An Artist, a Thief, and… a Villain?

Chapter 1
A Palace With All Kinds of Reunions

(Uploaded on April 13, 2019)

Summary: Fresh off from the Clash at Castle Dedede, King Dedede joins Kirby and his ragtag bunch of companions to summon a couple friends from the Dream Palace. And boy, is it a welcome surprise for him.

(He doesn't know what's in store for the other Dream Friends. Maybe he should, considering who he's friends with. But right now, all he sees is two of his close friends coming back around for another adventure – and that's good enough for him.)

Notes: This fic is set during the events of Kirby Star Allies. This chapter in particular occurs directly before the Star Allies set out for the second world, Planet Pop Star. No Wave 3 Dream Friends are featured in this fic, as I set up the Star Allies portion of the Make a Friend 'verse before their announcement.

This fic was formerly known as Please Stop Adding Villains, Kirby; it was updated on April 13, 2019 to properly integrate all of the Wave 2 Dream Friends.

Dream Palaces were an interesting subject to talk about.

They were, even more so than the Fountain of Dreams, the most prominent relic of the Ancients left… though that was primarily due to the fact that there were several of them spread out across the planet.

These white cathedrals have long been a mystery to the population of Dream Land. What were they, exactly? Remnants of an extinguished religion? Home bases where their technology once flourished? Monuments for future generations of the galaxy to see, so they can be awed at their might?

No answers have ever been forthcoming – and in truth, there may be no answers ever to be found. And, perhaps, there doesn't need to be any answers.

For the longest time, the palaces were just a disorganized set of fanciful architecture, and nothing more. And when both Pop Star and the Gamble Galaxy often had far greater things to worry about, the Dream Palaces were easily able to fade into subconscious memory, another unsolved mystery in the long history of Pop Star.

Until recently, that is.

With the meteor shower induced by the shattering of the Jamba Heart, Dream Palaces all over the galaxy have fully reactivated and come alive. And the Dream Rods inside has a power that, in this time of crisis, the newly formed Star Allies could duly need.

After all: who wouldn't want to have their longtime friends adventuring alongside them?

(Kirby's definition of 'friend' could use a bit of an update, certainly; he seemed to ally with his former enemies just as frequently as with his loyal companions. But maybe… that's exactly what everyone needed.

A chance to ease the burden on their souls, to create truly mutual relationships – and, in the end, find all the things that they never even knew they needed.

Like many of the things the Ancients created, the Dream Palaces – with the assistance of a puffball who loves friendships with all of his heart – can make quite the wonderful miracles, in that regard.)

Shortly after King Dedede's (re-)recruitment to the Star Allies…

[King Dedede]

Pop Star
Dream Land – Outside the Dream Palace

So! Looks like we've gotten ourselves in yet another pickle.

Purple hearts are falling, people are being possessed, paradigms are shifting rapidly, and overall the whole planet's in a state of havoc. It's sad to say that that's far for the course nowadays.

I mean, between Nightmare, Dark Matter, Queen Sectonia, and the Haltmann Works Company – and NOVA only knows how many more names they are – you'd think we'd be able to catch some sort of break from all these world-conquering (or ending) villains. We get them so constantly (every one-to-two years; it's kinda inconsistent) and with often such high stakes, it's gets really ridiculous. It's a good thing Kirby's so good at creating miracles – 'cause otherwise, Dream Land wouldn't exactly be a 'World of Peace' anymore.

Luckily, this time, he won't be alone. I've been out of commission the last three adventures, for various reasons—be it getting kidnapped by Taranza, having my color sucked out by a thing in the sky, or tending to my people during the Robobot crisis—but now, I'm back and ready to kick some bad guy butt! (Or 'evil bad guy butt', as Kirby would put it.) In fact, Kirby's bringing back the whole house for this journey—and not just in the Helper department.

"Here we are, everybody!" Kirby announced, proudly stretching a hand out to the Dream Palace ahead of us. "We're back at the Dream Palace! A Dream Palace, anyway!" He took in a deep breath, a gigantic smile plastered on his face all the while. "Mmm… you can just smell the sweet scent of friendship hanging in the air! Ain't it great!?"

