Thanks for the reviews so far! This hasn't been the easiest story to write but I have and will persevere! Because we need more Kirby stories, yo. :D


Wings Of Change: Part 3

It had been a full day before Kirby came round fully which, as Meta Knight said, was probably for the best. He felt stiff, aching, exhausted and most of all, hungry and thirsty. His back was also still throbbing although this had now finally resided to a dull twinge. He gazed about the room and saw his mentor seemingly resting, his eyes dull yellow, still occupying the chair before Kirby. The others must have returned to their own beds at some point. He gingerly turned to look at himself. What he saw and felt was a cape.

This is so weird, Kirby thought. This felt completely different to a copy transformation. For one, this was permanent. It's just like Meta's. And this… it's not even clothing really, it's a part of me. He suddenly wondered if there was a mirror about; he wanted to see himself fully.

He delicately lifted himself upright, wincing even with the slight movement. Oh, Nova, why did it have to hurt so much? He felt quite glad that he had eventually fainted. I'll never complain about being set on fire by monsters again. With painstaking movements, he eased himself off the bed and slowly walked one step at a time to the full-length mirror that hung from the back wall, used by Meta Knight when making sure he was especially formal for a special occasion.

Whoa. Kirby turned around and saw how his cape was seamlessly attached to him. A white collar jutted out from the top of the cape giving it that extra flair. Not too bad. At least I'll always be dressed well. Wow... He then pulled his cape around his body in the same manner as Meta Knight did most of the time. This is how I look mysterious, my friends, he thought in an imitation of Meta Knight's voice. Do not touch the cape for the sake of your lives. Or the mask or you will perish. Now, I will stand on this high ledge like I always do and look impossibly cool with my cape wrapped round me at all times. Did I mention that I look mysterious and cool? He gave an amused grin. Meta Knight really did have a bad habit of trying to get the advantage of height over others no matter how much he denied it.

He looked at himself this way and that, still surprised. I wonder if Meta felt like this? At least Meta Knight had been of a more acceptable age when his transformation occurred. I suppose it wasn't quite as big a shock. His amazement faded a little and became mixed with a little anxiety. This wasn't supposed to happen for years though. It was so unexpected. Then again, everything that Kirby did he had done earlier than usual. That won't mean anything bad will it? People won't think I'm weird will I? But then they probably won't see my wings. Unless I have to fight something in town I suppose.

He then also realised that he would not be able to float freely anymore. I liked doing that. I probably didn't even do it as much as I could have done. One of his greatest pleasures was floating to the castle roof and watching the sunset on a warm day and sometimes staying up there to view the stars. He had always felt a great connection to the stars. Technically, he could have used his Warp Star to achieve the same thing but it felt a little... demeaning somehow to use his brilliant Warp Star, an item that had saved his life so many times, for such a mundane purpose when he used it to great skill in his many battles. I guess I can fly up there when I know how to use my wings. It should be OK. I guess this whole thing still seems a bit strange to me. I'll get used to it. It'll be cool. OK, let's look at the wings.

Erm, how do I reveal my wings?

"Admiring yourself, are you?"

Alarmed, Kirby spun around and grimaced at the quick movement. Meta Knight strode over to him and placed a hand on his student's forehead, checking his condition. His temperature was normal again.

"That was one of the first things I wanted to do when I received my wings. I think we are all like that to begin with. What pride we take in ourselves, hmm?" He removed his mask, an action he very rarely performed outside of retiring to bed, and they stood side by side in front of the mirror. Meta Knight only ever revealed his true face in front of Kirby, another sign of the trust he shared with his student. "Similar aren't we?"

Kirby smiled at the image. "Yeah."

If anyone could see them now, they would have sworn they were father and son. Their faces resembled each other's greatly though where Kirby's eyes were deep blue, Meta Knight's, without his mask, were misty white and glowed faintly. Both had pink cheeks although Kirby's were far more pronounced. Also, Kirby did not have long arms like Meta Knight although whether that was an age or genetic issue he wasn't entirely sure. In front of the mirror, their capes had the same cut and gold trimming though they differed in length and colour. Kirby's cape was shaded dark pink, almost bordering on red, and revealed remarkable traces of an intricate, criss-cross leaf pattern. Meta Knight's wings then slowly emerged to their full size.

