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Well, this was finally over. Kirby and Waddle Dee had managed to win the first (and last) Cake Royale. And now, it was over.
This whole thing had been hectic, and a bit weird. But… it also felt nice, working alongside Kirby like that. Especially since he was able to be actually useful! He was so worried he’d end up holding them back… But they’d won! And he was happy.
There was just… one thing he was curious about.
Back when they’d first registered to the tournament, something odd happened. He’d needed to differentiate himself from the other Waddle Dees, since there was a bunch of them running around now. (Even if Kirby said he could easily tell him apart from the rest… Which made him feel really happy and very normal and… really happy. And warm.)
So he’d grabbed a random piece of cloth and put it up into a Bandana. He didn’t think much of it in the moment. It was just something he’d thought of on a whim.
What he did think of was the way Kirby reacted to his new look. The way he looked at him. There was something like recognition, and something else he couldn’t recognize. Kirby had said it was nothing, but…
Well, looking back, there was definitely something going on. And he was curious.
So, he asked.
“Hey, Kirby? Can I ask you a question real quick?”
They turned around, facing their friend with a smile.
“Yes? What is it?”
He tugged at his Bandana.
“You remember when I had to put this on at the beginning of the Cake Royale? You reacted weird. What was up with that?”
Oh. Mmm.
When they tried to tell him about the Dream kingdom, he laughed at them…
Kirby pouted.
“Fine, but you have to promise you’ll believe me first!”
He couldn’t help but smile at their adorable reaction.
“Alright, I promise.” Now he was really curious.
“Okay… Remember when I fell asleep in the library a while back?”
Oh. Yeah, he definitely remembered that. Kirby had ended up falling asleep for twenty minutes, and saying a lot of weird things. He’d ended up getting mad when he laughed, so he’d offered food as an apology, and they immediately switched up and declared how much they liked them (which he also felt perfectly normal about) and then they hadn’t talked about it anymore.
He failed to see how this had anything to do with his question, but…
“Yeah, I remember that.”
“Ok, so… I found that weird book at the library, and then it took me to the Dream kingdom!! And there were monsters attacking and I had to fight them with other Kirbies! And Meta Knight was also here and…”
Hearing how enthusiastic he was, he couldn’t help but smile. That dream must’ve been a fun one.
“And you were there too!”
“Huh?”
Somehow he hadn’t… expected that.
“Yeah! Except you weren’t working for Dedede, and! You were wearing a blue bandana! Like you are right now!”
Wait, what?
That… didn’t make sense. Since they had that dream before he ever wore it, it meant…
It meant either the whole thing was a coincidence, or that they had indeed been sent to another world. Which, funnily enough, felt like the most reasonable explanation as of right now.
“Wow… so you really went… to another world?”
Kirby smiled, happy to see his friend believed him.
“Yep!”
Well. He wasn’t expecting that. At all.
But he was curious.
“This other me… What was he like?”
“Well, he was nice, and kind, and we became friends super fast and played a lot together… Just like you!”
He smiled. Talking about this reminded him of how the two became friends. It was strange, but… When they first met, for some reason, there was a strange pull in his chest, his soul, and he felt like it was meant to happen. There was something, in his gut, that told him that they were always destined to become the best of friends. And this story only reinforced that. He wondered if the other Waddle Dee felt the same, when he first met them…
Well, if there really was the version of himself from another universe, something told him he did. But did that mean that this world also had a Kirby? Maybe… But for some reason, he doubted that. He kinda felt bad for his alternate self, living in a world without his best friend. He couldn’t even imagine what his life would’ve been hadn’t he met Kirby… Or what his life would become if they suddenly had to leave.
He raised a hand to put his bandana back into place. Maybe… Maybe he should wear it more often.
He smiled.
“Wow, I can’t believe this happened to you, Kirby… But it’s pretty cool.”
They smiled.
“I know, right?”
“But you know…” he paused, hesitating before continuing.
“Hearing you talk about this… it kinda makes me feel like… we were always meant… to become friends with each other.”
Argh, that sounded so corny! Why would he say that?!
Kirby, meanwhile, gave him a look of confusion, the same look you’d give someone who would state a well known fact like a random information they weren’t exactly sure of.
“Well, yeah! Obviously we were!”
“W-what?”
He was so unsure of that fact… But they said it with full assurance, like it was completely obvious.
“You know, ever since I met you, I knew we were going to be best friends! I can’t even imagine what it would be like if I hadn’t met you!”
N-no way.
Is exact thoughts, mirrored and spoken back to him, with full confidence. Like it was some kind of well known, obvious fact.
…
Was the sun always this warm?
Feeling his face heat up, he hurriedly looked away in an attempt to hide it.
“T-thanks… haha…”
“Huh? Are you okay?”
“Y-you know, I think it’s getting late! We should go back home!”
“Huh? But I thought-“
Find a distraction, quick!
“I’ll cook some food for you once we’re home!”
The change was instant, like he’d just pressed a switch. Kirby’s eyes lit up with a wide smile, and they completely stopped focusing on the previous conversation.
“Really?? Awesome! You’re the best, Waddle Dee!” They gave him a hug, before running off up ahead.
Thank Nova.
Now he could stop thinking about these feelings and go back to normal. Hopefully.
“Hey! Wait for me!”