I took in the Dream Palace's exterior with intrigued eyes. There certainly was an air of warmth just emanating from the building, if that was what he was talking about. Though honestly, I was paying more attention to how much the all-white, circular cathedral stood out in contrast to its surroundings. It was so white, it eclipsed literally everything else around it—which might have been the point of the design, now that I think about it. "Well, I guess it is something else," I admitted. "It's certainly very…" I shielded my eyes with my arm; the sunlight practically seemed to reflect off of the sheer whiteness. "…bright." What an understatement.

I've known about the Dream Palaces for a long time. Okay, 'known' is kind of an exaggeration: I've heard rumors about them told to me by Bandana Dee, and I haven't cared enough to investigate 'em. I've got more important things to do with my time, you know? As far as I could tell, they weren't doing anything big for me to have to pay attention – and when you consider how much else Kirby and I have to contend with, I was fine with leaving any intel about them by the wayside.

Though apparently, they weren't happy with being relegated to the background like that, because now Kirby tells me they've gained the power to summon our old friends to journey with us. Dream Friends, one might call them. They make up the primary members of our as-of-currently unnamed squad, and prior to—let's say, 're-recruiting' me, Kirby had already collected six traversing through Dream Land.

"It—It may be kind of gaudy, s-sure," Bandana Dee said, perched on my back ('I just wanna rest on you and feel nice in your presence—th-that's fine, r-right?'), "b-but it's really helpful, Great King! T-Trust me, y-you won't regret coming here!"

I sighed. "I hope you're right, Dee."

Bandana Dee was expected; he's his best friend next to me. Dee's been with him in some capacity ever since we helped repair the Lor Starcutter, so it's no wonder he joined up with Kirby as soon as things went haywire. I'm glad to see he's still in tip-top shape with that trusty spear of his – and though I don't foresee him gaining many opportunities to use his Assist Stars, something tells me we're not gonna need 'em this time around.

"Don't worry, mate!" Rick's voice reassured me. And there's the rest of our squad, comin' on through. I turned around, and there was the hamster waddling up, accompanied by his friends Coo and Kine. "What Dee here's sayin' is truer than true! This place 's a real corker, if you get what I mean! Like having a barbie at a rage!"

Rick, Kine, and Coo haven't really been involved with Kirby's escapades since the second Dark Matter incident, but they're still formidable adventurers in their own right. They—and their other Animal Buddies—managed to defend the Great Forest from the Haltmann Works Company two years ago, so having them help out is more than welcome in my eyes. They work pretty dang well together, able to chain combos and combine attacks with a camaraderie my troops only wish they had.

"Rick, nobody gets what you mean half the time," Coo interjected, looking suitably annoyed. I got the feeling he'd love to go smack Rick for his… fairly esoteric terminology. "Can't you use English normally? Exercising my mind trying to dissect your language gives me a headache sometimes."

"That's just how he is, Coo, you know that," Kine sighed, wearing an expression that could be described as 'long-suffering' (or at the very least, 'well used to his friends' crap'). "Maybe you need to take a break at Onion Ocean; you're getting too wound up…"

…unsurprisingly, that camaraderie can be a little bit funky at times.

A lot of trios are like that. And duos. And quartets. And, uh, friends in general, actually. Hmm.

"If Coo is wound up, he should eat some food," Gooey suggested, moving on closer to us at a sluggish pace, true to his nature. "Food makes everything better. Food helps you tell what time it is. Food means breakfast. Food means dinner. Food means lunch. Is it lunch time yet? I'm hungry. We should eat something."

Leave it to Gooey to have his train of thought zig-zag like that.

Gooey's a tad bit on the strange side, and he's definitely not 'all there', but he's a nice guy to have here. He's not as efficient as Kirby is in using Copy Abilities – he's limited to one attack per ability – and his fighting experience similarly doesn't compare, though he does have a few innate moves in him, much like what Kirby uses for the Smash tournaments. And though his Mock Matter form does kind of creep me out, I have to confess it can be helpful in a pinch.

