AN: So I know I've seen some people curious about a sequel to the first chapter, and I finally decided to write one!

Time for the Conductor and Hat Kid to see each other once again...

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"It looks like the wound has healed up nicely, no signs of infections or inflammation present.." The robin doctor muttered as he inspected the slowly healing knife wound.

It had been one week since Hat Kid had been stabbed by the Conductor. One week since DJ Grooves had temporarily started living with her on her spaceship, an odd arrangement considering it had always been just her and Rumbi, but a welcome one.

Waking up every morning to hear the penguin softly singing as he made breakfast was nice and something she would certainly miss when he left...

Not that she would ever say that to the energetic DJ.

"Alright, I'm finished now." The doctor said, breaking Hat Kid out of her thoughts.

She lowered her shirt, hiding the stitches from sight, and jumped down from the examination table she had been sitting on. Her guardian winced, waiting for some sign of pain, and sighed in relief when there was none.

Raising children had been something DJ Grooves had never thought of throughout his life, too busy focusing on making movies, and while helping the hatted child was far more stressful then he had imagined at first, there was something rewarding about it.

It had been nice seeing her eyes light up in joy when he cooked breakfast for her, listening to her laughter when they watched movies together, or even her amusing reactions to whenever he scolded her for tormenting her intelligent vacuum.

The penguin shook the thoughts from his mind and returned his attention to the child standing in front of him and the doctor that had saved her life.

"And since you behaved so well during your check up," The robin spun around and, based on the sounds she heard, started fiddling with something in one of the drawers behind him.

Once he was finished doing, whatever, he turned back around, wings hidden behind his back. "I think you deserve a reward!"

With that he presented what he had been holding and Hat Kid gasped.

It was candy!

She eagerly reached her hands out, ignoring the laughter coming from the penguin beside her, and collected all of the wrapped sweets that were passed to her. A massive smile took over her face as she looked over her treats.

While the child was preoccupied with her reward, the two birds faced each other. The doctor cleared his throat and spoke, nothing but gratitude in his voice. "You have done an excellent job keeping an eye on her."

The DJ chuckled. "Trust me, the little darling is nothing but a trouble maker."

The fact that Hat Kid mainly ate cookies for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, how messy her home was. Indeed it might have only been a week since DJ Grooves had started taking care of her, but it had been an extremely busy week.

He was still finding cookie crumbs in his afro!

The doctor shook his head. "Regardless, I don't think anyone could have done better, given the circumstances."

The staff at the hospital had been more than a little concerned once they had learned that the hatted child did not have any guardians on this planet, and several had been surprised when the famous DJ turned movie director had stepped up and assumed temporary guardianship of the wounded girl.

Several nurses had kept an eye on the local newspapers and were happy to have found several images inside with the DJ and child happily interacting with each other, typically smiling and laughing as they walked around either on the moon or on the planet.

A good sign that their faith had not been misplaced and that their patient was being taken care of.

"Remember to call if you need anything and I'll see you in two weeks." The robin doctor said, turning around once more to start cleaning up the office. The penguin took the child's hand and together they started the trek out of the building.

"Thank you!" Hat Kid shouted as the duo walked out of the room, turning around to wave at the doctor, who waved back.

"You feeling better then, darling?" DJ Grooves asked, voice softening as he watched the child happily plop a piece of chocolate into her mouth.

She hummed happily and nodded.

The duo continued to make their way down the hall towards the elevator, Hat Kid waving at the other birds she encountered along the way. It was actually surprising how many different birds she had encountered so far as she had previously believed there were only owls and penguins that lived on this planet.

And moon.

"Is there anything you want to do today?" The DJ asked, looking down at the child near his side in curiosity. Several times in the past week the duo had gone out on both missions and trips. Missions to look for more Time Pieces and trips to allow Hat Kid to experience more of the planet.

There had been little success in finding more Time Pieces though considering that the hatted child could not move anywhere near as much as she used to without being in pain thanks to her injury.

That dammed Conductor...

"Nope!" Hat Kid said, breaking DJ Grooves out of his thoughts. "But maybe we can go home and watch a movie?"

