August 2024 update: this chapter's grammar has been revised. The plot has not been altered, but I have removed a sentence that didn't fit Gooey's characterization.

Differences

Tiff was in another dimension.

That was the conclusion that she and Kirby reached after a brief talk. It was hard to believe, but somehow she had ended up in a parallel universe. She felt like the main characters of a few fantasy stories she had read, though she didn't have a pair of red shoes that could bring her back home, and she hoped that this world didn't have a deranged monarch who wanted to chop off her head.

"Oh, wait. Dedede also exists in this dimension, so the deranged monarch is guaranteed," Tiff realised. Even if it seemed like Dedede and Kirby got along better in that universe, that didn't have to mean that penguin wasn't an egocentric tyrant with a bad temper, just like the one she knew and the queen from that book (minus the chopping heads part).

As for how they had figured that out, two pieces of information were key. The first was the two Kirbies' obvious age difference. The second was eNeMeE, who in that universe was better known as Nightmare.

That dimension's Kirby had defeated the villain a long time ago, albeit under entirely different circumstances. The nightmare wizard had tried to corrupt something called the "Fountain of Dreams," and that dimension's Dedede sealed him by breaking the Star Rod. However, Kirby had to take action because Dedede's acts made everyone in Pop Star unable to dream.

"So, like in my dimension, you are the one who has to fix the problems caused by Dedede," Tiff commented once the alternate Kirby finished telling his story, unable to hide her disdain for the monarch.

"Uh? Dedede stopped being the cause of the problems a long time ago," he claimed, a little upset. "And the Star Rod thing was just a big misunderstanding between us two. If only we were on better terms back then..."

The alternative Kirby seemed offended by how Tiff talked about Dedede, so the girl decided to think of other things she could ask about.

By the way Kirby had described it, the Fountain of Dreams seemed to be the natural antithesis of Nightmare. Why didn't it exist in her dimension? How did the Star Rod become something only obtainable in dreams? The lack of the Fountain could explain why her dimension's version of Nightmare had gained so much power. The only defence her universe had against the villain were the Star Warriors, but they were defeated in the war against the wizard and his creations.

"If this dimension has the blessing of the Fountain of Dreams to protect you, then do Star Warriors exist?" Tiff asked Kirby.

"I don't know. I've never heard of them, but they sound like something Meta Knight would like to be part of," the pufball answered.

"Well, you're not mistaken about that. Meta Knight is a Star Warrior in my dimension," she confirmed. Kirby smiled confidently because he had guessed right. "And so are you," she added.

"Even if I am just a baby?" Kirby asked. Tiff nodded. "That is so cool, poyo!"

Tiff finished eating the Maxim Tomato that Kirby had given her. It was easy to see why they were that version of her friend's favourite food. Not only did it taste way better than any regular tomato, but she also felt totally rejuvenated, as if she never had a fever. It was a shame those didn't exist in her world; Kirby would have loved them.

"I wonder how he is doing. I hope I can go back home soon," she thought longingly.

That dimension's Kirby had promised that he would find a way to get her back home as quickly as possible. The puffball had travelled to other worlds and dimensions before and knew a few people who were well versed in interdimensional travel. The young hero was confident that Tiff would soon be back in her world with her friends and family.

But as she was thinking about reuniting with her loved ones, Tiff felt like she was forgetting something important. Something related to that dream she could barely remember. What could it be? What was she missing?

"Gooey is taking a long time... How weird," Kirby suddenly said with concern, interrupting the girl's thoughts.

"Who is Gooey? You said you were with them when you found me," Tiff asked, intrigued.

"When he is not travelling around Pop Star on his own, he is my roommate. I tasked him with finding some extra food while I brought you here, but he should have already returned."

So instead of Tokkori, Kirby was sharing his house with that Gooey guy. Tiff hoped that he was a better roommate than the bird, though the bar was not set very high.

"He may be in trouble. He gets easily distracted, but this is taking him way too long. I'm going to go look for him," Kirby decided as he got up.

"Wait!" Tiff stopped him. "I want to go with you. I would like to learn more about this new Dream Land. Maybe we will even find a clue about how I ended up here," she explained.

