Kirby X Legend

Kirby

I've finally convinced Bandana that it wasn't my fault. After all, why would friends betray each other? Although I saw some kind of black smoke leaving Bandana...

Right now, we're at a fancy ball. Dedede is currently talking to Blade Knight, which might be some kind of messenger. I'm hugging Bandana, but as of right now, I lost track of June and Thomas. That is, until some scar-faced man appears. Bandana and I shove along the other guys while saying sorry, and Blade and Dedede follow. Great, a 7-person-group. Surely that's not weird.

"What's going on?" I ask.

"Ah, finally! Mr. Puffball!" The strange man shakes my hand, but I have no idea what's going on. Bandana just keeps shut like HE'S my plus-one. "I've heard everything, and it seems like it's both Ms. Iparis' and your night! You're stars! I tell you two, everyone in the higher circles are talking about your prodigious performence! Especially your commander -- she's gushing about you like you're her kids! Congratulations on your agent promotion and that nice little reward. Two hundered thousand Notes each should buy you two about a dozen elegant dresses and bowties."

That's what I was explained later. But it wasn't how I heard it at all. It went more like this:
"YOU SEEM TO BE UNFOCUSED ON YOUR JORNEY, PINKY." A spirit, but it isn't strong enough to do any harm to anyone. "REMEMBER WHAT YOU WERE HERE FOR: STOP THE WAR, AND YOU'RE FREE. UNFORTUATELY, INSTEAD, YOU ARREST THE REPUBLIC'S GREATEST CRIMINAL, WHICH BARELY HELPS YOU.  YOUR FRIENDS... THEY MIGHT NOT MATTER AT TIMES. I'VE ADDED A LITTLE... PIZZAZZ INSIDE YOU. ENJOY IT, AND DON'T OVERUSE IT. BEFORE I GO, HERE'S A LITTLE HINT:

THE ONE WHO DESTROYS THE MIRROR WILL BRING PAIN TO YOUR WORLD, BUT ALSO JOY."

The spirit flys away before I'm able to hear the scar-man's words normally. I just stand there for a moment as he talks to June, and then he turns to me. "Would the four of you please follow me? There's someone who wants to meet you."

I look back at Dedede. He gestures me to take Bandana with me. Blade Knight just nods. I have no idea what's going on. 

It turns out this guy's name is Chian, from what Thomas told me, and currently we're walking toward a curtain. I touch the curtain as we enter the room behind it. Star Sprinkle material. Only found in Warp Stars. Some velvet chairs are in a circle as Chian closes the curtain behind us. It takes me and Bandana a while to realize one of the people in a black uniform is familiar.

It's Susie. Darn.

She sees us and uses her floating fist to non-existantly elbow-bump a man's shoulder, one who was on her left. He gets up, with Susie & some younger boy behind him, and when they leave the circle, the others rise and bow in their direction.  No idea what it means. The man seems similar to Dark Meta Knight: some gray, tired face, seems tough enough to at least win one fight. Susie has been in worse situations, including the time his father went hywire searching for her even though she was basically right there. She seems to have some sweat, and giving me and Bandana a crude face. I could already tell what she's thinking. "Oh great, what are THOSE two freaks doing here now?!" The guy who's younger seems to be the man's son, seeing as he's similar, but like I said, younger. And no gray hair, too.

"You two must be Agent Puffball and Iparis. These gentlemen..."

Susie gives some kind of nasty stare at the man. 

"...er, and woman, tell me great things about you. That you're prodigies. And more important, you've put one of our most irritating criminals behind bars. So I thought it fitting that I congratuate you in person."

Look, I know the sole purpose that Dedede brought me here is to be congratulated, but I remember the voice from the start of my journey. Do I know which is a villian? Do I get how my hero deeds make a effect like dominos? Is Day really the bad guy here?

"If we had more patriotic young people like you, we'd have won the war against the Colonies long ago. Wouldn't you agree?"

Everyone else is just murmuring in agreement, but Bandana touches my non-existant shoulder to point at something in a corner. A stange figure that resembled a Anger Masker. It's the only breathing figure that shakes his head in a no. We're distracted from that when the man talks again. "I congratulate you two."

June speaks up as I trade confused looks with Bandana. "Such an honor to meet you, sir. It is our pleasure, Elector, to do what we can do for our country."

So, this guy is the "Elector," huh? Not only that, but me and my friends can't stay here! We have another planet to go home to and protect. After all, Dream Land isn't all peaceful and calm. Anyways, this Elector man introduces the guy beside him as his son. Anden. But then something kinda brightens my day. He reconizes me, like Lancer did.

He's a fan of me.

Dark curly hair and green eyes with a fancy suit and a bunch of buttons seems like a good combo for someone who would rather hang with me. Anden instantely walks towards me.

"I assume your last name doesn't even exist, does it?" There's some giggles out of it, while his father looks dissapointed.

"Yeah!" I reply with my kirby language.

Bandana starts to speak up, but Anden stops him.

"Don't worry Bandana, I can fully understand him."

