A/N: Extensive chapter... but happy :3
Chapter 100: After a Journey
About forty hours had passed in what Diddy and Dixie had been traveling, which seemed to them as if they had been sailing for a week. It was the second consecutive hours of the morning they saw, which made them wonder if they would see another day pass.
Dixie was sleeping in one of the cabins, not so far from the door; she had finished her turn to be watching the compass half an hour ago. Meanwhile, Diddy was right next to the helm... although he dozed at every moment too; the hours of taking turns sleeping had not been the best for both of them.
At one point, Diddy was dozing off over the map and compass, even if he struggled not to succumb to sleep. When suddenly... a sudden and thunderous wobbling jolted him awake and instantly heightened his senses. Those thunderous noises continued to be felt after a few seconds, which put Diddy on high alert.
Diddy immediately went to peer over the railing to see what was happening, as those noises seemed to be coming from the bottom of the ship. Suddenly, he noticed that there were some small rocks that appeared and then were covered by the sea, and the ship was crossing them.
He returned almost instantly to the helm to get out of that rocky area, but when he turned the helm... it seemed to have jammed, perhaps because of the rocks themselves. Diddy exerted much more force to try to turn the helm, even though he didn't have enough. Suddenly, the helm turned again, but as he was exerting force, Diddy accidentally turned it abruptly, causing the ship to turn sharply to the point of making him slip.
"Oh, no, no, no!" Diddy exclaimed again, almost throwing himself at the helm to regain control.
"What's going on?!" Dixie appeared leaving the cabin and heading to Diddy.
"There are some rocks underneath that are crashing the ship-"
Suddenly, another crash was felt, even causing Dixie to stumble down the steps. Then, she reached Diddy, who was still trying to force the helm when it got stuck again.
"I'll help you!" Dixie exclaimed, taking the helm along with Diddy, and between the two of them they tried to reactivate it.
But unfortunately, the helm abruptly got unstuck again, causing the ship to sway more forcefully and almost giving it a sideways tilt, as if it wanted to capsize. Diddy and Dixie immediately got up to continue trying to regain control of the ship.
"No! We're losing our way!" Dixie exclaimed, pointing to the compass.
Diddy also noticed that the compass seemed to indicate that they were going in the opposite direction, which was causing them to panic.
"We have to regain it! Let's go!" Diddy exclaimed again.
Diddy tried to turn, but this time... the helm felt too light, as if it no longer had validity. Both entered into greater desperation as they tried to handle the helm, but the ship no longer responded to them and just drifted.
"Oh, no, no, please!" Diddy exclaimed, turning the helm in vain, which turned like a simple ornamental wheel.
"We have to find a way to fix-"
Suddenly, both were almost thrown off the deck when a more abrupt wobble than the previous ones was felt throughout the ship... It was as if it had crashed, since it even splashed water.
"Now what?!" Dixie exclaimed, getting up hurriedly.
Diddy and Dixie were going to head towards the bow... but not before feeling as if the ship was losing height and tilting backwards.
"Geez! Let's get the emergency boat! Come on!" Diddy exclaimed desperately. "And let's grab what we need!"
The ship kept tilting and now creaking, which didn't mean anything good. So, Dixie rushed to grab a few things as fast as her limbs could give her, while Diddy went to find a way to get the emergency boat out, before Dixie ran to help him.
Later, they managed to launch the boat, throwing objects onto it, and then throwing themselves into the sea to swim to the boat. Upon boarding, they shook off the water and took the items to arrange them; they had boarded some fruit, Mr. Pinky's box, the compass, and the map, which had been slightly torn because they had ripped it out.
"It's all fine!" Diddy exclaimed, finishing checking the items and testing the compass.
Then, while still catching their breath, they turned to look at the ship, which had now become still... but it was also damaged and leaning against some rocks, after crashing into a large one. They both stood there gaping at the ship, seeing that from one moment to the next it had become unusable. Afterwards, they looked at each other with the same expression, not knowing what to do next.
"And... now?" Dixie asked, still unable to recover from the state of shock.
"Uhh... At least we're okay, right?" Diddy said with a forced smile as he looked back at the ship.
"Urgh! Misfortune pursues us!" Dixie exclaimed, banging on the boat's side. "Why?!"
"No, this can't be happening!" Diddy added, recovering his senses in the same way. "And now how do we go?!... Ugh, why didn't I notice those rocks?"
"And now what do we do?" Dixie wondered, looking in frustration at Diddy. "Why did our ship break down?"
"We have to see where we're now!" Diddy exclaimed, looking up at the compass and trying to position it back in the direction they were before. Then, he looked up in that direction. "It seems that it's over there; we're-"
Suddenly, Diddy was paralyzed for a few seconds, at the same time he had a sudden feeling inside. He hadn't noticed what was in sight and it was as if he was just really reacting.
"What if we stay to see if we can do something for the ship?" Dixie said on the other hand. "We can-"
"Hey, hey, Dixie! L-look! Look at that!" Diddy interrupted, taking her arm and pointing in a direction in the distance.
Dixie gave him a look of strangeness at seeing Diddy with a sudden excitement. She proceeded to look where he was pointing and, instantly... she also adopted a gaping expression and a huge smile was drawn on her face after seeing what was in the distance... An island that from afar was seen with a sculptural form of nobody else and nobody less than... Donkey Kong... It was the very... DK Island.
"Is it... I-I can't believe it," Dixie exclaimed, still looking at Diddy with a broad smile.
"DK Island!" Diddy exclaimed, jumping with excitement. "It's DK Island!"
"DK Island!" Dixie exclaimed louder and with more excitement.
"It's that! That's it! It's DK Island!" Diddy added while pointing at it.
"We found it!" Dixie added, jumping with excitement.
Both, with all the emotion alive, embraced each other with such joy, that they even forgot from one moment to another that the ship had broken down. The two looked at each other without being able to contain so much excitement, that they even felt that they'd explode with happiness as soon as they reached their expected destination.
"We've done it, Dix!" Diddy exclaimed, holding her shoulders with excitement. "We're home!"
