Disclaimer: Kirby belongs to Nintendo and HAL Laboratory.
Shortly after Dedede and Escargon made landfall in the plains, the snail immediately stripped himself of the winter gear provided to him and tossed it aside.
"Gah! That was absolutely suffocating!" Escargon ranted with a huff, "honestly, that blue rodent freaks me out, but at least they got me outta here."
Dedede sighed as he removed his own winter gear.
"I dunno," Dedede grumbled with a shrug, "I thought it was pretty nice. Perfectly chilly."
"Nice for you!" Escargon retorted.
Once they finished, Dedede and Escargon began wandering the plains and surveying their surroundings.
"Well, it's certainly pretty if nothing else," the snail said reluctantly, "I still think this is a bad idea, do we really need to do this?"
"Nah, it's fine," Dedede insisted, "honestly, if we were stayin' here longer, I would set up a golf course right here! Perfect place for it! Honestly, a country club would fit right in here a whole lot better than in Whispy Woods. No need to tear down nothin'."
The penguin and the snail kept searching the plains until they spotted a hole in the ground.
"Well, here ya go!" Dedede let out a jolly laugh, "perfect place to find some beasties!"
Escargon gave Dedede a blank stare.
"Sire, how do you plan to bring them home with us exactly?" he mentioned dryly, "I doubt the reality bending blue squirrel is going to let us just bring home monsters."
Dedede gave Escargon a wink.
"Maybe we'll find somethin' on the way down," he suggested.
"I suppose…I don't think I'm going to be able to talk you out of this," Escargon stated blandly, "so I'd like it to be noted that I object to this course of action."
Dedede nodded before he started climbing down the hole. Escargon sighed before following close behind, sticking to the floor tightly as they moved down the dark ominous hole. The penguin king reached into his pocket dimension for a lantern and a flashlight.
"Well," Escargon huffed, "if nothing else, at least you were prepared."
Dedede handed the flashlight to Escargon before he turned on the lantern.
"Hmm, this place is pretty creep'eh," Dedede drawled.
Dedede glanced around at the small puddles of stagnant water where stalactites hung from the ceiling.
"Best stay quiet just in case," Dedede mumbled, "sound is bouncin' around in here."
Escargon steeled himself as he turned on the flashlight and pointed it ahead of him.
"I think I see something down there," Dedede paused, "oh, it's just another one of those gooey things…"
Dedede watched as the blob in front of him wobbled and bounced towards them, only for the penguin to pull out his Barrel Hammer and bring it down on the little monster, resulting in a large splat and blue colored slime all over the place.
"Eeyuck!" Escargon flinched and backed away before any slime could splatter onto him, "warn me next time, would ya? I can hardly tell which slime is mine anymore."
Escargon flicked droplets of blue goo off of himself.
"Alright, alright," Dedede shrugged as he put his hammer away, "I'll give ya a heads up when we got more slime things on the way!"
Escargon pointed the flashlight to check for more slimes in the area, only to notice a treasure chest out of the corner of his eye.
"Sire, over here!" the ever loyal snail called, "looks like this planet wasn't as empty as we had thought."
Dedede tilted his head as Escargon kept pointing the flashlight at the chest.
"Lemmie take a look at that," he muttered, "somethin' about this rubs me the wrong way…"
Dedede walked up to the chest and carefully examined it.
"And what would that be?" Escargon asked with a sigh.
"Just…a bad feelin' is all," Dedede could only reply, "like somethin' is lookin' at me."
Dedede shuddered as he had a sneaky suspicion the still closed chest had something sinister inside it. Having experienced dark magic and being possessed more times than he cared to remember served as a reminder to take caution. The penguin knocked on the chest a few times, but nothing happened. After a few moments, he carefully opened it for a brief second and shut it again.
"There's five sticks o' dynamite inside," Dedede exclaimed frantically, "and an eyeball! Keep that lid shut!"
Dedede grabbed some hanging vines and used them to tie the chest shut tighter. Escargon scrambled over to the chest and pulled one of the vines tighter.
"I don't know what's in there but it ain't right," Dedede mumbled with hesitation, "I'm kinda having second thoughts about this, but if there is a monster in there, then I guess it'll have to do…"
Dedede recalled that one moment he used to have a cursed chest under the castle, until the Squeak Squad stole it.
