' or something."
She stared at her fist a while longer before holding it out to Pit. "Alright?"
He beamed, returning the gesture. "Alright!"
Lucina frowned as she considered the odd form of hand-shaking. "That felt silly."
Pit stumbled a bit. "You're killing me, Luc."
She looked at him in alarm. "What? How?"
"No, I was just—gah, nevermind. Let's just get our rings on. The portal's just ahead."
Palkia indeed had opened a portal at the end of the tunnel, its swimming purple lights illuminating their way. Lucina and Pit summoned their armor and walked into it, the former fighting against sudden nausea until they finally stepped out into… a square room adorned like a common area. Lucina stopped in her tracks, staring in amazement. Opposite of them, a fire crackled invitingly in a simple hearth, warming a pair of tall-backed red armchairs. A long table filled up the space off to the left, with papers scattered across its surface. The stone walls around it sported mostly vacant bookshelves.
To their right stood an impatient pink dragon.
Took your sweet time, didn'cha? she glowered at them. She was human-sized this time around, apparently to fit in the humble quarters.
"What's all this?" Pit asked, too distracted by their new surroundings to acknowledge her agitation.
The dragon lightened up for a brief moment, almost appearing giddy. Do you like it? I made you two your own personal pocket of space.
"Made a what-now?"
Eh, it's complicated. Just think of it as a kind of portable rest area. Basically, it'll be easier for me to send you back here between world-jumping then all the way back to Skyworld. I got most of your basic necessities here. Beds, food, books, a hot spring—
"A hot spring?!" The excitable angel perked up, eyes glinting.
Hold your Ponyta, kid. We gotta talk first. Go ahead and take off your rings. Did you find anything on DK Island?
Pit glanced over at Lucina pleadingly, and the young woman shook her head. "I could not find anything on the Keyblade in the ruins I explored."
You explored? Palkia arched a brow. As in, by yourself?
Lucina winced. "We were… momentarily separated."
The dragon snorted, rolling her eyes. Great. Your first day on the job and you went and got separated. Fantastic start to this crazy adventure, I gotta say.
"Hey, we found each other again!" Pit shot back.
Nah, really? I wouldn't have guessed. So what did you find on your end, chicken-wings?
Pit grumbled a moment longer before answering, his expression shifting rapidly. "Actually, I wanted to ask you something. When I was helping Donkey Kong fight off some of the Heartless, this tiki-lookin' creature came out and started ordering the Heartless around. I'm pretty sure it wasn't a Heartless, but… Is it possible for a Boss to be something other than a Heartless?"
Well, sure—the Heartless are a mindless lot, and they can easily be manipulated by anyone or anything that has power over darkness. The dragon frowned, scratching her chin thoughtfully. Though that does bring up some concerns…
"A-anyone? You mean, like, people? Humans?"
Palkia nodded gravely. Though the Heartless are a fickle lot; if their masters show even the briefest moment of weakness, they'll turn on them.
Lucina frowned. She hadn't seen the Tiki in action, though she believed Pit's report. She could see how controlling the Heartless could grant someone considerable power, but at what price… Their enemies sounded fouler with every new revelation they received.
Pit's eyes grew wide. "So wait, what about villains like Bowser? Or Ganandorf? Could they…?"
That's exactly what I'm afraid of, said Palkia. Our worlds have their own brands of darkness, and the Heartless are only going to make things worse. I wish we had more time, but we don't. We need to hurry before everything goes to crap. Speaking of things going to crap, I got another world for you two to check out.
The legendary Pokémon wandered over to the table, waving her claws over its surface. A transparent sphere of light flickered into life just above it. Lucina blinked, picking out some familiar shapes in the light—some trees and a lake. Was she looking at a world?
I'll be taking you back to that first world I mentioned, but first you'll be taking a slight detour to this one, since it's on the way.
"Why the detour?" Pit asked.
Because I'm still hoping to find a lead on the Keyblade before throwing you into the thick of things. It'd be better for me and for you if we could eliminate the Heartless in certain worlds for good. Not to mention that you'd last longer. Now, this world—it's a quiet place. Not too much going on, but there's… ruins, of a sort. More modern than what you found at DK Island.
The angel leaned closer to the sphere. "What world is it?"