Dixie threw herself into hugging him still with the same emotion for a few seconds; both had never felt so excited in this way during their entire journey.
"Come on, let's go, we have to go there!" Diddy exclaimed, looking for the paddles of the boat.
"Hey, but... what about the ship?" Dixie said, having a doubtful expression again.
"Oh... I don't know," Diddy replied, scratching his head, with a forced smile. "What if we come to see it later or ask someone for help? What do you say?"
"Well... it's not that far away after all," Dixie replied, looking towards DK Island in the distance. "So, let's go; we're not leaving anything behind, right?"
Both took one last look at the objects they had on board, before closing the matter and resuming their trip. Then, they each took a paddle, and they began to sail the boat. The current wasn't so bad, that they didn't know if it favored them in the direction they were going or if it was the very excitement that kept them motivated to paddle.
DK Island, of which they were now quite sure that it was that, was at a far distance, but at the same time reachable for the sight of both. The two couldn't help but feel excited to see their home island again. Along the way, they both took the only fruits they had left to eat, as hunger was also invading them in the midst of the situation. Then, they continued paddling continuously, getting closer and closer to the island and confirming that, indeed, it was DK Island!
Several minutes later, they stopped paddling to rest for a while, while they looked at DK Island more and more closely. With the same excitement, they couldn't wait, above all, to see the Kong family members. Then, Dixie began to check again the objects they had on board.
"We'll just carry the compass, the map, and Mr. Pinky's box," Dixie said, taking the things for unloading as soon as they arrived.
"By the way, we can't forget to give that box to Wrinkly," Diddy added.
Suddenly, Dixie remembered another detail she had... She took off her beret and took that missing object; it was the emerald, which was now fragmented in half.
"Hey, Diddy," she said, handing him that emerald. "Now that all this is over... I guess you can take it with you now."
Diddy got serious when he saw Dixie hand him the deep green stone; suddenly, he remembered that moment where Dixie had given it to him. After taking it, he watched it while still thinking... Until after a few seconds, he sighed and returned it to Dixie in her hands, earning a look of strangeness from her.
"No, Dix. Keep it," Diddy said, smiling. "It's yours."
"What?" Dixie said, still looking at him strangely and handing it to him again. "Hey, but it was already yours."
"Yes, I know," Diddy continued, returning it to her. "But actually, this emerald is yours; it was a gift for you first. Besides, I know that you'll know how to take better care of it. We two… are actually still just beginning this thing of loving each other," he added with a few light laughs, before placing his hands on hers along with the emerald. "Maybe after some time you can give me a gift with a special meaning. So... keep it yourself for now, Dix, along with Tiny, Kiddy and Chunky."
Dixie continued to look at him seriously and as if such an answer was not expected. But after a few seconds, she looked at the emerald again and smiled normally.
"It's okay, Diddy," she said, smiling at him and holding the stone better. "In fact... it's true."
Diddy smiled back at her, and then gave her a kiss on the cheek sweetly. Dixie leaned on him, and then he embraced her for a while, as they both enjoyed being.
"Hey, Diddy," she said after they parted. "How will we see everyone again? Do you think they're in our houses right now?"
"They must be; I want to see them all," Diddy replied, looking towards DK Island. Then, he stood pensively for a moment as he smiled calmly. "Wow, I can't believe we managed to get back, and we're going to see them again."
"They won't believe us all the journey we had," Dixie said in the same way and without losing sight of DK Island. Suddenly, her expression took on a certain seriousness, though with a slight smile as well. "I can't wait to tell all this to Tiny, Kiddy and Chunky... Surely, it'll be of some comfort to us... that the memory of our parents will now rest better."
"You have to tell them," Diddy said, placing a hand on her shoulder and smiling serenely. "Tell them that finally there was justice for you and even for many animals, that we managed to make it happen... And truly, I hope it can bring you all some comfort... because you deserve to be happy."
Dixie continued to look at him while her eyes had moistened a little, but wiped her tears after a while and smiled back more calmly.
"And we wouldn't have made it without you either... I'll always be grateful to you, Diddy," she replied, before giving him a hug for a few seconds. "And you... will talk to Donkey, right?" she asked him after a while.
"Well... of course," Diddy replied with a forced smile and scratching his head. "Oh... it's true; now I'll have to tell him everything head-on," he added, showing some insecurity. "I hope we don't have another argument like-"
"No, no, Diddy... He'll know how to listen to you," Dixie said, smiling with a hand on his shoulder. "I know you'll be well, just talk to him, trust Donkey... He'll even be glad you learned."
"Well... okay," Diddy replied, heaving a sigh and smiling back with a sincere expression.
Dixie nodded to him, and the two embraced again after a few seconds. Both could not wait any longer to be reunited with their respective relatives.
"Hey, and by the way…" Diddy said later, with a somewhat shy expression. "Are we also going to tell them about... us, right?"
"It's true, we hadn't thought about it," Dixie replied almost in the same way, laughing a little. "But yes... Of course. At least we could talk about it with our closest ones for now."
"And what time do we tell them?" Diddy asked with a little laugh. "Will we give them a surprise or tell them directly?"
"We can tell them later after telling them everything that happened to us... Anyway, our relationship was part of our journey too," she ended with a smile.
Later, both paddled again to accelerate the arriving to DK Island. The island was getting closer until it seemed as if they had only sailed away from there to venture out to sea. Both couldn't wait to set their feet on the island's sand; they wished they had known a couple of weeks ago that they would manage to return there.
"We're close; just a little bit more," Diddy said as they continued to paddle with concentration.
They paddled for several more minutes, until they almost reached the shores of the beach. DK Island was totally in front of their eyes.
"Almost there; we have to paddle harder," Diddy exclaimed as they were about to arrive.
Later, both had already reached the area where the waves began to break. The boat was rocking up and down with the movement of the waves, so they had to apply a little more force to paddle. The waves were becoming increasingly weaker, indicating that they had arrived.
"Alright, let's get down here," Dixie said, stopping paddling.