"Just imagine your cape changing into wing form and it will happen," he instructed. "It will become natural soon enough."

Kirby followed Meta Knight's directions and was rewarded in seeing his wings gently unfurl with a quiet swish. He was unable to raise them up as high as Meta Knight at the moment and he was advised not to try. But still, he could see more or less what they looked like and to his pleasure, saw the elaborate pattern etched upon their backs whilst Meta Knight's was more or less plain, although his own did lack Meta Knight's hooks.

"Wow," he breathed. "They look great. I really like them." He wasn't what you would call vain but right now, he could happily look at his wings all day. "The pattern kinda reminds me of a butterfly."

"You and your butterflies," said Meta Knight fondly, knowing Kirby's odd fascination with the creatures. "Mind you, some of our species have been known to have butterfly-shaped wings. Others have feather wings instead which can be helpful when dealing with off-planet inhabitants; they tend to be looked on more kindly."

"People won't mind around here, would they?" Kirby said, troubled.

"I shouldn't think so though I'm sure they'll ask why you've suddenly started wearing a cape. But I would like you to get used to your wings first before you show them off to everyone, if you so wish to. Your wings are still very much delicate at this stage and you don't want to injure them, especially considering what you went through."

Kirby suddenly felt humiliated that his friends had witnessed that and blushed a little. "Uhh, how long was I out for?"

"Nearly a full day. You woke up briefly a couple of times, especially when the cape was beginning to form, and then you fainted again when it became too much. Don't concern yourself too much with it," he comforted his student, seeing how self-conscious he looked. "You could hardly have reacted any other way. Besides, you've been through worse things."

Maybe, but the young Star Warrior couldn't help but feel mortified that his friends had seen him as vulnerable as that. "I guess so. So when will I get to fly, Meta Knight?" Kirby asked as his mentor retracted his wings and recovered his mask.

"We'll give it a week at a minimum so we know that you're fully healed by that point," he replied. "Then I'll teach you as much as possible. But for now, I think our more pressing concern is breakfast don't you?"

"Yeah!" Kirby eagerly agreed. "I'm absolutely starving!"

His mentor's eyes flashed with amusement. "What a surprise. But then, you have been through quite the ordeal."

Reminding Kirby not to rush in regards to his current condition, both left the quarters with Kirby's cape fluttering freely while Meta Knight had his wrapped around him as usual. He had to remind himself not to open his wings again considering that they ached even with the short amount of time they were opened for. While most of Kirby's mind was preoccupied with food, he thought of something important.

"Meta, if I show my wings to everyone else, won't they realise that you have wings as well?"

"Perhaps they will," his mentor acknowledged, "though if it comes to that, I should not mind too much nowadays. It ought to be better than the last time I showed my wings."

"Why? What happened?"

"We had a reconnaissance mission on Rock Star as part of an on-going investigation into the influence of Nightmare Enterprises amongst the high class and what demonbeasts he had managed to send there. Sir Arthur, a few other Star Warriors and myself were taking part in a conference in the northern deserts about the extent of the demonbeast problem which many flatly denied, especially the Gabon chief. As we were obviously a threat to some of the nobles and their livelihoods there, they attempted to assassinate us and a number of Shotzos suddenly emerged. We were being blasted and as a small Gabon troop entered the building, I felt I had no choice but to take to the air and free myself from the tumult lest I should have no room to fight.

"Some believed I was a demonbeast agent because I looked demon-like and that our presence was only a trick to somehow usher in more demonbeasts which were at that point causing problems in the provincial towns. A cannonball also struck me and if not for the intervention of the Kacti delegate, we would have been arrested for apparent deception if not outright stabbed by the Gabon. Of course, it did not help that a few of our Star Warriors had weapons on them when we ought to have left them by the door to show our good intentions. Yes, they were wary about the people we were dealing with but not relinquishing our weapons only made matters worse. We were forced to take refuge in the resident Kabu and I was then reprimanded for not having revealed them sooner to my team."

"But that isn't fair," Kirby objected. "They're only wings. What's so bad about them?"