"I am feeling a little peckish," Coo confessed.

"So am I, actually," Kirby chimed in. "Maybe that's a sign of something!"

"You're always hungry, Kirby," I said. That's why I've got a fridge full of cakes back at the castle. We're lucky he doesn't go inhale-happy whenever he sees an all-you-can-eat buffet.

"That doesn't matter!" he replied, still as chipper as ever. "I'm in the mood for a picnic now – haven't had a whole lot since this morning!" I guess he was too focused on getting to me then. "How about it, Coo? Doesn't that sound fun?"

"Y-Yeah!" Dee cheered. I smiled, hearing him sound so delighted – even better since I could feel him moving on my back in joy. I love my little assistant. "I—I wouldn't mind, having a little food break before we go on!"

I took a few moments to think about my own response. "I wouldn't mind either," I decided. "We can't be eating food off the ground all the time, even if it is fresh." (Which is another mystery for the ages we'll never solve.) What I wouldn't give for one of Adeleine's picnics… she always knew how to paint the best ones. It'd be nice, if she and Ribbon were here right now…

The owl hummed for a bit, giving the idea good consideration—far more consideration than I think it needs—before finally: "Fine! I'll eat! It'll be better than anything else I can come up with."

And then—"Hey, hey, hey! What's this I'm hearing about a picnic?"

Four individuals—Bandana Dee, Rick, Kine, and Coo—groaned in unison. I myself had an urge to palm my face.

Right. Him.

The real standout Dream 'Friend' though in our merry band of misfits: Marx.

Marx.

Marx, the jester who'd prank everybody into oblivion if he had the chance.

Marx, the villain who tried to take over Pop Star while manipulating an unsuspecting Kirby.

Marx, the former Soul Boss who quite literally died screaming in the True Arena.

You can… probably tell he was an unexpected face to see when I 'woke up' after my and Kirby's little tussle.

I was… wary of him. Still am, in fact. The other four I mentioned are, too.

Who wouldn't be? Everyone in Dream Land has some knowledge about the shenanigans Marx got up to, both prior and during 1996. He was a notorious prankster, masterfully setting up all sorts of practical jokes under the noses of whoever his latest victim was, with an ingeniousness that honestly stumped many. He grew… dissatisfied with his course in life, though, which led him to concocting a plot to take over Pop Star—which involved using Galactic NOVA to get his way.

As you can tell, that went… poorly.

He was a corpse floating in space for over twelve years—either that, or comatose. (I'm not sure which one of the two is any better.) And then, for the first True Arena, he was revived using the discarded fragments of NOVA, to serve as the coliseum's final battle… and with that, he became the second Soul Boss Pop Star's ever seen in the last who-knows-how-many-years. That's… not something to be proud of.

There's a few things that prevent me from just dismissing Marx outright, though. A) I trust Kirby, and whatever action he decides to take, I'll trust it'll be good; B) he's been halfway amicable to us, supposedly thanks to Kawasaki's offer to feed him; and C) he's not the first resurrected ex-villain we've had to deal with.

Magolor—a mage and dimensional traveler hailing from Halcandra—had a plot and situation eerily similar to Marx, right down to being a Soul Boss at the very end. He was genuinely remorseful about what he did—and he described the 'Soul Boss experience' as being absolutely horrifying. Similarly, Marx told us that he had no desire to be drawn back into such a situation again – and… well, after seeing the last four True Arenas (and even participating in one), I think I can safely believe him on that front.

And plus… sometimes, out of the corner of my eye, when he thinks nobody's looking—I see Marx, staring at Kirby; staring at him happily jumping around with his companions, myself included, with this longing look cleanly plastered all over his face. As if there was something within our interactions that he had forgotten, something he desperately wanted back.

I recognized that expression as being once upon a time my own, before Kirby and I reconciled our previously troubled relationship.

…that's something no one person should ever have.