A faint smile broke out on the penguin's face, mostly hidden by his beak but still noticeable to those who paid close attention. "Of course darling."

She grinned. "Can you make me a milkshake too, please?"

Normally he would scold her for wanting something so sweet, especially after she had just gotten a bunch of candy, but today was a special day, so he nodded, making the child let out a cheer.

Moments later the duo found themselves back on the first floor and walking towards the entrance of the hospital. Once again the child waved to all the birds in the vicinity as they walked out of the building and into the warm, afternoon sun.

The DJ continued walking forward, focused on getting back to Hat Kid's spaceship, but the child paused, noticing something odd not too far from where she was standing.

The figure standing near the door was hunched up and seemed to be nervously playing with their hands. The outfit they were wearing was black and made their yellow feathers-

It was the Conductor.

Hat Kid gasped, immediately catching DJ Grooves' attention.

The penguin turned his gaze towards where his temporary charge had been looking and felt pure, seething hatred fill him in moments.

"What are you doing here?" The DJ spat, positioning himself so he was between the owl and the wounded child. His shades might have hid the furious look in his eyes, but there was no mistaking the venom in his voice.

He was more than furious, the anger that burned through him was righteous and demanded revenge for what had been done to his movie star. He could feel Hat Kid grab on to one of his wings, clutching the appendage to herself as she peered around him at the cowering bird.

"I just wanted to apologize to the lass." The Conductor stuttered out, cringing when a scoff escaped the DJ. "It's true!"

"Conductor, I highly doubt someone as, egotistical as you would be capable of feeling remorseful for their actions, never mind actually apologize." The penguin coolly uttered, taking great satisfaction in seeing the guilty bird squirm under his gaze.

"I'll listen." Hat Kid softly interrupted, no hostility present in her eyes as she took in the sight before her.

"Lass," The owl began, clenching his hands as he looked at the cracked pavement below him. "I don't know what came over me, attacking ye with a knife, and all the other things I did..."

"Yes you do." The DJ all but snarled, shades flashing in the sunlight. "You allowed your greedy, petulant mind to take control and freaked out just because you lost, and because of that you stabbed a child!"

The owl opened his toothy beak and tried to get a word in, but the penguin kept talking.

"No one should forgive you for your actions!" The damming shout echoed in the too silent parking lot, and the Conductor looked like he was moments away from crying.

Hat Kid stepped out from behind her protective guardian, looking at the sorrowful bird with eyes that seemed too mature for her face, too aware of the weight of his actions.

She knew the guilt of what the Conductor had done would never leave him, even with his apology, but it was a start, and then there was also the role the Time Piece had played in his strange mood swing...

"Let's go back to my spaceship and talk about this there!" Hat Kid suddenly chirped, completely and utterly destroying the tension that had filled the air. She then started walking forward away from the two stunned birds.

"Darling!" The DJ shouted, rushing to catch up with her. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"Yup!" She replied, slowing down just a bit so her guardian could catch up to her.

"You don't need to forgive him." He whispered softly in an attempt to change her mind after catching up to her. When the child shook her head and continued moving he knew he had lost this discussion.

The Conductor would be coming with them, whether he liked it or not.

DJ Grooves sighed and paused, hearing the rapid footsteps that were undoubtedly from his former rival. Once the unwelcome visitor got close enough, he spun around, face filled with open hostility.

"If you do anything that puts her in danger again I'll see to it that no one finds your body." The furious penguin hissed. The owl, still in shock from the DJ's surprising display, nodded.

The two birds then rushed forward in order to meet up with the child standing in the middle of the deserted parking lot. A devious chuckled escaped DJ Grooves as he recalled her unique method of travel, and found himself excited as to what the owl's reaction would be.

Once they reached her the hatted child she held both of her hands out. The DJ immediately took it while the Conductor was a bit more cautious in his approach, but he did eventually grab hold of her offered hand.

"Now don't let go," Hat Kid said, sending a smirk to a confused Conductor. "It'll be a looooooong fall!"

With that the trio shot up into the air, rocketing through the sky and soaring up into the atmosphere. The wind grew colder, the stars shined brighter, and the world below them only grew smaller with time.