"Ah, Kirby, there is more to it than that," his mentor sighed. Kirby could hear the sorrow in his voice. "Our species has, for many centuries, been a source of fear for other races. I suppose I cannot blame them: we have a vast array of powers that some can only dream of, we can fly, we live for a very long time, we have voracious appetites that can take years to control, and we possess a pocket universe in our stomachs. How many creatures have that? We have been seen as too proud because of our skills even though most do not develop the full possible range. We are, in simple terms, seen by many as being unnatural."

"But we can't help that," the teen protested. "It just… is. We didn't ask for it."

"I agree, but that doesn't stop some people from thinking otherwise. Of course, that doesn't mean our species has not had its faults. Our species have historically looked down on other races as being inferior because they do not have our range of powers. We have at times abused said powers. That is not to say that every individual thinks the same way, of course. But overall, I doubt any race or species is completely innocent of this.

"Prejudice is prevalent not only through this galaxy, Kirby, but likely throughout the whole universe because we fear or despise that which is different from us. Unless we all experience a supremely powerful collective source of enlightenment, that isn't going to change any time soon."

"So…" said Kirby slowly, trying to understand, "that's why you've always kept your wings hidden? Because you feared the same kind of reaction?"

"More or less," Meta Knight confirmed. "But in Dream Land, it may not be so bad. I think people here are not so much malicious as misguided most of the time. Hopefully you'll be fine, my friend."

Kirby deliberated over his mentor's words.

"Yeah," he said. "I mean, Tiff and Tuff thought our wings looked cool. If you showed them in town, people shouldn't be too fussed. Surprised, I guess, but not really fussed. They know us after all. It's only Dedede who'd kick up a fuss but he keeps trying to provoke me anyway. I wish he wouldn't keep doing that though," he sighed. "It's kinda annoying and to be honest, I'm sick of it."

Call him over-cautious, call him too suspecting, he wanted to believe they were enlightened but an element of him could not prescribe to this. He just did not want Kirby to experience the same reaction as he had. "Mmm. I hope you are right. I might be thinking the worst of people. But for the present being," said Meta Knight, aware that they had been loitering in the hallway for quite some time, "I thought you were hungry?"

As if on cue, Kirby's stomach rumbled loudly. "Yeah," he mumbled with embarrassment. Funny, he never used to let the sound bother him before. He didn't seem to feel as easy-going as he used to be. "Let's get something already."

As they made their way towards the kitchens, Kirby wished, not for the first time, that he could be more like his mentor who seemed to know everything that he needed to know. He really did feel inadequate at times when compared with Meta Knight, the ever-enduring and wise Star Warrior, even though Meta Knight had assured him before of his worth and potential.

One day, he hoped that he could be just as good as his idol. But for now, at least, he could learn to soar through the sky alongside his mentor with his freshly-grown wings, climbing higher and maturing ever more.


Over two weeks had passed and Kirby was eager to learn how to fly, hoping that it wouldn't be too difficult to pick up. He knew that Meta Knight had already picked out a suitable location for them away from prying eyes. Kirby was rather glad of this; he didn't think he'd perform well if he had people watching and critiquing his skill. Not that they knew about his wings but still. Anyhow, this also meant he would be out of Dedede's way.

When Kirby had been wandering the castle a couple of days ago, he had nearly bumped into King Dedede who had been up to, well, whatever he had been up to. The penguin-like monarch critically eyed him over.

"See you still have the audacity to hang round my castle, huh?"

"There's no law against it," Kirby retorted, getting the usual greeting ritual out of the way.

"Pretty sure I made one 'cos I'm the king round here; you jus' keep on ignorin' it an' my royal status, boy. Hey, what's with that fancy cape anyhow? Never seen you wear that before."

"Uhh," Kirby hesitated. "It's a Star Warrior thing; you know, the people who keep the galaxy safe from marauding demonbeasts who try to either destroy everything in sight, kill you in brutal ways or—"

"Alright! Alright! I get it!"

"—Or possess you and use you as a puppet," Kirby finished. King Dedede had an odd and unfortunate habit of being possessed by the monster of the week. Also, despite it being a long time ago, Kirby had never quite forgiven King Dedede for unleashing the infamous Demon Frog that had temporarily possessed him.

"I liked you better when you were so dumb you couldn't speak," Dedede grumbled.

"I liked you better when you were so dumb you still kept ordering monsters that cost you a fortune and were liable to kill you. Oh, wait, don't you still do that?"