I'm surprised AND flattered. Not only did this guy know our names, but he even knows how I TALK. I shouldn't tell Lancer about Anden, or his heart for liking me would break.

"Now then," he starts speaking in the same kirby language while on one knee, "would you like to share anything to me?"

I think long and hard before deciding on one thing.

"How'd you learn how to talk like me?"

Anden gets back up and straightens himself. "How'd I learn to talk like you? Well, when you're the son of the Elector, you're basically stuck into learning everything." We both trade smiles. Then he gets to June, and apparently he even knows about my problem with kisses, as he kisses the back of her hand while I'm distracted by Bandana Dee.

"You saw the Anger Masker, right?" I ask Bandana.

"Yeah, but I wonder what's it doing here?" he replies.

The Elector speaks up once more. "My son will run for the Elector's position in late spring. Exciting, don't you think?"

"Well, hopefully he has some great luck by his side, even though he won't need it," Bandana replies.

The Elector chuckles. "Thank you, for that. Anyways, that will be all. Please, the four of you enjoy yourself tonight. I hope we have a chance to meet again. Dismissed." After that, the people in the chairs move out and Chian goes back to the mainball room. Me and Bandana were about to go out too when Susie stopped us.

"Kirby, Bandana, I just need to chat with you for juusstt a quick sec." She takes my hand, and I take Bandana's. We're off to a hall that's empty. 

"Look, as you two noticed, more of Pop Star's residents keep appearing here to the Republic." Susie turns her screen on from her braclet on her right hand. "The amount of the residents coming here have recently been doubled, and about an entire chunk of about 1/3 of the entire planet is now here. If we don't do anything, we'll all get trapped here forever. Did you two possibly seen any suspicious stuff?"

"That's what we're here for, Susie." Bandana replies. "The king and Magalor wanted me over here to investigate. I saw Kawasaki, some waddle dees, Meta Knights, a Sir Kibble..."

I interrupt him. "I saw some, too. A Bo and a Cha Cha, some Yarikos..."

"Alright," Susie responds, "looks like things are going into high gear..." She gives off a worried tone. "Just... enjoy the ball tonight, okay?"

"Sure, sure we will..." Both me and Bandana Dee say this.

I invite Bandana to William's house afterwards. Dinner was basically the same, an ok one, to be the least. William seems more of a grouch lately. 

"So," he started up at the table, "you two finally caught the most wanted criminal in the Republic with the girl, huh?" He seems angry, like something happened.

"Well," I said with Bandana translating, "I guess we kinda did. With the... fight and all..."

"Bullcrap. The Republic's 'perfect' little prodigy, working with someone who would do a better job at fighting?"

"You mean Ms. Iparis?" Bandana asks.

"Yep. Me and my brother never liked her. My life was fine until she passed that Trial. Been jealous of her life ever since. Man, if only I could afford stuff like she has..."

I worringly walk over to William and give him a hug. 

"It's okay, big guy. At least you have me."

"Yeah, I guess so. I'm gonna get ready for bed, and you should do the same. You guys gotta return back to HQ." He gives us a salute as he excuses himself from the table to the stairs, and we do it back. Bandana starts talking once William's footsteps are barely heard.

"Kirby." Bandana seems worried. "I talked with Dedede during the ball. Turns out, Meta Knight is around as well. He's currently posing as some street liver, like you and Ms. Iparis did. Anyways, when the close was clear, Magalor came by to search up Day's information, right after you were questioning him. Turns out, Day isn't supposed to be a criminal."

"What do you mean?" I confusingly say.

"He tinkered with the Republic's internet system, since he's, y'know, that powerful, to hack Day's profile into Lor Starcutter. Hopefully we don't get caught for it." Bandana get's off his chair, and I follow him to the stairs.

"Well, what information did they get out of it?" I ask, climbing each step upwards.

"For starters, Day was deceased at 10 years old. His blood type is O, and his ethnicitys are Mongolian and Caucasian."

"What does that mean?" 

"No clue. Both his parent's are basically deceased too, and his brothers are basically locked up in different cells. Not with the same fate, of course. Then we get to Day's trial score, which is like this-"

"I know, it's a test basically to determine your future or something like that." We're already swinging the guest room door open. William was nice enough to set an inflatible matress for Bandana Dee.

"Really? Do you know what he scored on it?"

This makes me curious as I sit on my bed. "No, what?"

"Six hundred seventy-four points. Out of one thousand and a half. He failed it, like a Rocky trying to land on a needle without toppling over it in his rock form."

"W- what?"

"But that wasn't it. That was a lie as well. Magalor hacked other profiles, and noticed the low-performing scores are all higher than 674. Something was up. Meta Knight scrolled past the answers, which seem all too easy to answer, and all of them were correct. From the written answers to the multiple choice." Bandana goes over to the inflatible matress and lays down, covering himself with a blanket, and putting his ripped bandana on the night desk. 
"Ms. Iparis is someone who got a perfect score, right?"

I don't neccesarly remember if I told Bandana Dee anything about June's score, but I reply with a yeah.

"She's not the only one with the perfect score. Day got the same thing. He's one of the two prodigies to have a perfect score."