At the end, Diddy and Dixie got off the boat and put their feet on the water of the beach, which reached a little above their knees. They began to push the boat to take it to the shore, where they had to make a little more force when they reached the firm sand.
Both took a few last strong breaths when they stopped completely. Afterwards... they looked up at everything in front of them, and then they also looked at their feet, which, finally... were on DK Island... The two looked at each other as huge smiles appeared on their faces and they could feel how the universe had taken pity on the two of them after so much.
"We are... at home," Diddy said in a calm tone at first, before showing all the excitement. "We're here, Dixie!"
Dixie made the same gesture before launching into hugging Diddy with the same intensity of excitement. Both were so excited, that they could say they forgot all kinds of bad events that they experienced along their journey.
"We did it, Diddy, we did it!" Dixie exclaimed, taking Diddy's shoulders with excitement.
The two continued to hug and look at each other with all the happiness they had. They jumped with excitement at the same time that their hearts did too. They looked at all the environment in front of them and, definitely, that was DK Island; they no longer had doubts.
"Come on, we have to look for the others!" Diddy said, taking Dixie's arm, still not calming the excitement.
Both began to run through the sand using their four limbs; it's been a long time since they felt like they were running with that level of excitement along a beach. The area where they were was quite familiar to them, so they stopped to see if they could find any of the Kongs.
"What if we go to see our houses?" Dixie said as they watched everywhere.
"I'd say yes; I don't see anyone here- Wait!" Diddy exclaimed, stopping to look in a direction in the distance. "Isn't that…"
"Funky?" Dixie asked, spotting too.
"Yes, yes, yes it's him!" Diddy replied, pointing at him. "It's Funky's cabin. Let's go see him!"
Diddy and Dixie headed towards the pier where they had spotted that beach cabin where Funky lived. They took one last look at the boat to make sure there was no inconvenience, and then ran towards the cabin.
Upon arrival, they started to look for Funky or some kong that was around, but it seemed that he was absent at that time.
"Where did he go?" Diddy asked, looking everywhere. "We saw him clearly around here."
"Hey, Diddy, look at that," Dixie pointed in one direction of the cabin.
They both looked towards what Dixie was pointing at and, to the enormous curiosity of the two... it was a large photo of them that, if they remember correctly, Funky had taken a few months ago. The photo was on one of the tables among Funky's belongings from his workshop.
"But... what is this?" Diddy asked, looking in detail at the photo.
The photo was framed and with the names of the two written on it. It also had some small colorful flowers in the corners.
"Wow, would this be for us?" Dixie wondered, looking at the photo seriously. "It seems to be-"
"But what is this?!"
Diddy and Dixie looked at each other the instant they heard a voice other than theirs... although they recognized it perfectly. They turned to look, and saw in the distance that gorilla with glasses and workshop clothes, who seemed to have come out of his cabin and with an expression shocked in its entirety.
"It's Funky!" Diddy said to Dixie, before calling him. "Funky!"
Diddy and Dixie immediately ran in the direction of Funky, who had initially frozen to see them both, but then reacted and headed towards them at an accelerated pace too.
"Funky!" Diddy and Dixie exclaimed in unison as they reached him.
"Diddy! Dixie!" Funky exclaimed as if he didn't believe his eyes, before the two hugged him with excitement. Afterwards, Funky hugged them too, and then began to observe them, still looking surprised. "I can't believe it, I can't believe it, I can't believe it… It's you! It's Diddy and Dixie! And, and, and... You're alive! You're alive! Are you okay?! Are you fine?!"
"Yeah, yeah, of course!" Diddy and Dixie answered simultaneously, still with excitement.
"W-where were you?! What happened to yo-"
"Okay, it's okay, Funky!" Diddy replied, calming him down with a little laughter. "First of all, we're fine, everything is alright. And well... it's a long story."
"Hey, is it t-true that you were kidnapped by circus tamers?" Funky asked them, still unable to recover from shock. "And, and that you were on an island and I don't know what else?!"
"Uh, yes, yes, b-but... how do you know?" Dixie asked, looking at him strangely along with Diddy.
"So... it was true," Funky said, looking more astonished, before changing his expression. "You sent some letters here a few weeks ago, right?!"
"Ahh, yes, of course," Diddy replied smiling, before looking astonished. "Wait... so, did you all receive them?"
"Yes, yes, yes!" Funky replied quickly. "Some letters had arrived from you for Donkey, Chunky, Tiny and Kiddy; they told us that you had written that you were on an island and had left a circus."
Diddy and Dixie looked at each other in amazement, but at the same time with enormous relief to at least know that their letters had indeed arrived.
"Hey, that's great!" Diddy exclaimed, smiling. "And by the way, how have you all been? Is everything alright? Are Donkey and the others okay?"
"Well, yes, as far as being okay goes," Funky replied in kind, before adopting absolute seriousness. "Oh, but now that you ask... you can't imagine how worried we've been about you two, especially Dixie's family and Donkey; believe me, they were very distressed. Some of us even went to try to find you where Enguarde told us he had left Dixie, but... we had to come back anyway because we almost got caught in a storm due to those hurricanes. Even that big picture of you over there is from a mural we made for you. However, with the letters you sent us, believe me, it brought some relief to your dear relatives."
"Wow, I figured as much," Dixie replied after listening to Funky. "We were also quite worried about everyone, especially at night. Finding a post office there was also a small relief for us; we didn't know how to get back here."
"And not to mention everything that happened to us afterwards; it's another long story," Diddy added earnestly. "Hey, and… do you know if Donkey and the others are at our houses right now?"
"Oh, yes, yes, as far as I know," Funky replied, nodding. "What's more... if you want, I'm going to call them all right now, what do you think, little friends?"
"Yes, yes, of course," Diddy and Dixie replied consecutively.
"Great, then wait here," Funky said, looking excited again. "We'll give them a pleasant surprise, don't move."
Afterwards, Funky withdrew as quickly as his amazement gave him. Meanwhile, Diddy and Dixie looked at each other with a few small laughs, at the same time that they were excited again as at the moment they arrived, and hugged once more.