"Nightmare Enterprises don't exist anymore so I can hardly buy stuff off them," Dedede said dismissively. True enough, the monster delivery system had been deactivated for years. But while the king may have turned over a new leaf and was friendlier to Kirby nowadays, he couldn't rule out the king buying monsters from a new source, some new dark matter. He was small-minded and greedy like that. All these monsters were not simply appearing from the blue. "Now I don't see why you're startin' to wear that cape all of a sudden. You tryin' to upstage my magnificence?"

"Magnificence?" Kirby sniggered.

"Or are you tryin' to intimidate that there Meta Knight?"

"Imitate not intimidate."

"Aha! So you are tryin' to imitate Meta Knight! You think he's cool or somethin'? Or since there ain't anyone else like you in Dream Land an' you ain't got no family, you gotta act like that cold knight of mine? You tryin' to make him your daddy or somethin'?" The thought amused the king very much. "You're a daddy's boy ain'tcha?"

Kirby flinched; this type of conversation stung him very much. It reminded him that his origins were an unsolvable mystery to him and on Popstar, the only other member of his species was the old Star Warrior. Sometimes Dedede didn't realise how cutting this was for Kirby. Or maybe he did and didn't really care. "Meta Knight isn't cold," he blurted. "He's not like that at all. And he's my mentor, not… my father." But I wish he was.

"You are a daddy's boy!" Dedede chuckled. "You can't deny it! But I guess that don't make no difference to me since you ain't leavin' any time soon. It would be pretty borin' around here if ya did. Anyway, that there cape sure looks fine an' dandy. I wanna try it!"

"Forget it. It isn't coming off." Quite literally.

"Aw, come on!"

"Get your own!"

Kirby leapt to one side with ease as Dedede lunged forwards, cape buffeting the air. He was afraid that Dedede would somehow activate his wings if he did manage to grab him, not to mention that it would probably hurt.

"Huh? I'm sure I saw somethin'…" Dedede mumbled, staring at Kirby. The latter hid his nervousness. He hoped that he hadn't accidentally changed forms in that split-second or Dedede would probably want to try stealing his wings next. And then call him a freak. Not for the first time either.

"What? You're seeing things," Kirby bluffed. "Anyway, I've got a job to do; some of us are kinda busy you know. See you later, Triple D."

Truth was, Kirby had been hanging around the castle more lately rather than going into town as he was finding the sudden attention a little overwhelming. Earlier in his life, he wouldn't have cared about that at all; he might not have realised the attention he was receiving in the first place. But at the moment, he just felt awkward and somewhat out of place, completely different to anyone else in his home town even though he had been living there for years now. He felt that he wanted to be left alone for a while and not be bombarded with questions, queries and requests. He also reckoned that they were prying into his business and that they never really understood him.

In other words, he was being a typical teenager.

He also felt that his status as a Star Warrior was often taken advantage of and that people were so used to his exploits they no longer really appreciated that when Kirby was fighting monsters, he was, you know, risking life and limb, and being severely hurt and battered when the going got tough and the tough really got going. That was important too.

"My, what an astonishing cape!" Mayor Len professed when Kirby had first ventured into town after his change to pick up some items from Tuggle's. "Wherever did you get it from?" And soon enough, because whatever Kirby did rarely passed the citizens' attentions, being the most interesting individual in town, everyone was suddenly around him.

"Uhh, Sir Meta Knight gave it me," he lied sheepishly. "He said I was ready for it and—YOW!"

"Now, now," Len reprimanded one of his great grand-children who had just yanked at Kirby's cape for the fun of it, almost pulling him to the ground. Kirby's back was still sore at this point and the tug was hard. "You know that's not a very nice thing to do. Say sorry."

"Sowwy."

"That's better. Hmm, how is that cape being held up anyway? I can't see it pinned or being attached to something else."

"Uhh…"

"I wanna twy it!" another one of his great grand-children cried out.

"Well, if it was anybody else, I'd say it would be too big for you but you're actually a little bit taller than Kirby now!" Len laughed. "Still a cute, small thing, eh?" Kirby gave a half-hearted smile; the blasé discussion of his lack of height had been starting to annoy him in recent times. "Why don't you let the child wear it for a while?"