"Well," Escargon remarked, "as long as it keeps Kirby in shape and ready for stronger foes."
"I dunno," Dedede sighed, "compared to a few of the last monsters he fought, this one feels a bit puny. But anything works, I suppose…"
Having made up his mind, Dedede lifted the chest, hefting it over his shoulder as if its weight was nothing. He held up the lantern in the other hand as he led Escargon through the tunnels, backtracking their way to the entrance.
Back in the snowy forest, Vesa smiled at the sight of a couple birds perching on a branch. Fecto Elfilis was currently resting on the ground nearby, relishing in the peace now that they've finished populating the region and establishing a fully functional ecosystem. The human stepped closer to the lake nearby and watched some Atlantic Cod swimming beneath the surface in a crowded school. The tall alien rodent eventually slid down the tree to just being flat on their back, accidentally making the world's most physically accurate snow angel.
After a few minutes, Vesa glanced over her shoulder before she shuffled her way to her partner. She tilted her head and leaned down, clasping her hands behind her back.
"Hey," she smiled, "enjoying the view over here?"
"I suppose," Elfilis nodded as they blushed.
Vesa dropped to her knees and cupped their cheeks with her hands as she gave Elfilis a kiss on the top of their head. They shyly lifted their head to return the kiss, their tail swaying beneath them as they sat up. Vesa brushed her lips along Elfilis's and perched her hands on their shoulders. Their fur bristled nervously, but they melted into the kiss, which deeply warmed their wounded soul. Vesa perched on their lap as they cupped her back with their large hands. She softly closed her eyes and her nose took in the scent of pine needles their fur picked up, which made her feel even more relaxed. After a moment, they broke off the kiss and she nuzzled their cheek.
"Say," Vesa asked, "I think I'm ready to head back. What about you?"
Elfilis blinked twice as they flexed their feelers.
"Yes," they nodded, "I am if you are."
Vesa pushed herself off their lap, allowing Elfilis to rise to their feet. The tall alien rodent offered their hand, prompting her to grasp it. They gently lifted her to her feet and began using their superior senses to locate Dedede and his attendant. After a moment, they opened up a portal and pulled the penguin king and the snail through. They raised their brow at the sight of a strange chest on Dedede's shoulder. Shrugging, they went to sensing for the location of Zan Partizanne. Summoning another portal, the thunder mage and Fumu arrived in front of the others. Vesa blinked twice as she noticed an enchanted mirror in the young girl's hands.
"Welcome back," Vesa greeted, "I assume you all had a wonderful time here?"
"We did, and it was interesting," Zan nodded, "we found an abandoned structure of some kind, and it appeared to be some kind of home built into a tree. Clearly, some kind of magic was at work in making it possible."
"We found this neat mirror inside!" Fumu added with clear interest.
Elfilis placed a finger on their lower jaw.
"It appears to allow one to teleport to a location," Elfilis commented, "although I have no idea where that would be."
Escargon cleared his throat as he rapidly rubbed his arms.
"Can we get a move on?!" he demanded, "it's cold out here and I want to get home to a nice mug of coco—"
Elfilis shot Escargon a bit of a glare in annoyance.
"Very well," Elfilis declared blandly.
Elfilis raised their large hand high, teleporting themself, Vesa, Dedede, Escargon, Zan and Fumu back to the castle courtyard. The penguin king immediately nodded at the Waddle Dees standing by the large door, who proceeded to push it open. Escargon scurried inside while Zan, Fumu, Vesa and Elfilis climbed the short flight of stairs. They meandered down the corridor until they reached the entrance to the tower.
"Let me know if you want to look into the mirror more," Elfilis offered, "I can likely help with that if you give me some time to do so."
Zan couldn't help but smile at her sibling.
"Thank you, Elfilis," Zan nodded.
Zan proceeded to open the door and head inside. Fumu followed her mentor into the tower with Vesa and Elfilis following not too far behind. The tall alien rodent took in their surroundings, marveling at the gears and cogs decorating the walls. Vesa sat down in a lounge chair while Fumu placed the mirror on a desk. After a few minutes of relaxing, a thought popped into her head.
"Hey, Zan?" Vesa asked, "do you know if Elfilis ever had hot cocoa before?"
Zan placed her hand behind her head.
"No, I haven't," Elfilis admitted, lowering their head.
