Heroes of Dreamland Rewritten, Book 3: Stars Amidst Darkness

Chapter 1

Meta Knight | メタナイト

Blossom is here.

How in the worlds is she here?

Even though I don't understand the situation at all, I continue to hold her tightly, praying that I'm not dreaming, begging for this to be reality and not some beautiful hallucination created from the insanity of a lonely mind. I want to say something, but I can't put any words together.

You fell from my sky again. How did you know I needed you so badly again now? Where have you even been all this time?

There was this Waddle Dee girl—possibly also a Halfling, actually—I met who reminded so much of you. She's not here, now, but I've been promised by the Star Power that she's coming back one day. You'll get to meet her; you'll absolutely love her. I named her after you.

I missed you so much. I missed you so much. Every single day I've missed you. To this day, you're the best friend I've ever had.

Where did you go, Blossom?

Why did it take you so long to come back?

Do you have any idea how badly I've needed you all these years?

I have so many things I want so desperately to say, but my voice remains silent, my throat tight. My hidden face is covered in wordless tears, uncontrollable emotion brought on by years of being without her and the impossibility of once again being with her.

She's alive.

Blossom is alive.

For her part, Blossom is just clinging to me as if I'm the only solid stone on the edge of a cliff there to keep her from plummeting into the jagged rocks below. Her breathing is quick, her heartbeat racing, as she cries into me and tries her best to compose herself as sobs mingle with joyful, relieved laughter.

Finally, she pulls away from me and wipes her eyes off with the heels of her gloves, a brilliant smile on her face as she closes her eyes and tilts her head to one side at me.

"It's so good to see you again," she gets out with a laugh, her voice cracking as she fights back continued sobs. "I kinda thought I'd never see you again."

Remembering myself, I go to remove my mask, only for her to keep talking.

"I've been asleep for such a long time, Sir Knight."

I freeze, lowering my glove from my face in confusion, my mask still in place. Blossom never once called me Sir Knight, at least, not that I can remember. That was always Sakura's nickname for me.

"What did you call me?" I ask slowly. Maybe I just misheard her. Maybe it's been a long time and she's forgotten her normal nicknames for me. Maybe she met Sakura somewhere, as impossible as that seems, and heard about me from her.

Her smile falters as she rubs more tears away from her eyes, opening them again, but the joyful expression doesn't fully vanish. Her head stays tilted to one side. "Have you forgotten me already? I guess I sort of deserve it, since I didn't exactly follow orders on the day with the Lightning. I'm sorry." My confusion only grows, as she gives an awkward laugh. "It's me, Sir Knight. Sakura. You know, the Kirby Dee. 'She will weaken him, but never destroy him.' You remember me, right?"

Utterly dumbfounded, the only response I can manage to get out is, "Sakura was—er, is—a Waddle Dee. You're... you're a Star Warrior—a Halfling."

She frowns in confusion, but then jumps with a yelp at the expression and claps a glove to her face, patting it randomly, frantically around on her mouth. "What the heck?" she demands, muffled, before spinning on her heel and making a beeline for the nearest windowseat. A sphere of soft yellow light follows her, leaving a similar sphere around myself. Following behind her at a slower pace, I find her a moment later, confusedly staring at her reflection in a dark window.