"Hey, Dix, by the way, let's bring the boat here," Diddy said.
"Oh, that's right!" Dixie exclaimed. "We have to unload everything."
Then, they both ran back to where they had left the boat beached; they couldn't forget the things they had brought either. They pushed the boat for a while, as it was on the shores. When they stopped it again near Funky's cabin, they began to unload the objects, of which there were only a couple of fruits, the compass, the map and the box that they had to deliver to Wrinkly.
They were placing the small objects on one of the tables in the cabin, when suddenly, they saw that two more kongs appeared near them: one of them was a gorilla in bright vests and another an orangutan in overalls.
"Swanky! Lanky!" Diddy exclaimed, glad to see them along with Dixie.
"Holy heavens! It's Diddy and Dixie!" Swanky exclaimed, showing the same expressions like Funky. "It's you!"
"No, no, I can't believe this!" Lanky added in the same way. "It was true! It's the little ones!"
Diddy and Dixie ran to hug each one quickly and excitedly, while Lanky and Swanky continued to be so amazed to see them, as if they couldn't believe it.
"For heaven's sake! You're alive!" Lanky exclaimed, looking excitedly at the two of them. "H-how are you?! It's alright?! What happened to you two?!"
"We're fine, we're fine, don't worry," Diddy replied, smiling and reassuring them. "It was just... a long history."
"Is it true that you were kidnapped in a circus?!" Swanky asked them, still not recovering from the shock of seeing them. "And is it true that you stayed on an island?!"
"Yes, yes, that was what happened," Dixie replied in the same way as Diddy. "Although, well… many other things happened too."
"But I can't believe it," Lanky added, still in amazement. "I-I mean, you don't know how worried we were about the two of you; first by Diddy who didn't show up, and then by Dixie who had gone to search for him and didn't come back, and not to mention what Dixie had told us about your classmates; we thought they had something to do with this, and also about the ape boy found in the river!"
"By the way, we didn't hear anything more about that case," Swanky added with some concern. "Oh, there really was too much uncertainty while you were gone; we thought there was some kind of child thief!"
"Uhh, hey... about that…" Dixie said with a tone of insecurity. "Actually... we do have an answer to that case; in fact... it's solved."
"What are you saying?!" Swanky and Lanky exclaimed, looking at them strangely instantly.
"W-well, it's a delicate matter; we'll tell you later," Dixie replied with a forced smile. "But I don't think you need to worry anymore... It's all resolved so to speak, so don't worry... There's no actual child thief."
"Wait, then... how's the matter really?" Swanky asked with a look of strangeness.
"Geez, I got confused now," Lanky added in confusion, before smiling at them again. "But hey, the most important thing now: you guys are all fine, right?"
"Yes, yes, of course," Diddy replied, smiling at them along with Dixie. "And much better now that we arrived here."
"Oh, that's good, little ones," Lanky told them, smiling back. "It really has been a long few months without you."
"I know, it was for us too," Diddy said with a calm smile. "You can't imagine everything that happened to-"
Suddenly, Diddy was interrupted by Dixie, who began to pull his arm and point in one direction. Diddy immediately turned to look at where Dixie was pointing and... both his expression and hers suddenly changed, as if they were seeing Hurricane Island or DK Island again after so long. The two continued to be paralyzed for a few more seconds, while trembling and their heartbeats were accelerating more and more: from a distance, they could see a gorilla wearing a red tie running from one corner, and from another one farther away, three more young kongs were approaching, whom Diddy and Dixie did not take long to recognize.
Both looked at each other still amazed and at the same time with a gradual excitement as enormous as never before. Immediately, the two began to run towards the silhouettes of those kongs they had seen; they had really waited for that moment for months, and they could not believe it was already happening.
"DONKEY!" Diddy shouted as he ran with his four limbs in a hurry.
"TINY!" Dixie shouted in the same way, but veering to another direction where she had just spotted her loved ones. "KIDDY! CHUNKY!"
Both Diddy and Dixie ran everything their limbs gave them, towards their relatives. Both groups were each in a corner, so the two ran in different directions. In one corner was none other than Donkey Kong, while at another point, and somewhat further away, came Tiny, Kiddy and Chunky.
"Donkey!" Diddy exclaimed again, getting closer to reaching him and seeing him clearly.
Donkey, who had also noticed Diddy's presence, got an expression of enormous astonishment and as if he did not finish processing what he was seeing.
"Diddy?..." Donkey uttered in a low, almost static voice, before coming to his senses and running towards his nephew as well. "Diddy! Little buddy!"
Being less than a meter away and without thinking about it, Diddy threw himself straight into Donkey's arms, and hugged him with such excitement that he could not control it at that moment.
"Donkey!…" Diddy exclaimed, clinging to him with all his might and beginning to have his eyes moistened.
"Diddy!" Donkey exclaimed, hugging him with the same emotion and the same expression. "Little buddy! It's you! You're here! Diddy!"
"Donkey…" Diddy uttered again, this time bursting into tears as if he was showing all his emotions at that moment. Seeing and being so close to Donkey after so much, made him feel at home... truly at home this time.
"Little buddy, I can't believe it, I can't believe it!" Donkey exclaimed with tears in his eyes too, before holding him in the air and looking at his face with such excitement. "It's you, Diddy! You're alive, you're fine! No, no, I can't believe it!"
"I missed you, Donkey!" Diddy exclaimed, embracing him again as tight as he could, as he sobbed and his tears rolled down his face continuously.
"I missed you too, little buddy…" Donkey replied, embracing him too like a father who hadn't seen his son in so long. "I thought I wouldn't see you again," he added, shedding tears as well.
On the other hand, Dixie was also a few meters away from reaching where her loved ones were, who also, as soon as they noticed her presence, ran towards her without thinking at all.
"Tiny! Kiddy! Chunky!" Dixie exclaimed, less than a couple of meters away from them.
"DIXIE! DIXIE!" the three exclaimed simultaneously and continuously, crowding around.