In light of all that… I'm willing to give Marx a chance.

"You guys weren't going to not invite me, were you?" the jester playfully asked. His head began tilting left and right, his eyes pointed upward in a thinking position. "It'd be a shame if somebody had to eat alllllll of the food before you guys could~"

…he's not making that decision easy for me, though.

"Of course you're invited to the picnic!" Kirby told him. (At the same time, Coo muttered, "I wish we could.") "I'd never turn away a friend for anything!"

"Hee hee hee—I'm glad to hear it!" His eyes trailed over to the Dream Palace. "You know, I never did get a good look at this place when we came out of it the first time." He narrowed his eyes. "It's… really, really gaudy. E-yuck! When we're done with this, I'm giving it a good paint job!"

"Will it be a pretty paint job?" Gooey asked him, obliviously.

"Errrrrr…" Marx looked shifty. "…sureeeee. Sure, let's go with that."

"Okay," Gooey drooled.

"Oh, Gooey," Dee sighed.

Everyone's personality bounces off one another really well, I see. It's like the chaos of all of us fighters at the Smash Mansion, except on a far lesser scale. Eight of us main members are already a bit of a doozy – imagine when that number hits… ooh, let's say, thirteen, or sixteen. That'll be a heck of a time.

Speaking of increasing our numbers… "Right!" I exclaimed loudly. "Enough sitting around! Let's go summon a Dream Friend so we can get back to business!" Taking initiative, I waked toward the palace first, a confident strut in my gait. "C'mon, gang—time's a-wastin', especially when we've got people to save!"

"We—We hear you, Great King!" Dee said from my back. "Y-You heard him, everybody!"

A chorus of "Aye aye's!" echoed behind me – some semi-sarcastically, some more whole-heartedly – and we made our way inside.

Dream Palace – Interior

The interior of the Dream Palace had enough light to power a freaking reactor.

Somehow, it was even brighter inside than it was outside, with these large windows surrounding the walls seemingly designed to let in as much light as feasible – despite the fact that I'm pretty sure the sun wasn't even shining in those areas. The columns standing in front of said windows, holding up several yellow heart-themed lamps didn't help matters, either. To cap it all off, there was a spinning, planet-like lamp hanging on the ceiling, highlighting the elevated platform in the middle of the cathedral quite well.

Maybe there was merit to Marx wanting to redecorate this place after all. I'm resisting the urge to put on sunglasses right then and there.

I have to admit, though, it's architecturally magnificent – trust me, I'd know a thing or two about designing a building; I had to help make the blueprints for my castle. And there's a sort of beauty to it, with the serene atmosphere and the simplistic, but effective design.

There's also this warm air steadily washing over us, which I do quite like. That 'sweet scent of friendship', as Kirby called it.

(I wonder if that's what he feels inside of himself all the time.)

My eyes looked around the place, an eyebrow raised interestedly. "…do all the Dream Palaces look and feel like this?" I asked. "Every single one of them?"

"Yeah, pretty much," Kirby replied, Fighter headband flowing in the breeze. "I've seen a few about the Gamble Galaxy, and they've been pretty much the same as each other, down to the lack of dust and cracks around the structures."

Interesting. "The Ancients really mastered the art of homogeneous design, huh?" I remarked. "They must've been quite a productive civilization."

"I—I wonder if they ever found N-Nintendium while they were still around," Dee wondered, a hand going to his chin. "I think it's possible. It might explain why these buildings are still here…"

We walked further into the cathedral, Kirby taking the lead in front of me, the rest of our Dream Friends following behind me. I could hear the guys discussing something as we went.

("Hey, do you think Meta Knight would appreciate it if I drew all over his mask?"

"Absolutely not! You shouldn't even be thinking about it!"

"You should listen to him, mate. It ain't a good idea."

"Pfffft! Good ideas, bad ideas, who cares? It'd be a great way to reunite him to my utter majesty! It's been too long since I've messed with him, anyway!"

"You and Meta Knight are long-time friends? That sounds good. This means your friendship can grow bigger and even longer. Like a good sandwich. I like sandwiches."

