The knock on effects

Day Three

Like always, the blinding rays of sunlight shone down, blessing the land with light.

Kirby and his friends were out, playing pranks on the Townsfolk to keep themselves entertained. Escargoon had found a place he could stay, and was getting pity from the Cappies after the years he'd endured. Some described Dedede as "a manifestation of hell itself", others going for a description consisting of expletives alone. To watch as his confidence and power came crumbling down was undeniably satisfying; watching the empire he had built become no more than dust brought them joy. They rested better than ever, holding the knowledge of the king being unable to control them, any of them.

Except for one.

The businesses thrived, getting customers here there and everywhere. Tourists still visited the country, respectful of the residents and the natural resources. Litter was picked up, and many of the tourists enjoyed light conversation with those who lived there, to further expand the information they held on the land.

Families were settling down, relationships had gotten better and the town was close. Everyone in it was at least a friend of a friend to everyone. If there were any advantages and positive take aways from Dedede's rule, it was that they had grown more confident in one another, wary of toxic people and more cautious of dangers.

Still, even once the horrors had come to an end, Tiff couldn't help but feel as though they weren't free. The light at the end was there, but just out of reach, and no amount of squirming and fighting would get them there. Or, at least for one individual.

She decided to address her worries over dinner, when her family had returned home for the evening.

As she sat musing over her concerns, the others engaged in a light conversation regarding the peace of the town, and how it was great, but somewhat eery. Since it would transition perfectly into their current chat, she brought it up.

"It's lovely and all, but I can't help but feel concerned.." she muttered, dropping her utensils and resting her head on her hand.

Lady Like lowered her own cutlery in confusion,"What is there to be concerned for, dear? The town is better than usual, and Dedede has finally stopped terrorising us."

Swallowing worriedly, she leaned back in her chair, retracting her arms from the table and crossing them in a cocky manner,"What about Sir Meta Knight? He's never experienced this, and I feel like he's not holding up to it well."

Sir Ebrum gave a hoot of laughter at her anxiousness, waving it off as though it were nonexistent,"I'm sure he's doing fine; he's probably as happy as ever with all the spare time he's got."

Mumbling to herself, she spoke her thoughts aloud,"Yeah, but he has nobody to spend it with.."

Tuff snorted,"Are you gonna ask him out or something?"

"No, it's just he doesn't want to get close to anybody, for fear of losing them. I think Kirby was the only one who he feels he could get close to, but he barely pays him any attention." She huffed, raising her voice.

The pink warrior tilted his head at the mention of his name. The majority of his days were spent playing, living life in a carefree mannerism. Threats to Dreamland were long gone, and he had opted to live as best as he could until the next one came around. Even so, it seemed unlikely that another threat as big as Nightmare dared to provoke him, knowing full and well of his potential.

"I know I sound crazy, but what if he's just miserable? What if he's just suppressing his feelings; it isn't the first time he's done that, after all." Tiff reasoned, begging for them to understand what it was she meant by it.

No, they just continued eating their dinner, paying it no mind.

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After she'd finished with her dinner, she set aside her plate and cutlery in the sink, leaving swiftly afterwards without an explanation.

"I think that she's just paranoid after what's happened for all these years. I can't blame her, since she's gotten much closer to him than anyone else." Lady Like stated, sitting herself down in front of the TV, reaching for the remote,"It's quite fascinating how she's the sole person he puts his trust into."

Ebrum sat besides her, nodding. Even they had noticed how close the two had gotten. The friendship that had been constructed over the years was nothing short of interesting, even to those who had no idea on who she was.

Flicking through the channels, they saw a new report that caught their eyes.

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It had become routinely to check upon him, just to let him know that he meant a bit to her. Whether he mattered to others was a question best left unanswered, as they made no effort to associate themselves with him, neither did he make one for them. As warm as their hospitality was, they were naïve, easily swayed and a perfect cast of puppets, itching to be manipulated. Throughout the whole battle, they did nothing aside from complain about how their houses were destroyed, pinning the blame onto the star warriors, while they refused to try joining them in what was a dangerous battle.

Knocking on the door, she called out to him. Perhaps it was too late in the evening? Maybe he'd gone to sleep already?

No. In a matter of seconds, the Knight opened the door. He was glad to have someone care for him, even if it was in the form of check ups and conversation. He could get anything off his chest, knowing it was secured with her.

"How are you doing, Meta Knight?" Was the first thing she said when she entered. His well-being was a critical thing to her, to the point where she lost sleep worrying about him.

He wasn't quite as active as the day before, but he was still on his feet, nonetheless.

"I'm doing perfectly fine, how about you?" He reflected, giving a similar answer to the previous day.

Fine. That's all he ever seemed to be.

She couldn't find it in herself to get him to elaborate, because she didn't want him to speak if he didn't want to. What she wasn't aware of was how badly he wanted to rant on about so many things, yet restrained himself.

God, I don't want to seem pathetic by unloading thousands of years worth of trauma and pain onto her, it's not fair on her.

"Look, I can tell there's a problem." Tiff spoke up, breaking the quiet,"If there's anything bothering you, I will listen to whatever you have to say."

If only opening up were that straightforward. That was nothing short of a dream, out of reach.

"I appreciate your support and concern, but it's nothing that would be of any interest to you." He scoffed, lying to her face for a second time,"If I had any problems, I would trust you with them."

She gave a slight hum at his words, expecting him to finish there.

Tiff saw nothing else to do and went to leave, but he cut her off.

"Wait." 

The young Cappy stalled, frozen in the moment, recollecting her composure.

"Nevermind, I forgot what it was I was going to say."

Lies. It was crystal clear that he gravely needed to talk about his problems, but he still held the reluctance.