Without further thought, Tiny threw herself into hugging Dixie immediately, followed by Kiddy and then Chunky, who completed the group and even lifted the three of them. The four remained embraced for several seconds, with all the excitement they could feel upon meeting again. Dixie just felt a huge sense of refuge being able to be close to her family again and after the whole journey.
"Dixie!" Tiny exclaimed as she hugged her sister tightly and shed tears instantly. "I-I missed you! I thought we wouldn't see you again!"
"Me too... I missed you all so much," Dixie replied, breaking down in tears too, as did the others.
"Chunky missed you very much, too," he said as they continued in the group embrace and with tears in their eyes.
"Are you okay, Dixie?! Tell me you are!" Tiny said, breaking away from the hug but not letting go of Dixie either.
"Of course I am; everything is alright!" Dixie replied through tears, but smiling at the three of them at the same time, while quickly recalling the entire journey. "Everything... is alright now... It's all over."
"You don't know how much we were begging for you to come back!" Tiny said in tears.
"And, and what happened?!" Chunky asked hurriedly, as they four let go. "Why didn't you come back again? Is it true that you went for Diddy to a circus and then you two stayed on an island?!"
"Yes... that's what happened, although... I really have a lot to tell you, that's not all," Dixie replied, wiping away her tears and emitting a sigh; she didn't know whether to be exhausted due to the journey or glad that it was over. "Hey, and... then you received the letters I sent you?"
"The letters? Of course!" Tiny replied, jumping a little. "You don't know how much those letters reassured us!"
"You wrote to us that you were with Diddy on an island and that in three weeks you'd be back," Chunky added. "We were glad to hear that at least you two were fine. Although you took a little longer, it seems to me."
"Oh, it's because that really wasn't all," Dixie replied earnestly. "Much more things happened to us, to the point that... we came out alive by miracle. But no, don't worry, everything is alright…" she added, looking at them with tears in her eyes and at the same time smiling at each one with a joy like never before. "I must even tell you that... we'll no longer have to worry about us... We have had real justice."
"What?... What are you talking about?" Tiny asked, looking at her strangely at what she was saying.
"I'll have to tell you well; you really wouldn't believe me," Dixie replied, still smiling at them. "But for now I can tell you that... it's not something that's going to fix our lives, but at least it'll reassure you."
Dixie was eager to tell them everything that had happened, but there were so many details that she knew she had to set aside some time to tell them in order. Even so, she felt that seeing each member of her short family again and thinking that there was justice for everything they had to go through, filled her with strength and tranquility.
On the other hand, and at the same time, Diddy was still excited as he embraced Donkey with all the excitement he had and with tears of joy. When they parted, Donkey put Diddy back on the ground, but still holding him due to the excitement he had of seeing him.
"Little buddy…" Donkey said, looking at him with joy, before examining him. "W-what happened to you?! Is e-everything okay?! Haven't you got hurt or something?! Are you complete?! Tell me yes!"
"Yes, yes, yes, of course!" Diddy replied with the same energy. "Everything is alright, all right."
"Is it true that you were taken to a circus?!" Donkey exclaimed, showing concern. "Didn't someone hurt you?!"
"Yes, yes, that was what happened," Diddy replied quickly. "And then we were going to return, but a storm dragged us to another island and we couldn't do it. You received my letter, right?"
"Yes, yes, of course I received it, little buddy... You don't know how happy I was because of that; you can't imagine how worried we were; I haven't even been able to sleep well. And, and what were those circus tamers like? Did they hurt you?"
"Oh, those monsters were the worst; you couldn't imagine. It's a long history; I have too much to tell you. Even in these last weeks, more things happened to us that you wouldn't believe... But everything is alright," Diddy finished with a small smile, before heaving a sigh and lowering his gaze again seriously. "Oh, Donkey... but I'm really sorry, I didn't want all this to happen like this. Besides... I know you may already know about that matter I never wanted to tell you and-"
"Hey, hey, no, Diddy," Donkey interrupted, patting him lightly on the shoulder and smiling in a calm way. "I know... I know what you're trying to say. And yes, Dixie had to tell us before she left to search for you, and it's okay, it was something you shouldn't have hidden from me, but... it's also okay that you've learned and acknowledged it."
"I know... I was never able to do it because I truly thought those four kids would harm you or cause us even greater harm. Although well… there has been a long story about them too; there's also a lot to talk about that."
"Okay, little buddy," Donkey replied as he placed a hand on his shoulder, before looking away and changing his expression. "Hey, by the way, what about Dixie?"
"Ah, yeah, yeah, she's here too," Diddy said, also looking away. "She's over there, let's go!"
Diddy pointed to the distance where Dixie was with Tiny, Kiddy and Chunky. Then, he and Donkey headed towards them, at the same time that the group of four young kongs was looking and pointing at them in the distance, and then also headed for the reunion. When both groups saw each other, they all ran to gather in one group.
"Hi, Donkey!" Dixie exclaimed as she ran when they were near.
"Dixie!" Donkey replied as he ran too.
"Diddy!" Tiny, Kiddy and Chunky exclaimed.
"Chunky, Tiny, Kiddy!" Diddy exclaimed in the same way.
When they all met, the hugs couldn't be missing, to the point where it felt like a celebration.
"Dixie!" Donkey exclaimed as he gave Dixie a quick hug with excitement. "Glad to see you again too!"
"Diddy!" Chunky and Tiny, even Kiddy, exclaimed, as they also hugged him as a group. "We miss you too! You're back!"
"Ohh, you two don't know how worried we were about you!" Donkey said to Diddy and Dixie, holding them by the shoulders. "It's truly amazing that you're here!"
"You can't imagine what these last few months have been like without you," Tiny added in the same way. "We thought we weren't going to see you again."
"So do we," Dixie replied, smiling. "We thought we weren't coming back. But in the end, everything-"
"Diddy! Dixie!" another voice different to all those who were in the group exclaimed.
Everyone turned and saw the very Candy, who had arrived and was surprised to see the two newly arrived little kongs.
"Candy!" Diddy and Dixie exclaimed in unison and ran to her.