"…what." Marx sounded flabbergasted.

"…oh, Gooey, you happy blob… You're just so innocent sometimes, I don't know what to say…")

As we moved closer to the center, we saw a particular object floating a few feet off the floor: a white rod with a yellow hilt, a pink heart placed on top of it and accompanied by a silver star. This yellow top separated the heart from the white pole, curving out and attaching itself to the pole. (That sounds really weird, I know—but trust me, it looks like that.) A golden, almost holy aura emanated from the radiant heart as the artifact spun about in the air. "The Dream Rod," Kirby told me.

"Not to be confused with the Star Rod, I take it?" I said.

"Nope." I could hear him pop the 'p'.

"Do I even want to know how this thing does what it does?"

"P-Probably not," Dee spoke up. "I just h-hope we get another friend, th-this time… O-One Marx is about all I can handle!"

"Same here, Dee," I agreed. Under my breath, I began muttering, "Please be Adeleine, please be Adeleine, please be Adeleine…"

Our pink puffball waltzed on up and grabbed the identified Dream Rod. He stepped back a bit, presumably to give the eventual newcomer space to land on the elevated platform – and then raised it up to the sky, the telltale signs of friendship energy coalescing toward its form. The seven of us watched as the light within the rod got brighter and brighter—Dee especially; he had pushed himself up to get to get a better look, and I could feel his eyes sparkling even though I'm pretty sure he'd seen this before.

When enough power had been built up, a large flash of light lit up the whole room, forcing us to shield our eyes lest we get absolutely blindsided by it – and when it finally died down, a figure stood where there was previously no one.

Or, to be more accurate… two figures.

"Wh-Whoa! A-Addie, wh-what just happened?" A frantic look around. "W-Weren't we just on Strawberry Peak?"

"Yeah, we were. And I was just about to finish my drawing, too…" A pout. "Where the heck were we taken? This doesn't look like anywhere I've ever been…"

A gigantic smile sprouted upon my face – and I'm sure the same happened for Kirby and Dee. Ha ha—just the two I wanted to see! "Adeleine! Ribbon!" I shouted, stretching my arms out. "You're here!"

There they were, the black-haired artist and the pink-haired fairy – the former wearing her typical green collared smock and red beret, a rainbow-dipped paintbrush and palette in her two hands; the latter flying with tiny wings and her crimson dress and ribbon looking as cute as always. (Not as cute as Dee, though.) Their faces simultaneously lit up when they caught wind of us, and they responded in kind. "Kirby! Dedede! Dee!" Adeleine greeted us. "It's been over a month since we've last seen each other!"

We embraced each other in one great big group hug, Dee even jumping off my back to join in the fun – what can we say, we can get really touchy-feely in showing our affections – and we stayed like that for a good long while, just laughing and smiling in mutual friendship.

Adeleine's an amateur artist presumably descended from those born of Shiver Star, and Ribbon's the royal assistant (and keeper of the Crystal Gun) over on her homeworld of Ripple Star. Once upon a time, they were part of an adventure Kirby and I (and Dee) underwent to retrieve all the Crystal Shards all over the galaxy—and stop Dark Matter from consuming all of existence in darkness, because of course—and since then we've been pretty good friends! And boy, is it great to see them here, perfectly fine and unaffected by our current purple heart crisis.

"It feels like it's been forever since the last time we've seen each other," Adeleine said. "How's everyone been doing?"

"We're the same as ever," Kirby replied, with his typical cheeky smile. "Running 'round Dream Land, bashing in bosses' faces, a-livin' through another adventure. All the works, y'know!"

"Y-Yeah, what Kirby said!" Bandana Dee chimed in. "Y-You wouldn't believe all the stuff that's happened in the last couple of days!"

I began listing off the factors with my fingers, "I got possessed again, Kirby's got this new power—tell you about it later—we've got an unholy amount of friends with us, purple hearts have fallen all over Pop Star, contact with Meta Knight's been lost…" I shrugged, putting on a more casual expression. "Suffice to say, crazy things are attacking us as usual, and we're going about making our planet not-crazy again, as usual."

