When I started Wing Shadows, I originally planned on it having a strong element of MK/Kirbyshipping. And as I wrote the story, I found that the drama was enough, a more romantic undertone would have tripped up everything else. But I still wanted to play on the hints left in Wing Shadows; not quite shounen-ai, but you could interpret it that way. Welcome to the fluffy bonus ending. Constructive criticism is welcome, flames will be pointed and laughed at.
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Bright sunlight bathed the emerald hills, songbirds warbled in flourishing stands of trees, and everything was as it should be; it was another gloriously cheerful day in Dreamland. Seated on one of the emerald hillsides was Kirby, revelling in the pleasant weather as he so often did. He took a deep breath of the fresh air, closing his eyes to feel the faint breeze moving across his rosy skin. Did others take the time to enjoy a fair day as he did? If they didn't, it certainly seemed a shame. He leaned back to watch a cloud waft through the azure sky, idly twitching his large feet.
"Kirby."
The voice was calm and neutral, but the youth still recognised it immediately. He turned to see his dark rival, mask once again sheltering yellow eyes, standing in the shade of a nearby tree. Seeing the warrior again was a shock; Kirby had barely even thought about their duel on the airship so many months ago. But he somehow knew that he had nothing to fear.
"Oh, hello." He blinked curiously. "You're Meta Knight, right? I've heard talk about you."
The knight nodded. "I am he." He stepped out into the daylight, seeming a little reluctant to leave the shadows. "I have been searching for you, Kirby. Without your noble intervention, I may have succeeded in bringing terrible evil to this land. Please accept my gratitude, and apologies for the trouble you were caused."
"That's okay!" Kirby chirped, "I always try to help like that, it just kind of feels right." He then remembered something important, his cheerful look turning to sheepishness. "Sorry I broke your mask. I didn't mean to."
A tremor went through Meta Knight, visible only at the tips of his folded wings. Even after such time had passed, that memory had a powerful hold on him. "I was careless as well." he quietly stated, unclear whether he was reassuring Kirby, simply agreeing or something else.
Kirby continued, shifting uneasily, "I think we were...supposed to meet. I don't know why. And I wish we hadn't met like that, but...You know what I mean?"
A thoughtful silence, and then the elder knight treaded over to Kirby's side. His wry yellow gaze drifted somewhere in the distant hills, paying no heed to the inquisitive youth's black eyes fixed on him. "We are not so different." he murmured.
The hero smiled broadly. "Yeah...." He watched the far-off scenery with his dark counterpart.
The gentle breeze grew suddenly stronger, whistling through tree branches and rustling their leaves. Kirby slowly rose to his feet, drawing a querying glance from Meta Knight.
"The wind is calling, can you hear it?" the youth breathed, filled with wonder as he looked to his elder, "Fly with me, Meta Knight!"
Flight....The elder warrior had never considered using his demon wings, not since the day they had carried him from the sinking Halberd. He hadn't even thought about them or acknowledged them if he could help it. He thought of them now, and the wings unfolded to assure him of their readiness. Watching Kirby inflate his spherical body with a gulp of air and lift off with a flap of his short arms, Meta Knight smirked. Maybe following a whim for a change would do him some good. With a few awkward wingbeats, he followed his companion away into the open sky.
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Bright sunlight bathed the emerald hills, songbirds warbled in flourishing stands of trees, and everything was as it should be; it was another gloriously cheerful day in Dreamland. Seated on one of the emerald hillsides was Kirby, revelling in the pleasant weather as he so often did. He took a deep breath of the fresh air, closing his eyes to feel the faint breeze moving across his rosy skin. Did others take the time to enjoy a fair day as he did? If they didn't, it certainly seemed a shame. He leaned back to watch a cloud waft through the azure sky, idly twitching his large feet.
"Kirby."
The voice was calm and neutral, but the youth still recognised it immediately. He turned to see his dark rival, mask once again sheltering yellow eyes, standing in the shade of a nearby tree. Seeing the warrior again was a shock; Kirby had barely even thought about their duel on the airship so many months ago. But he somehow knew that he had nothing to fear.
"Oh, hello." He blinked curiously. "You're Meta Knight, right? I've heard talk about you."
The knight nodded. "I am he." He stepped out into the daylight, seeming a little reluctant to leave the shadows. "I have been searching for you, Kirby. Without your noble intervention, I may have succeeded in bringing terrible evil to this land. Please accept my gratitude, and apologies for the trouble you were caused."
"That's okay!" Kirby chirped, "I always try to help like that, it just kind of feels right." He then remembered something important, his cheerful look turning to sheepishness. "Sorry I broke your mask. I didn't mean to."
A tremor went through Meta Knight, visible only at the tips of his folded wings. Even after such time had passed, that memory had a powerful hold on him. "I was careless as well." he quietly stated, unclear whether he was reassuring Kirby, simply agreeing or something else.
Kirby continued, shifting uneasily, "I think we were...supposed to meet. I don't know why. And I wish we hadn't met like that, but...You know what I mean?"
A thoughtful silence, and then the elder knight treaded over to Kirby's side. His wry yellow gaze drifted somewhere in the distant hills, paying no heed to the inquisitive youth's black eyes fixed on him. "We are not so different." he murmured.
The hero smiled broadly. "Yeah...." He watched the far-off scenery with his dark counterpart.
The gentle breeze grew suddenly stronger, whistling through tree branches and rustling their leaves. Kirby slowly rose to his feet, drawing a querying glance from Meta Knight.
"The wind is calling, can you hear it?" the youth breathed, filled with wonder as he looked to his elder, "Fly with me, Meta Knight!"
Flight....The elder warrior had never considered using his demon wings, not since the day they had carried him from the sinking Halberd. He hadn't even thought about them or acknowledged them if he could help it. He thought of them now, and the wings unfolded to assure him of their readiness. Watching Kirby inflate his spherical body with a gulp of air and lift off with a flap of his short arms, Meta Knight smirked. Maybe following a whim for a change would do him some good. With a few awkward wingbeats, he followed his companion away into the open sky.