"I mean," Zan added with a shrug, "I don't think we had any kind of chocolate back of Halcandra."
"I see," Vesa offered, "I feel like having some hot cocoa myself. Would you like some, too?"
Elfilis perked up their feelers.
"Of course," they nodded.
Vesa smiled just as Lololo and Lalala paused with sorting a bookshelf and floated over to Zan Partizanne.
"We'll go get some!" Lololo proclaimed.
"Yeah!" Lalala added, "you guys sit tight!"
"Thank you," Vesa blurted with a soft giggle.
With that, Lololo and Lalala left the room. While they waited, Elfilis approached the desk and began examining the mirror. After a moment, they figured its teleportation enchantment locked onto only one location, but figured there might be some yet to be discovered method to change the exact location. Minutes passed on until Lololo and Lalala flew back in. A Waddle Dee arrived with a tray holding six mugs of hot cocoa.
"Hey," the Waddle Dee announced, "I got some hot cocoa here!"
Elfilis took a cup and nodded.
"I recommend waiting a couple minutes," Elfilis advised, "or I could chill it slightly for you."
Vesa reached out and carefully picked up a mug from the tray.
"Don't worry," Vesa reassured Elfilis, "I can be patient."
Vesa gently cradled her mug in her hands and carefully blew at her drink to cool it down a little. Lololo and Lalala floated down to retrieve their mugs before the Waddle Dee carried the tray to Zan Partizanne. Elfilis took a sip of their hot chocolate, withstanding the hot temperatures of the drink and savoring the flavor. While Zan and Fumu grabbed their mugs, Vesa checked the temperature of her mug. She took a small sip after deciding her drink had cooled down a little. She could taste the sweetness of the cocoa. She turned her gaze toward her alien lover.
"How is it?" she asked.
Elfilis softly closed their eyes.
"It's sweet and creamy," they answered.
Vesa couldn't help but smile. No doubt, Elfilis would surely add the cocoa to their genetic library soon.
"That's great!" she chirped.
Vesa took another sip of her hot cocoa while Lololo and Lalala gave their drinks a taste test with their tongues. Elfilis perked up their feelers before returning their gaze to their drink. They somehow felt the hot cocoa being scalding hot took away the flavor, so with a simple spell, they chilled their drink a little. The tall alien rodent returned their focus to Vesa, surprised by her patience regarding her drink. While she went for another sip, Elfilis sat down next to her, fanning out their large wings for a brief moment yet careful to avoid colliding one wing with the lounge chair. As soon as they finished stretching their wings, they patted their human girlfriend on her head, eliciting a soft giggle from her.
"I had a good time on that planet today," Vesa told Elfilis, "how about you?"
Elfilis placed a finger on their lower jaw while Zan Partizanne and Fumu started sipping their hot cocoa.
"Honestly, I was slightly disappointed," Elfilis admitted, making a brief glance at Zan, "mostly since I was hoping to go just with you to start with but we quickly ended up with several stragglers, no offense."
"None taken," the thunder mage shrugged.
Fumu's face reddened in mere embarrassment.
"I intended it to be a bit of a romantic research trip," Elfilis continued.
Vesa placed her hand on Elfilis's shoulder.
"And it still was," Vesa added, "Zan and Dedede may have gone off in different directions with Fumu and Escargon respectively, but I felt like I was closer to you when we made the trip. That's all that matters to me."
"Well, I'm happy you enjoyed yourself," Elfilis sighed, "I had a bit of trouble myself worrying about what the king could be doing. Whatever Dedede and his advisor brought back with them might be of some concern, but not too strong for it to be an issue."
Still, Elfilis relaxed their shoulders, so they might consider the date a success. Vesa tilted her head after she took another sip of her cocoa, recalling the chest over Dedede's shoulder.
"I think I understand what you're referring to," Vesa agreed, "do you think Kirby can handle whatever is inside that chest?"
"I have no doubts about that," Elfilis answered.
Shortly after Vesa took yet another sip of her drink, she reached out her hand and scratched the underside of Elfilis's jaw. The tall alien rodent blushed and leaned into the touch, their tail swaying happily behind them. Vesa finished her hot cocoa first, so she placed the empty mug on an end table. From there, she spent a while running her fingers through their chest mane, eliciting soft purrs from deep in their chest.
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