"Holy heavens! It's truly you!" Candy exclaimed as she hugged them with excitement. "You're fine! How have you been?! You made us worried!"
"We're fine, don't worry," Diddy replied, smiling calmly and breaking away from the hug.
"It was a long journey, but everything is alright," Dixie added in the same way.
"Oh, you don't know how glad I'm to see you safe again," Candy added in the same way as everyone else, while Diddy and Dixie kept smiling at them and looking excited too.
Suddenly, Diddy and Dixie caught sight of another pair of kongs approaching the scene; this time it was a pair of elderly apes, who upon noticing the presence of Diddy and Dixie, also gasped and as if they could not believe their eyes.
"Cranky! Wrinkly!" Diddy and Dixie exclaimed, heading towards them.
"But it's the kids!" Cranky exclaimed, in amazement.
"Holy heavens! The little ones!" Wrinkly exclaimed, bursting with excitement.
Diddy and Dixie also quickly but excitedly hugged Cranky and Wrinkly, the latter being whom they had not seen for so long.
"For heaven's sake!" Wrinkly exclaimed, unable to contain her joy as she held each of them by the faces. "But it's you two! You're fine! You're back! What a joy to see you, little ones!"
"Wow, wow, wow, I can't believe this!" Cranky added, also looking cheerful and surprised. "You two are here! You're fine! We didn't think you'd come back, but you're here!"
"Are you okay, children? Haven't you been hurt?" Wrinkly asked, showing concern and examining them like a mother.
"Well... yes, we actually have been hurt," Dixie replied with a slight smile, "but don't worry, we're fine now."
"It's a long story," Diddy added in the same way.
"By the way, we haven't seen you two in a long time," Dixie said later. "How have you been?"
"Oh, at first everything was fine on our trip," Wrinkly replied. "But you wouldn't believe how I almost had a fit when we arrived and found out you had been missing for days."
"They even told us that they had found a wounded boy in the river," Cranky added with some astonishment. "And also, that those little friends of Diddy were bully boys."
"That's right, Diddy," Wrinkly added in the same way. "Is it true that your four little friends have been getting into trouble and bullying you? Why didn't you tell me anything before?"
"Uhh, well... yes, it's true," Diddy replied a little embarrassed at the sudden question and because he was now confessing it directly. "It's that... Oh, I really didn't have the courage back then," he added, his gaze lowered and rubbing his arm. "I'm sorry…"
"It's also a long s-story," Dixie added, trying to help him and with a forced smile. "I think we should set aside some time to tell it in detail."
"Oh, yeah! The family reunited again!" exclaimed another voice, which belonged to Funky.
Funky along with Lanky and Swanky had appeared again to integrate with the entire Kong family, which was already complete again.
"Wow, it's really a miracle that the two little ones are back here," Lanky added, taking each one of them by shoulders.
"This deserves a celebration!" Swanky exclaimed with excitement, before calming down again. "Or well... it depends on how everyone feels, of course."
Diddy and Dixie just smiled as all the other kongs kept exclaiming words of excitement at their arrival, hugging them and even lifting them into the air. Although between times, they all also asked them questions about it, as expected.
"You know? We even went to try to search for you two," Donkey told them. "Enguarde was going to lead us to the city where he had left Dixie, but the weather was unmanageable and we couldn't do anything... Believe me, we almost thought that we wouldn't see you anymore because of that; the weather seemed to have strong storms ahead and some fatal waves."
"Well, you weren't wrong," Dixie replied. "That's exactly how the weather conditions were due to those hurricanes."
"We had forgotten that the hurricanes in the North were passing through these last few months," Funky added.
"And by the way, children," Wrinkly said to the two, still showing doubts. "W-what was going on with those four boys? We haven't even seen them around here again; the school year is even already starting. Do you know anything about them?"
Even if the arrival of Diddy and Dixie had been exciting for both of them, it was to be expected that they would be bombarded with questions... Questions with answers that had too much context, that they didn't know how to start explaining.
"Well, actually... we have had contact with them," Diddy replied earnestly. "In fact, they were present on our journey in recent weeks."
"What?!" the others exclaimed simultaneously and all showing more confusion. "What are you saying?"
"So, those kids had something to do with your disappearance too?!" Donkey asked as if to be alarmed. "So, do you know where those kids are?"
"Where are those kids?" Wrinkly asked them again.
"Uh, well, they had something to do with it, but not entirely," Dixie replied, not knowing how to start explaining. "And we know where they are, although... they won't come back anymore."
"What are you saying?" Wrinkly exclaimed, looking more confused, just like everyone else. "What do you mean by that?"
"Hey, it's r-really all complex," Diddy replied in the same way as Dixie. "It's truly a long story with many details; we need to organize everything to tell you properly."
"Wow, that sounds pretty interesting," Funky commented, looking more confused. "I think we need to organize a meeting to talk about it, brothers."
"And by the way, Mrs. Wrinkly," Dixie said to Wrinkly. "You had sent someone named Pinky Kong to be our teacher, hadn't you?"
"Oh, yes, yes, the same one," Wrinkly replied with a smile again. "Mr. Pinky. Of course, I had heard good references about him, and besides, he himself wanted to take on the position of teacher. And well, how did he behave? By the way, is it true that you also ran into him on that island where you were?"
"Of course we do; that's where he lives," Diddy replied. "To be honest, he was quite strict at first when he taught us, but when we were on the island, he was totally different; he wasn't bad after all, he even became our friend," he added, smiling, before remembering a detail. "Oh, and by the way, he left us some documents to give to you. Yeah, to Cranky too; it's for both of you."
"What? What about me?" Cranky said immediately and with a look of strangeness. "I'm not a teacher; what do I have to do there?"
"I don't know, but that's what he told us," Dixie reaffirmed.
"Hey, but what did those evil kids have to do with it?" Lanky asked them again curiously. "And what do you mean with recent weeks?"
"Were they from that circus that caught you or how?" Swanky added in the same way.