Ribbon giggled. "Sounds like you guys have been busy! Just another day on Pop Star, huh?"

"You know it," I said. "It's us together against the threats of the universe, just like it was eighteen years ago. What more is there to say?" I grinned. "It's the perfect combination, with an equally perfect king and hero at the helm. Not a whole lot else to ask for!"

If I'm being honest… I wouldn't have it any other way. Sure, it gets exhausting having to deal with world-ending, life-altering events like this on an almost-annual basis – but that doesn't change the simple joys of going on an adventure with your friends by your side. It's like Mario's philosophy: it's the journey that counts, not the destination alone.

Adeleine, Ribbon, and Dee all simultaneously smiled as brightly as they could.

"Aside from a chance to take in the sights and paint a few pictures… I agree!"

"Yeah! When we've got each other's back, we can do anything!"

"Ohhhhhhhh, this is—this is e-exciting…! The f-five of us again… i-it's great!"

"Well, lookie here!" Rick proclaimed from behind me. "If it ain't Adeleine and Ribbon! G'day, you two!"

We broke off from our hug to let the artistic duo meet up with the rest of her friends. "Rick! Kine! Coo! Gooey!" Ribbon cheered. "You guys are here, too?"

"Of course!" Coo said. "It's been way too long since we've gone out and actually done something. My wings were itching to beat some bad guy butt – and luckily for us, we don't have to worry about protecting the Great Forest this time!"

"Good to see you're doing alright, you two," Kine said. "We could use your help looking for all those purple hearts. We're already a large crowd by ourselves, but it won't hurt to have a few more hands with us."

"Helping hands are good," Gooey agreed. "I like having Ado's hand helping us. She's a good friend. She and Ribbon. Maybe they can help us find some of those Puzzle Pieces, too. Finding stuff together is fun."

"I'd be glad to come help you guys with all that," Adeleine affirmed, waving her paintbrush in the air. "I mean, it wouldn't be like us to just stay out of something like this – especially if it involves the whole planet!"

"That's right!" Ribbon exclaimed, holding out her Crystal Gun proudly in her two hands. "We may not be strong, but we're more than ready for this!"

"Glad to hear it!" Marx voiced, something uncanny glittering in his eyes. "I'd hate for an abrupt exit before I can have any semblance of fun from you guys!"

Adeleine and Ribbon blinked in unison as they stared at Marx, appearing flummoxed by his mere presence. "Uhhhhhh…" the artist dragged out, sharing a brief glance with her partner. "Wh-who… who the heck are you?"

Marx gasped overdramatically. Oh no.

("Oh great, here he goes," Coo groaned.

Bandana Dee didn't feel much better. He hopped on my back again and slouched in anticipation. "I—I hope this isn't t-too long this time…" he muttered.)

"Whaaaaaaaat!?" he comedically bellowed. "You don't know who I am? Me, the jester of chaos, the legendary villain of years past? Oh, how could this be?" He started swooning around in an exaggerated manner, a look of false horror on his face as he continued his little performance. "Things have clearly gone downhill since I was last here! Looks like I oughta… 'convince' some Dees to write some new history books 'round here!" And now he was off rambling about the injustice of the cards he had been dealt – at least, that's what I could gather. It was just as comprehensible as the last half-dozen or so times he had loudly proclaimed his passion for something.

I didn't have much of an idea of what was going on. So I did the mental math in my head and promptly realized something: Oh, that's right. Marx died before Adeleine even made her way to Pop Star. And neither her nor Ribbon have seen a True Arena. I didn't think we'd have to do any introductions today, on account of the fact that everyone typically knows each other 'round these parts – but hey, first time for everything.

The artistic duo turned their heads to me, and I explained, "This guy's Marx. He used to be a villain who wanted to take over Dream Land. He, uh, failed. And then he died." And got into a Soul Boss. Brrrr… "And then Kirby brought back him to life." I shrugged, an uneasy grin on my face. "It's, uh, kind of a long story, but the short of it is: he's… here to help?"