Palkia smirked. It probably had a name once, but there's nobody around who remembers it. I'll let you figure it out on your own. You guys should take a brief moment to rest up. But make it snappy! One quick dip in the hot spring, then we're out of here, capiche? Oh, one more thing—if you would direct your attention yonder…
The dragon pointed, indicating a small fountain that was bubbling in the corner of the room. The water spouts somehow suspended a large golden dish at its crown, and in the air above it glowed the symbol of a bow and arrow.
A little something Palutena had me install, Palkia explained. Go up to it.
Curious, Pit approached the fountain while Lucina stayed where she was. When he was just a few feet away, the symbol suddenly flashed and transformed into an image of a familiar goddess.
"Hello, Pit!" the image beamed.
Pit brightened immediately. "Lady Palutena! You're here!"
"Kind of," the goddess corrected. "This is just a projection. I can't leave Skyworld, but Palkia found a way for us to communicate and exchange weapons." She gestured to the fountain below her. "Though I added a few touches…"
Arceus, it took her hours, Palkia complained, rolling her eyes. She fussed over every last detail.
"Anyway, if you ever need to talk to me I'll be right here. Speaking of which, I finished crafting you a new weapon—as well as a new weapon for Lucina. Palkia told me about what happened in the Lanes Between, so I repurposed one of your old Insight Staffs for her. I'm beaming it over right now."
Light sparked inside of the golden dish, which dipped downward as the light took shape and form. Pit reached for the item after it solidified, and withdrew a sharply pointed weapon emblazoned with wings. The butt end curved inward away from the wrist, just below a sharp hook that jutted outward towards the tip. Lucina stared at it curiously, wondering how it was meant to be held. Certainly, it was nothing like the staffs she was familiar with—or lances, for that matter. What would Aunt Lissa look like waving one of those around?
Pit turned to Lucina, though a frown tugged at the corner of his mouth. "Will she be able to use these? She is a human."
"Yes, but she has divine blood in her," Palutena said. "I think she should be fine. Now, for your weapon, Pit."
Light crackled in the dish once more. Pit passed the staff on to Lucina before turning and retrieving a second weapon. Lucina wasn't sure how describe it; similar to the Insight Staff, the handle was bent at an odd angle. Meanwhile, the rest of it was shaped like a club tipped on the wrong side. The fatter end pointed towards the hilt, leaving the narrow-but-blunt end to do the business. Overall, it seemed very unconventional for a weapon. The horn-like projection rising from where the "club" met the hilt certainly looked like it could do more damage than the actual point.
Pit turned it over in his hands, admiring the curious workmanship. He fiddled with the golden ring that pierced the weapon near the tip. "A blade, huh? It kinda looks like a bull's head."
Lucina narrowed her eyes and tilted her head. The weapon did resemble a bull's head, with the horn and the ring—but a blade? "Beg pardon, but did you say… blade?"
The angel smirked. Taking the weapon by the hilt, he flicked it to the side. Immediately, light sparked along its edge, solidifying into an ethereal plane Lucina could deign to call a blade. She stepped back, blinking in wonder.
"Our blades are a little… different from yours," Palutena explained, smiling apologetically. "We make them for close combat and ranged attacking—so it's capable of firing projectiles. I felt inspired by your battle in Skyworld to make this one: I'm calling it, the Minotaur Blade. Not as good as Dyntos-make, but it should do."
"Minotaur Blade, huh?" Pit swiped at the air with the new weapon, testing it out. "Not bad!"
"I think you'll find that it excels at melee fighting, but charged shots will take a while to build. When they do, however, they'll pack quite the punch!"
Pit nodded appraisingly, turning to his goddess with a boyish grin. "Thank you, Lady Palutena. I can't wait to try it out!"
She grinned back, tilting her head to the side. "It's nothing. I just wish I could do more." Sobering, she continued, "Palkia told me you don't have much time, so I won't keep you much longer. But I expect to hear all about your adventures when you come back, alright?"
"You bet!" the angel practically jumped in place, while Lucina offered a nod.
"Go ahead and keep the Kingdom Bow with you, in case you want to use it again. Good luck out there! Hope to hear from you soon! Palutena out! …I've always wanted to say that."