"Well, I think we have to organize things first, friends," Candy said, trying to calm them down. "I think Diddy and Dixie still need to finish processing everything; they have to rest first, okay?... Uh, Diddy and Dixie, don't you want to go to your houses to take a rest first? And you can tell us about your journey later, what do you think?"
"Well, actually, yes," Dixie replied with a slight smile, as did Diddy. "Besides... for certain reasons, I think we should talk about all this in private first."
"Okay, then whenever you're ready, buddies," Funky said, smiling at them. "Feel at home first."
"We could meet up later, as Funky suggested," Donkey added to everyone. "Because I understand... Diddy and Dixie may be very tired right now. So, will we meet later?"
Everyone else nodded while murmuring words of agreement with the proposal. Meanwhile, Diddy and Dixie hugged their respective family members again, who were both excited and relieved to have them close again.
The Kongs began to disperse a little, while both Diddy and Dixie prepared to go home each, but not before passing by collecting the few things they had brought, among them, the box they had to deliver to Wrinkly and Cranky, which they went to deliver to them immediately.
Later, Diddy and Dixie bid a temporary farewell, exchanging smiling gestures as a sign of being able to share a specific news with their families. Then, each went with their own group: Diddy with Donkey, and Dixie with Tiny, Kiddy, and Chunky.
"You're going to have to tell us everything, sister," Tiny told Dixie with a curious tone and shaking her arm, as they walked home.
"By the way, what happened to those evil kids in the end?" Chunky asked her in a low voice, looking around stealthily. "And so, that orangutan boy did come out alive after the shot you gave him?"
"And just in case, we didn't tell anyone anything about that, as we promised," Tiny added, whispering as well.
"I'll tell you, I'll tell you," Dixie replied, calming them down and speaking in a low voice too. "But yes, he came out alive, although… those four children are no longer here anyways. I'll tell you later what happened."
"What?! Did you two defeat them or what?" Chunky asked, showing astonishment. "What do you mean they're no longer here? So…"
"Y-yes, yes, that..." Dixie replied with some insecurity after recalling it. "Uh, and well, we did defeat them, but they didn't exactly end up in our hands... I'll tell you all about it too... Oh, and you won't believe who those four kids' dads were, or well... their adoptive dads."
"What?" Tiny exclaimed, increasing her curiosity. "What are you talking about now?"
"Hey, you really have a lot to tell, from what I see," Chunky added in the same way.
"Wait, later, as soon as we arrive, I'll tell you," Dixie replied, calming them down and refraining from further details for the time being.
Dixie had so many things to tell them that at times she was tempted to tell everything in summary, but she knew that the whole journey had so many details and contexts that she had to find a moment of calm to tell it properly. Suddenly, as they continued walking... something came to her mind.
"Uhh, hey…" Dixie said to the three of them. Even if there was a lot to tell, she wanted to at least tell them certain news. "I think... for now, I can tell you something important that you have to know…" she added, looking down at the ground and with a little shyness.
"Huh? And now what is it?" Tiny asked, reactivating her enormous curiosity along with the others.
"In fact, I mentioned it to you in the letter," Dixie added with a small smile. "Or well, I almost mentioned it... It's about Diddy," she said, widening her smile.
Chunky, Tiny and Kiddy made an expression of strangeness, and at the same time surprise, at Dixie's unexpected words.
"What are you saying? What about Diddy?" Chunky asked, curiously. "Wait! Are you meaning-"
"Uh, well, the thing is…" Dixie said, taking a breath before answering well. "Diddy and I... are a couple."
The three of them widened their eyes to the fullest as soon as Dixie uttered the latter words. She had been a little nervous to tell it, but anyway, she knew she was going to do it.
"W-what?! What did you say?!" Tiny exclaimed, all astonished and as if she couldn't believe it either.
"What did you just say?!" Chunky added in the same way, holding her by the shoulders. "Is that true?!"
"Yes, yes, of course," Dixie replied with a slight laugh and blushing a little. "Of course it's true."
"Hey, it has to be a joke!" Tiny exclaimed, shaking her arm again with some excitement. "Tell me it's not a joke! And h-how long have you been dating?"
"How did it all happen?!" Chunky asked rather curiously. "Was it all during the journey?"
"Was it a romantic journey after all?" Tiny added.
"Well, I can't consider it romantic as such; a lot of things happened," Dixie replied, not knowing how to begin to explain it in detail. "But yeah... Yeah, we're together now," she added, smiling again.
"Oh, no, you have to really tell us everything," Tiny exclaimed, jumping with excitement. "Tell us about that first!"
"I can't believe it yet!" Chunky added in the same way. "You have to tell us well!"
"Yeah, of course," Dixie replied, calming them down and continuing the walk. "But sure... it's another long story like everything."
The four continued walking towards their home, while Tiny, Kiddy and Chunky continued to be curious with what Dixie had just revealed to them, or rather, with the whole journey in general... Being close to home, Dixie couldn't wait to tell them everything that had happened.
On another point of DK Island, there was an iconic tree house, which had a cave underneath with a banana reserve, and where the very Donkey Kong resided with his little nephew Diddy.
Later, Diddy and Donkey had arrived at the door of the house. Upon entering, Diddy kept jumping with excitement as he looked around, and felt a great joy of being home again; it was the last thing he needed to finish feeling at home again.
"I'm home! We're home, Donkey!" Diddy exclaimed, accompanied by screams of happiness.
"And it's all right here now that you're back, little buddy," Donkey said, looking at him happily.
"Ohh, I thought I was never going to come back!" Diddy said again, jumping with excitement.
"Come here, little buddy!" Donkey exclaimed, taking Diddy in the air and starting to tickle him like he hadn't done in a long time.
Donkey left Diddy on the floor again while he laughed. Then, Diddy went to his hanging tire, where he also missed so much getting on.
"Wow, everything looks the same as I saw it last time," Diddy said with a slight laugh.
"You couldn't imagine how empty the house felt without you," Donkey replied, smiling calmly. Then, he went to him and patted him on the shoulder. "And well, Diddy... are you ready to talk?"