"Hmm…" Adeleine and Ribbon hummed, both of them putting a finger to their chins. Man, it's cute when they're in sync like that. Really reminds me of Dee…

As if to reassure them, Kirby piped up, "Hey, don't worry! Marx is a friend now! He's not gonna do any evil bad things—'cause he promised he wouldn't relapse—and to prove that, he's helping us save the world!" There was such a big, dumb, goofy grin on his cheeks that you could tell he believed in that whole-heartedly. If you barely knew anything about him, you might chalk it up to him being naïve.

I knew better.

Oh, I knew better.

"Of course…" Kirby's smile dimmed to the point of contemplation. "…I know there's more to his desires than just that. He needs to find his way again – and hopefully, this journey will give him the opportunity to." It was that spirit, that determination to help out anyone he deemed a friend, that really showcased who Kirby was at his core. (And the partial reason why his group of comrades is as wide-ranging as it is. I'd never want to have any other people in my life, honestly.) "You know… maybe you guys could help him." Something more lighthearted entered his tone. "He could use the company, I reckon."

"I—I guess th-that's true…" Bandana Dee remarked, after a moment's silence. "E-Even if he's not what we entirely expected, he's… okay? Possibly? I—" He nervously scratched the back of his head. "I'm not really sure what to say… G-Great King, h-how 'bout you?"

"I'm not quite as confident as Kirby on this matter," I followed off from Dee, "but… yeah, I think his assessment's pretty correct." I moved my gaze to Marx, who was currently trying to hitch a ride on Coo, much to the owl's annoyance. ("Get off of me, you—you armless prick!" "Hmm? Is someone trying to h-owl at me? Sorry, I don't take caws!") There seemed to be an element of genuine happiness in his actions, even if it was subdued by other things running through his mind. "I'll be the first to admit that he wasn't my first choice of an ally – but now that he's here, we might as well make the most of it." We could've ended up with a worse 'Dream Friend', and at least he's trying. "It's a lot to ask, but… you think you could help him?"

Adeleine nodded determinedly, jokingly giving us a salute. "I'll try!" she replied. "If he needs another friend or two, then we'll be here to be those friends, with you and Kirby!"

"That's right! We managed to befriend you, after all!" Ribbon teased. "Compared to that, Marx'll be easy!"

"Hardy har har har," I laughed in a deadpan manner. "Very funny." (That smile never left my lips, in spite of that.)

But seriously, though—with Adeleine and Ribbon here, this adventure might just become a little easier. Kirby's always taken the phrase 'There's nothing wrong with having a lot of good friends!' to heart—and while I think he needs to re-evaluate his definition of the word 'friend' sometimes (*cough* Marx *cough* Magolor *cough*) I can really see where he's coming from. Having all your lifelong companions and acquaintances accompanying you on a grand journey, bashing enemies' heads in using various means, bantering and laughing all the way through… it's exhilarating. It's no wonder Kirby's such a Friendship Freak.

He'd love to have everyone else feel this with him, too.

And hey, I can't say I haven't missed having them around. It may have been years since our one and only adventure together, but dang if I don't enjoy hanging out with them! It's really just the cherry on top of the strawberry shortcake that is our current journey. And I know it'll be a heck of a delicacy to devour, for all of us – especially Kirby. Like he'd say: food's always best when you get to share it with others! (Mmmmm… I feel like I'm losing track of this metaphor.)

Anyway, I'm ready to pick up my fork and knife (or a hammer, as things normally go) and get to work on our meal already. I betcha Adeleine and Ribbon are, too.

Hmm… Speaking of which…

"You know," I idly commented, "we were gonna have a picnic, after we got back on track." I cast a knowing grin at the artistic duo. "I don't suppose you two would want to join us?"

"Of course we'll join!" Ribbon replied happily. "We wouldn't miss that for the world!"

"Especially not when it's a picnic we're talking about!" Adeleine added, waving her paintbrush high in the air.