"Well, if you really feel good enough to travel, then you can come with me!" he replied with a smile. "There's nothing like an adventure to get to know someone better, especially if that someone is my best friend in another dimension!"

Tiff couldn't help but smile at the pink puffball's contagious enthusiasm. His gentleness and sweetness, his love for food, his innate kindness, his desire for adventure... This version of Kirby may be older than the one she knew, had other friends, and had gone through different adventures, but he was still Kirby at his core.

And so, the two set off in search of Kirby's missing roommate.

The world that greeted Tiff on the other side of Kirby's front door was just as colourful and bright as the one in the photos. It wasn't an edited saturation effect; that version of Dream Land was naturally like that. The brightness hurt her eyes a bit, but she soon got used to it. Tiff couldn't help but wonder if the power of the Fountain of Dreams was the reason why everything looked so vibrant.

As they walked, Tiff asked Kirby if Cappy Village existed in that world. He replied that his world's cappies lacked the coordination to build something like that. Furthermore, there were no cities in that Dream Land. It's inhabitants were able to live where they wanted as they wanted, as long as they didn't bother their neighbours. They didn't even have a currency! That sounded both idyllic and chaotic. Tiff couldn't imagine her own Dream Land working like that.

Suddenly, Kirby stopped in the middle of the road. Tiff looked at him, confused. There was nothing out of the ordinary in this place.

"This is where we found you," Kirby pointed out. "Do you see anything around here that could be connected to your home?"

"No. Even the landscape is way different from the one there," Tiff denied, disappointed. Up until that moment, she had hoped that finding the location where she had appeared would give a clue about how she got there in the first place.

"Hmmm, maybe I should bring Magolor here so he can use his magic to detect if something is off," Kirby pondered. Then he began to think about the last time he had seen Gooey in order to guess his location: "okay, so Gooey and I found you here, and then we parted ways. I went home while he went in that direction..."

Kirby turned towards the nearby forest. An expression of mild aversion appeared on his face as he seemed to realise something.

"Oh, no. So that is why he is taking so long. Follow me!" Kirby exclaimed.

Kirby ran off into the woods, closely followed by Tiff. The puffball knew exactly where to go and led her towards a clearing in the forest.

There they found someone Tiff knew well, facing another being she had only seen in Kirby's photos. The first one was Whispy, the wise tree who, in her world, protected the woods that shared his name. The second one was a small blue blob with googly eyes and a long red tongue, which gave it a goofy appearance. Whispy was blocking the path with his roots.

"Come on, Whispy. I only want an apple or two. They are for a sick child," the blue blob pleaded.

"For the last time, I'm not in the mood to share my fruit with anyone!" the tree refused.

"Then, at least let me pass so I can find something on my own"

"No! No one is going to cross my forest today!" Whispy shouted as he spread his roots to block the road further.

The brief exchange between the blob and the tree was enough to show Tiff that this Whispy was nothing like the one from her dimension. The Whispy she knew would never be so mean-spirited!

"I knew it, poyo. Whispy is angry again. Who knows what has gotten into him this time?" Kirby commented exasperatedly, as if that happened often. "Stay here; things could get messy," he asked Tiff before running towards the tree and the blob. "Hey, you two! Why are you arguing?"

"Kirby!" Gooey exclaimed, glad to see his friend. "I'm sorry. I was looking for apples and I didn't notice I entered Whispy's territory," he apologised.

"It's okay, Gooey. It's not your fault Whispy is being a meanie again," Kirby assured him with a warm smile. Then he turned to the apple tree and asked, "And what about you, Whispy? Why are you in such a bad mood today?"

"Why don't you ask your friend the king about that?" the tree bellowed in response.

"Dedede has visited you today? That's weird... Well, whatever happened, I doubt it justifies you forbidding people to go through the forest!" Kirby scolded the tree.

"Of course it does! Dedede showed up unannounced and started yelling and disrespecting me! He even threatened to cut me down! After all I endured for him in the past, how dare he treat me like this? I'm not going to let anyone cross my territory until he apologises!"

"What? Dedede wouldn't do that!" Kirby defended the king. "Besides, he and Meta Knight have been training together in his castle since morning, so he couldn't have visited you today!"