"Uhh... yes, of course," Diddy replied with an insecure smile, but at the same time, trying to stay confident. "Oh... okay, Donkey, t-there's a lot I have to tell you."
Donkey stared at him for a few seconds, though this time smiling calmly. He wanted to let his little nephew know that he was willing to listen to him.
"Come, let's talk over here," Donkey said, extending his hand as a signal for Diddy to step down from the tire.
Donkey and Diddy headed to sit on the sofa; a place that usually was the best for having important conversations, as had happened before.
"Oh, Donkey... I guess now you already know," Diddy said, trying not to feel embarrassed. "But yeah, actually... I did have conflicts with those four kids at school," he revealed more sincerely this time. "And I was never able to tell you; they always threatened to hurt us if I reported them... And it turns out that was even absurd; they weren't going to do it, they just did it to scare me because I almost always believed things so easily."
"Okay, it's okay, little buddy," Donkey said, placing a hand on his shoulder and expressing confidence to speak. "The most important thing now is that you're here again. And well... you can't turn things back, but the alternative that now remains is to have learned. And yes, Diddy... I hope you did learn it, because I want you to know that... I'll always be there for you, to listen to you and help you in any situation. So... if you have any problems, never hesitate to tell me; as I have told you: you know that I'm like your father, like your older brother... like your friend."
Donkey caressed Diddy's head while smiling at him like a little child, and then Diddy looked up at him. Those gestures and those words made the little monkey feel his eyes moisten again, not so much with sadness or anything similar, but to remember everything that he went through and realize that he was back in his home with Donkey. Suddenly, Diddy just embraced Donkey, lunging towards him, and held on for a while.
"It's okay, don't worry," Donkey said, smiling calmly, before Diddy parted. "You can talk now, little buddy, whatever you want... And well, what happened?"
"Well... you know," Diddy pronounced, looking down at the floor. "Th-that last day I was here, I just went out at night because I felt really bad about everything that had happened. Don't think I escaped or anything, I just went for a ride on the sea and then I'd come back, but... the wind was really strong and I ended up going further towards the sea, and I even got lost. And later, those three circus men showed up, they had shot me with one of those sleep darts, and suddenly I woke up in that zoo."
"It can't be, did those men do you any harm?" Donkey exclaimed worriedly.
"No, or at least not then yet," Diddy replied. "I woke up all scared, but then I ran into other apes there and they told me that it wasn't a bad place, and so I still didn't understand why those men had taken me there. Oh... but believe me, that place was a prison; I'd have never gotten out of there if Dixie hadn't gone to find me."
"I see... I still remember the day she went searching for you; she didn't even want us to accompany her because she said it was something she had to sort out herself, we didn't quite understand why. In addition... it was there that she told us about those four kids who were your friends; she told us what they used to do to you, and that that kid, Jemky, the orangutan, had threatened her to stay away from you and hand them over your pyramid on the last day of school. And by the way... is it true that those kids carried guns?"
"Yes, yes, exactly that," Diddy replied, nodding. "And in fact, that's just the beginning; you won't believe everything that happened and what we found out later."
"Wow, that sounds like a really long story indeed," Donkey said, before pausing. "Hey, and... what about those kids? And to begin with... how did you fall out with them in the first place?"
"Well, it seems I'll have to tell you everything from the beginning," Diddy replied with a shrug. He was about to continue when a thought crossed his mind; he remembered a curious piece of news that he couldn't wait to share with Donkey as well. "Uh, hey, Donkey... It's that... I think before I start telling you everything, well... I also have something important to tell you."
"About what?" Donkey asked normally, as he still didn't seem to imagine what it was about.
"It's... Well, it's about Dixie," Diddy replied, looking away and intertwining his fingers while smiling shyly.
As expected, Donkey also made a reaction of having his curiosity activated upon hearing those words from Diddy.
"What do you mean?" Donkey exclaimed with a look of strangeness and at the same time of curiosity, before Diddy looked at him again with a smile, which made him think several things and even suppose a certain answer. "Wait!... That face of yours tells me something," he said, pointing at him with a somewhat suspicious look. "Is something… going on, Diddy?"
"Well... you could say so," Diddy replied, smiling and trying not to blush in order to answer. "Okay, okay... the thing is that…" he took a slight breath to say it while smiling. "Dixie and I are dating, Donkey."
Donkey, in the same way, widened his eyes to the fullest while smiling in amazement and instantly, as if he already expected Diddy to tell him something like that.
"R-really?!" Donkey exclaimed, taking Diddy by the shoulders in amazement. "I don't believe it, I don't believe you! Really?!"
"Yes, yes, of course it's true," Diddy replied with a few giggles as Donkey held him. "Yes, we are."
"Wow! I can't believe this!" Donkey exclaimed again, showing excitement once more. "And, and for how long? Just a few days ago or what?"
"Uh, no, we've been together for a while," Diddy replied, still with a few light laughs and blushing a little. "You see, we've been together for almost three months at first, but then... Oh, well, th-that's also part of this long story, many things happened, I'll tell you, but... yes, we're together now," he finished with a calmer smile.
"I can't believe it, little buddy," Donkey said, showing quite a bit of joy at that moment. "I'm going to be very happy for you, and for both of you. Uh, but things have been going well for both of you, right?"
"Well... it's also quite a long story as I told you. But at least at this moment, we've been doing well, and I hope it stays that way."
"Wow, wow, you sure have a lot to tell, little buddy," he said, smiling and raising his brows. "And by the way, did you finally manage to confess your feelings to her then?"
"Uhh, not exactly," Diddy replied with a shy smile and scratching his head. "I mean, I was able to do it, but it wasn't the first thing that happened."
"This sounds interesting," Donkey said, showing more curiosity. "Well, how did it all really go?"
"Okay, I'll tell you what happened. But first... let's go back to tell you how I fell out with those four kids…"
Donkey and Diddy continued their conversation about what Diddy had to tell. Among so many cheerful moments of the journey, as well as frustrating, sad, and even tragic ones, Diddy had to recap all the details to tell everything in order...