"Oh, yeah—I almost forgot!" Rick spoke up. I got the impression he would've snapped his fingers if he could. "Adeleine can paint food into reality!"

"We won't have a hard time setting up the picnic, then," Kine mused. "Just a flick of her brush and we'd already be drowning in foodstuff."

"Don't forget strawberry shortcakes!" Kirby piped up, with the expected response. "Can't have a good lunch without a shortcake! Or a breakfast! Or dessert!"

"Yay dessert," Gooey drooled.

"Hang on a minute," Marx interrupted. He was looking very intrigued now. "You can… paint food into reality? What does that mean?"

"Oh, it means this!" In a puff of smoke, Adeleine's giant painting stand popped up behind her. Her arm got to work, a hamburger being quickly drawn onto the canvas – and once it was done, it burst right out and landed conveniently right in front of Marx.

The jester stared at the suddenly-3D piece of food for several seconds, eyes wide. He brought out his wings, a claw tentatively picking up the burger and waving it around as if it couldn't possibly be real. (Trust me buddy, it is.) Slowly, he brought it into his mouth – and his eyes sparkled in delight.

Like—actual, genuine delight.

And he's hooked.

He rushed up on to our favorite artist, beaming as widely as possible. "You and I are going to be the best of friends," he declared. "The best, bester, bestest of friends."

Adeleine and Ribbon had no idea how to respond to that. "Uhh… okay? Sure?" the artist unevenly replied.

Kirby and I stared at each other, contemplating this turn of events. "Well, that's one way to go about befriending a former villain," I stated. "Somehow… I'm not surprised."

"The offer of Kawasaki's food was the final nail in him agreeing to join us," Kirby offhandedly mentioned. "So long as he's well-fed, he'll be fine."

Dee speculated, "Is—Is that why he went e-evil in the first place? He didn't get enough f-food?" That's what I'm wondering too, Dee.

"Who knows?" Kirby shrugged. "Either way, I'm glad we've got something of a happy ending here." He held his head high and proudly. "I can't wait to see what other Dream Friends we call in next! Isn't it just… exciting?"

"Only you would consider something like this exciting," I said, shaking my head with a smile. Then again, I can be much the same way, too. "I don't think we've got anything to worry about, then." And I meant it – we've got plenty of allies on our side, and we're not fighting against any immediate Robobot-level threats. There's no reason not to be confident about our given chances. "After Marx, we shouldn't have any other issues. What could go wrong from here, honestly?"

I just gave A Void in the Dark a rewrite and an addendum chapter, so I decided I might as well do the same to Please Stop Adding Villains, Kirby, too. Again, I have gotten better at writing since June 2018. And given the increased scope that this fic gained, I figured it was only right to give it a new title to reflect that.

I originally wrote this fic before Adeleine and Ribbon had been announced for Star Allies, so I only featured Dark Meta Knight for simplicity's sake. Since I've ended up prominently featuring all of the Wave 2 Dream Friends (alongside Marx) throughout the Make a Friend 'verse both pre-Star Allies and post-Star Allies, it's only right that I show them their proper introduction to each other.

This fic was originally in third-person, but for the rewrite, I decided to go with writing first-person, because I feel like I can get a lot more mileage out of it. I chose to have Dedede's perspective (again) for this chapter, because honestly I love writing his reactions to all the nonsense the Dream Landers get up to.

This chapter was originally going to include all three Wave 2 Dream Friends, but I figured it was getting a little too long, and I've already spent a great deal of time working on both this and Star Allies, Unite! at the same time. So you guys are getting two chapters for the price of one. Ain't that swell?

Quick reminder—it's canon that Marx likes food. His Dream Friend flavor text reads this: "Sure, he's had a diabolical past as a final boss, but he'll be your buddy if you keep him well-fed." It's an interesting thing to note about him, and heck, I'm all for including it in this version of him. Why not?

Well, that's all for now – tune in next time for Dark Meta Knight and Daroach's entrances (though not necessarily in that order)!