"Are you saying I'm lying, brat?"

It was at that point that Tiff lost track of the conversation. Had she heard correctly?

Dedede and Meta Knight training together was an oxymoron. Dedede was extremely lazy and preferred to pay others to do his work. Also, why would Meta Knight train with Dedede? The knight did not feel any kind of respect or appreciation for the king. Yes, the Star Warrior was still the king's employee even after the fall of N.M.E., but only because Meta Knight wanted to keep an eye on him so he wouldn't join another evil company (and because living in the castle was very comfortable).

Tiff shook her head and reminded herself that she was in a different Dream Land. She shouldn't judge the Dedede of that dimension by how the one she knew behaved, especially after meeting that Whispy. Whereas the Whispy she knew was gentle and wise, always treating Kirby well, the version from that world seemed to be grumpy and hostile to the young hero.

The argument between Whispy and Kirby had escalated so much that the tree was now throwing explosive apples at the puffball and Gooey. Tiff, who hadn't moved from her spot, watched Kirby's expression change from annoyed to determined before he began to retaliate against Whispy. He inhaled the apples and spit them out directly into the tree's face. Gooey did the same, but he grabbed the apples with his tongue.

After barely a minute of fighting, one of Whispy's roots raised a white flag, causing Kirby and his friend to stop attacking.

"Fine! I will move away!" the tree growled, giving up and clearing the path. "Today isn't my day."

Kirby and Gooey began to jump up and down, as if they were doing a celebration dance for their victory. Tiff was amazed by the puffball's fighting skills. If he had defeated Whispy in such a short amount of time without a copy ability, what would he be able to do with one?

It was obvious that the alternate Kirby didn't need someone like her to be his guardian. And when her Kirby grew up, he wouldn't either.

"This is not the time to think about that," Tiff scolded herself, pushing that gloomy thought from her mind. Now that the fight was over, she approached Kirby and Gooey.

"Ah, you're the person we found earlier," Gooey greeted her. "I'm glad to see you're okay! I am Gooey. I guess Kirby has already told you about me. Nice to meet you."

Gooey stuck his tongue out. Tiff guessed he wanted her to shake it as if it were a hand.

"Nice to meet you too, Gooey. My name is Tiff," she answered politely as she shook the tongue, trying to hold back an expression of disgust as best she could. Fortunately, although the tongue was a bit slimy, it didn't leave any saliva on her hand.

"She comes from an alternate Dream Land!" Kirby explained happily to his friend.

"Oh really? Is it any different from ours?" Gooey asked Tiff curiously.

"I haven't seen much yet, but I can already tell that it is very different," she replied, looking askance at the grumpy Whispy.
"Don't worry. Kirby will surely find a way to get you back home. When he sets his mind to something, no one can stop him," Gooey assured her.

"You can count on me, poyo!" Kirby exclaimed.

"Thank you very much. I'm sorry my arrival has caused you two trouble," she apologised. After all, the reason Gooey had gone into the forest in the first place was to find food for her.

"You don't need to apologise. I am always willing to help whoever needs it. That is why they call me the hero of Dream Land," Kirby replied, puffing out his cheeks proudly.

"Hey, you three. Can you continue the conversation outside of my woods?" Whispy interrupted them abruptly. "I'm trying to take a nap."

"Okay, okay. We'll leave," Kirby said to the grumpy tree. Then he turned to his companions and said, "Come on, let's meet with Dedede, Meta and Bandee!"

"Uh? Why?" Tiff asked, a bit confused, as she followed him. She had no idea who Bandee was or why Kirby had decided that their next move should be to visit those three.

"So they can help us!" Kirby replied as if it were the most logical thing in the world. "Also, Gooey and I were going to hang out with them today. They must be waiting for us. Oh, and Bandana Dee has made apple pie!"

"Oh, Bandee's apple pie. I missed how delicious they taste," Gooey commented.

"Well, in that case, lead the way," Tiff said as she followed the duo, curious to see what other surprises and, most importantly, differences awaited her beyond Whispy's forest.

After all, her adventure in that strange Dream Land had only begun.