The Conductor did not stop screaming until they reached the spaceship.

"Conductor," DJ Grooves began once they reached the safety of Hat Kid's spaceship. "You did not need to scream the entire time."

"Sorry." The Conductor wheezed, feathery hands on his knees as he hunched over. "I couldn't help meself."

Hat Kid, who had been watching the spectacle from off to the side, let out a giggle. She was happy to see that the bird duo were getting along a bit better now. It had been strange to see DJ Grooves so angry and the Conductor so timid, it was like their personalities had been reversed.

Granted the DJ had a valid reason to be angry, but she also had some explaining to do about that fight...

A faint sigh left her and she walked towards the center of the room, dodging Rumbi as she went. The birds, now finished their discussion, noticed the solemn mood that had engulfed the child. The Conductor tried to take a step towards here, but was held back by DJ Grooves.

The penguin had a feeling the hatted child needed to talk about something.

"Time Pieces are important back on my planet." Hat Kid began, facing away from the birds as she spoke. "They're used as fuel and an energy source, but that's not why we collect them."

She paused, took a deep breath, and continued speaking.

"Things like the Time Pieces, they change people the more you use them and the closer you are to them. That's why no one's allowed to use them unless it's an emergency." Hat Kid explained, looking down at the warm carpet below her.

"Power corrupts, and the Time Pieces are some of the most powerful items in all of our reality." Her words sounded oddly scripted to the bird's ears, as if she was repeating information she had heard many times before.

"They," The child paused, searching for the right words before she continued speaking. "Pollute you, turn you into something you're not because it makes you believe in something else, in a time that doesn't really exist but it's one that you want to exist."

Her hand drifted to her side, brushing against the scar that would forever stain her skin.

Hat Kid looked over at the Conductor and smiled, nothing but warmth, forgiveness, and honesty in her gaze. "I know you'd never hurt me, it's just the Time Piece that made you all mean and stuff."

A faint frown overcame her face and she corrected herself. "Well, you're a bit mean, but you'd never stab anyone!"

All things considered, the hatted child considered herself lucky that the fight had not gone worse considering that the Conductor had been slowly getting more corrupted as the battle went on. Even though there had been none of the typical signs, now glowing aura of power, the change in his personality had been enough. She could easily recall the story all children were told about the danger of using Time Pieces, especially during a fight.

How insane your opponent could get, how high the chance of being killed was, and the sheer amount of damage that would happen to the surrounding area, the mass destruction.

The story of Cap and Blade...

Hat Kid shuddered, immediately catching the attention of both the Conductor and DJ Grooves.

The Conductor stepped forward. "Lass, are you-"

"I should've known you'd get corrupted." The child interrupted, guilt saturating her voice. "I'm sorry I didn't think of it sooner, it's my fault."

"No it ain't." The Conductor squawked, DJ Grooves nodding along beside him.

"Darling it sounds like none of this is your fault."

"I brought the Time Pieces here." She muttered, clenching her hands as she spoke. "And now they could be out there corrupting a bunch of people-"

"Which is why we will find them." The DJ smoothly interrupted. "Darling you're still hurt, and I'm not letting you do this on your own."

Hat Kid blinked and looked over at the penguin, genuinely surprised by his offer. She opened her mouth to speak but was cut off when the Conductor decided to interject.

"And I'll help too, lass!"

There were no mistaking the tears that were building up in her eyes. The hatted child sniffed and did her best to wipe them away. The unexpected help would certainly make looking for the Time Pieces easier, and it would mean she would get to spend more time with the DJ.

And who knows, perhaps she would be able to become good friends with the Conductor as well!

Hat Kid giggled once more and beamed at the two birds who had become her allies.

"So, how about that milkshake?"

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AN: And with that this story is fully complete!

Also the explanation I provided about the Time Pieces, power being corrupt and all that, is something I've always believed in since the final fight of the game. That glowing purple aura around Mustache Girl combined with how "tough" the fight gets, and how weird it is when you fight DJ Grooves during Chapter 2.

There just seems to be more to the Time Pieces...