With that, the projection faded, and Palutena disappeared from sight. For a brief moment Pit appeared crestfallen, but Palkia didn't give him the chance to linger.
Alright, the dragon started pushing them towards a doorway in the corner. To the hot springs with you. Now.
Lucina immediately dug her heels into the floor. "W-wait, t-together?"
Palkia snorted and pushed harder. For all her strength, Lucina couldn't stop the pink dragon from shoving her into the dark corridor ahead. Yes, together. We don't have much time to waste. I want to get through this next world ASAP.
The end of the corridor was lit up with a dim golden glow, and when Palkia finally dumped them inside the hot spring chamber, Lucina found that the light came from beneath the pool of steaming water.
Alright, in you go. You got thirty seconds.
"Only thirty?" Pit sounded rather disappointed. Lucina stared at both of them as if they were mad.
"Y-you're not going to let us change, first?"
How many times do I have to say this? We don't have time for that! A growl rumbled in the dragon's chest, a sharp contrast to the drawling voice lashing at their minds. It's a magic freakin' healing pool. Get in, or else I'll throw you in.
"It's fine, Luc!" Pit tried to reassure her. "I do it all the time. Plus, it's like doing your laundry for free!"
Palkia rolled her eyes. Palutena wasn't kidding. You really are cheap, aren't you?
"The angel code of conduct says—"
Shut up and get in the pool.
Pit didn't need to be told twice. Flinching away from the dragon's upraised arm, he jumped right into the water and melted into it with a sigh of pleasure.
You too, princess, Palkia turned to Lucina.
Lucina stared into the water dubiously. Palkia and Pit had said that the waters were magical, and she did admit that she felt remarkably refreshed after bathing in the one in Skyworld—but that wasn't what bothered her. For starters, she did not want to get her battle attire wet. Besides that, everything else about this situation seemed… inappropriate.
"F-forgive me, but I think I will—"
Nope.
Before she could react, Palkia whipped her thick tail around and struck Lucina across the back, knocking her into the golden pool. Though the strike stung, the pain was quickly ebbed away by the water's pleasant embrace. It only came up to her stomach, but it was enough to work its healing magic. Soon, Lucina felt all her aches and pains slip away, even as she remained standing awkwardly where she clumsily landed.
After a moment, Palkia nodded. Alright, that should do it. Get out.
Face red as a cherry, Lucina glared at the dragon before shuffling to the spa's exit ramp as quickly as possible. Pit, however, lingered in the water, floating on his back.
"Aw, can't I get thirty more seconds?"
Get out, angel, or else I'm coming in after you.
Lucina gritted her teeth, glancing at the puddle collecting beneath her boots. "You expect us to leap into battle like this?" She gestured to the soaked half of her uniform.
Palkia waved her hand dismissively, and suddenly, Lucina's clothes didn't weigh down on her frame. Glancing down, she realized that they were completely dry.
"Whoa," Pit clung to the edge of the pool. "How did you do that?"
Dragon/Water type, remember? I got power over water… for some reason. Now get out, or I'll demonstrate my power over space.
Grumbling a string of complaints, Pit crawled out over the edge of the pool, and waited for Palkia to instantly dry his chiton. Lucina watched closely this time, trying to understand what the dragon did. Yet all Palkia did was wave her hand, and the water was just… gone. The princess didn't know whether to be frustrated or awed.
Get your rings on, Palkia motioned for them to follow. We're jetting, pronto.
Before they reached the main room, Palkia tore a hole in the dimensions in the hallway. Pit shot a look at Lucina, but she kept her gaze forward, still feeling hot with embarrassment. Later, she would have to have a word with a dragon—a very strong word with her. For now, she obediently slipped her ring on and awaited the next instruction.
Grab my claws, Palkia commanded, and they obeyed, taking one each. The dragon then surged forward, dragging them both into the void.
A/N: It's been too long, guys, and I apologize. The reason: I ended up rewriting this chapter several times. Even though I have the story all plotted out, I decided to switch around the order of worlds for the sake of developing the companionship between Lucina and Pit. Because honestly, they still need to work a few things out.
I now have a tumblr! look up charmanders-wear-fedoras for news on future updates as well as previews for other stories I'm working on. Thanks for your patience!