Now Kirby was feeling nervous. "Uh, I can't really take it off," he said, wishing he had a better excuse. Mayor Len gave a hearty chuckle.

"Hohoho! You mean that Meta Knight has told you to wear it at all times? I'm sure he won't mind if you take it off for a little while. You must be feeling rather warm with it on now anyway." Indeed, the hot sun was shining overhead being another pleasant summer's day. "Don't be mean."

"I'm not. What I mean is…" Kirby began as he fumbled for a reason.

It was probably fortunate in a way for Kirby to be interrupted by more people coming over, finding this latest development very interesting, especially as fuel for gossip. If Cappy Town traded in anything apart from watermelons and sheep's wool, it was gossip.

"Hey, Kirby, that looks neat," Kawasaki complemented him, having left his restaurant for a quick break. "Do you think you'll bring in even more customers to my restaurant if you advertise it by looking sophisticated? It would help its image!"

"Oh, I wish I had some material like that in my shop," Mabel opined, "it looks very mystical. May I ask where was it purchased from?"

"Oh, Mabel, if I could find it, I'd purchase some for you!" Samo promised.

"Ooh! Could I borrow your cape afterwards?" Buttercup asked. "The grandkids wanted a fantasy-looking design for a project they're doing and I think this would be perfect! I promise I won't cut into it or anything."

The idea made Kirby cringe. While having his wings in cape form meant they wouldn't suffer pain the same even if they did got torn or whatever, Kirby wasn't taking any chances while he was still getting used to them.

"I wanna twy it!" the small child whined above the general conversation the adults were now having as they became side-tracked by matters such as cape designs and so forth; a common trait of Cappy Town.

"Kirby, just let the kid borrow it a for a while."

"Oh, yes, Kirby," Curio called out. "I've got a little job for you. If you could just—"

"I'm in a hurry!" Kirby shouted as he quickly took his leave. "I can't keep Sir Meta Knight waiting! I'll come back later!" He then dashed to Tuggle's to pick up the required items before taking the long route back to Dedede's castle, making sure to avoid everyone else on the way.

Throughout the week, Kirby was pestered to undertake some more requests, people apparently equating the cape with even more responsibility. Kirby managed to do things far more easily than they did so why not come to him for aid?

"I'm sorry," he apologised one time. How did they keep finding more things for him to do? "But I really can't. I'm busy."

He cringed as Gengu's face fell. "But Kirby," he pleaded, "it'll only be a couple of hours while I sort out my deliveries and accounts. If I don't get them toys in, there's gonna be a lot of sad kids and you don't want to make the kids sad."

Kirby relented. Restocking shelves and watching the shop probably wouldn't be too much of a pain. He might even be able to get some shuteye in that time which, considering how tired he was still feeling after his ordeal, would be more than welcome indeed. "Fine. I'll be there as soon as I can."

"That's great," Gengu said in relief. "I promise it will only be about two hours." It was actually three.

The teen couldn't find it in his heart to say no to most things even though he was supposed to be resting and recovering; it was becoming a serious problem. He was pretty sure Meta Knight wouldn't let that happen to himself. He ended up crashing into his bed each night completely wiped out.

He decided afterwards to remain in Meta Knight's quarters, revising the basics of astro-mechanics, an important subject for constructing and maintaining starships, and otherwise took it easy in order to allow his wings to heal as fast as possible. At least here he could let his fine wings stretch out in private and in peace.

Meta Knight had not commented on his more frequent presence at the castle and only advised Kirby to properly rest himself. He decided to delay the introductory session for a little while longer.

Now came the day for his first flight.

Feeling excited but mainly nervous, he met up with his mentor at a hidden spot deep inside Whispy Woods and felt strangely paranoid that he was being watched. Meta Knight had suggested that it would be best if their first flying session involved just the two of them, not even Tiff and Tuff. The delay meant they had missed out in any case since they had their own work to do and were away again. It was a shame really, especially as Kirby would have benefitted well from their support. They had always supported him no matter what.

"Are you feeling alright, Kirby?" Meta Knight queried as soon as the pink puffball had arrived.

"Huh? Uh, yeah," he said lamely, the question having caught him off-guard.

Meta Knight was sure there was more to it than that but he didn't press the issue. He instead unfurled his wings to their full glory.

"Very well. Let us begin."