"Kirby…what are you doing...?" Meta Knight sighed as the pink baby began to play with his cape.

It had been only a few days since Fumu and her family had gone on their trip. Meta Knight himself had personally gone to Kirby a few times to keep him the company he needed, not really bringing him to the castle at risk of disturbing the temperamental king with bringing him over.

Today, however, the young star warrior, instead of waiting for Meta Knight to see him, had gone to visit him in his quarters himself. Meta Knight had been mildly surprised, since Kirby arrived relatively early morning, despite the little puffball loving his sleep. Now it appeared Kirby was apparently set on hanging around Meta Knight all day.

The blue clad knight had resisted a smile when the young pink warrior had appeared at his door. It…wasn't like he disliked being around Kirby…That much he was willing to admit to himself.

"Poyo, poooy!" Kirby took the end of the elder warrior's cape and pretended to wrap it around himself like Meta Knight. "Poyo, Kaa-bii Meh-nah, poyo!"

Meta Knight could not help but be amused, eyes flickering pink briefly. "Are you mimicking me?" He lightly pulled his cape back, and Kirby tumbled a little from the momentum. "You'll stretch my cape, little one. You're free to do that with some other cloth, however."

Kirby laughed, delightedly. He went over to Meta Knight's bed and took the blanket, wrapping it around himself, although it dragged behind him on the floor quite a bit. "Poyo!"

Meta Knight smirked, though of course, it was hidden behind the mask. Well, it WAS a different cloth, the child was clever enough to understand exact words. "Now I'll have to wash that later."

Kirby walked to a mirror in the room, and made his expression as serious as he could; but Kirby was doing this so lightheartedly, he only ended up looking a little comical. Kirby stared at his reflection for a few more moments before bursting into giggles, rather self-aware. "Poyoyo!"

Meta Knight sat down in his chair, wondering what he should do with the pink infant today. He would start training him, for sure, but of what, exactly? Perhaps sword fighting...yes, that would be good. It would also help improve his skills whenever he would transform into Sword Kirby in the future, should the time come when he needed to…

Meta Knight heard a clang and turned, abruptly snapped out of his thoughts. "Kirby, please put that back, it's far too heavy for you..."

The baby had taken down one of Blade and Sword's old weapons from their thieving days. "Leave it be, child. Blade will not be happy to find out you played with it..."

"Poyo..." Kirby struggled to return the weapon-a mace-back on its display. Meta Knight began to move forward in case Kirby would fall over and make more of a mess, but the young puff managed to set it back before he reached him. Kirby turned to him, beaming, as if to say, "I did it!"

"Your strength is improving," Meta Knight murmured. "That is very good."

Kirby giggled and hopped off, gathering the blanket he dropped and wrapping it around himself like Meta Knight again, then hopped on top of his shelf. Meta Knight was amused again; Kirby had noticed the knight's tendency to stand on high places.

"Please get down, Kirby...You shouldn't play on top of that."

Kirby proceeded to get down at his repremand and noticed the jar of candy Meta Knight had on the shelf. "Poyo?" he asked, dropping off the edge as he stared at it.

"I suppose you were bound to notice it," Meta Knight sighed, heading over and taking the jar down. "You can have one, but that's it, you hear?" he said firmly, popping off the lid.

Kirby jumped up and down happily, eyes sparkling. "Poyooo!" Meta Knight pulled out a single round sweet and handed it to him, setting the jar back where it was.

Kirby took it happily, and popped it into his mouth, beaming at Meta Knight. He struggled to form the words "thank you".

"Poyooo...thhzzz...aannn...yuuuu..."

Meta Knight couldn't help but chuckle, patting the top of his head, unable to help himself. "Close enough. You'll learn eventually. Fumu would be delighted to hear you're trying to expand your vocabulary..."

Kirby gave him a delighted smile. A pat on the head! From Sir Meta Knight! And after being given candy…Kirby was positively elated.

Meta Knight glanced behind him as his door opened. Sword and Blade Knight entered momentarily after, having returned from what was perhaps a lunch break.

"We are back, Sir," Blade said as they entered, briefly bowing his head alongside Sword. Kirby excitedly whirled around and let out a happy "Poyo!" He very much liked Sword and Blade; after all, to the young pink puffball, anyone who was friends with Meta Knight was a friend to him!

Sword knelt slightly upon seeing Kirby. "Oh, hey, there, Kirby. Did you come to visit?"

"He came here on his own," Meta Knight said, off-handedly.

"Look at him!" Blade noticed, realizing the pose Kirby was in while wearing the blanket. "He looks up to you quite a bit, doesn't he, Sir Meta Knight?"

"Well..."

"Poyo!" Kirby confirmed delightedly, and readjusted his guise, trying to look as serious as possible.

The two knights resisted laughter, unsure how Meta Knight felt about this, though judging from his stiffened pose, their lord seemed a little sheepish. "Well, I'll say you're the spitting image, except without his ah, mask."

Sword and Blade then wondered, though not for the first time...what did Meta Knight look like under his mask? In all their years of knowing him, they didn't know what kind of face their lord had underneath...he even slept with the darn thing on. Not like they didn't either but...

"Poyo!" Kirby suddenly set the blanket down and ran out of the room.

"Wh-? Kirby!" Sword looked at Meta Knight. "Should we go after him?"

"I think he'll be back." Meta Knight was not at all perturbed, simply gathering the discarded blanket up. "He shouldn't be getting lost, he knows the castle layout fairly well by now."

"Well, alright... What is next on our duties for today, then, Sir?"

"Ah, yes, before I forget." Meta Knight turned. "The castle itself is fine, I'll be here all day. For today, I'm going to expand your patrol routes…"

"Oh." Sword and Blade glanced at each other, each somewhat unsure what to make of that.

"Anywhere you want us to make specific rounds in?"

"Hmm…" The knight glanced to the side, thinking on it. "Just starting off just outside castle bounds should be fine...I want you to eventually expand the patrols to the borders of Dreamland."

Kirby ran down the halls, searching around in the rooms. After what Sword and Blade said, he really wanted to dress up as Meta Knight. He wanted to go back to his teacher and make him smile with the gesture...although he could never really tell when Meta Knight smiled or not, he just had to assume with whatever tone of voice he had. Well, of course, he could hope that the blue-clad knight's eyes would change color. He had learned in the time knowing his mentor, that his eyes changed color depending on his mood, and he was quickly able to figure out blue usually meant happiness.

The child was so caught up in his thoughts that he came across Waddle Doo by crashing into him by mistake. "Wadda-doo?" he asked, blinking, only momentarily dazed. Waddle Doo rubbed his head, mildly miffed.

"What are you doing running around like that, Kirby? Please slow down, especially for the Waddle Dees' sake! You know they hate being knocked around...They might not say anything but you know how it is."

"Poyo." He made gestures towards the ground as if mimicking paper crafts and coloring.

"...Let me...uhh...Your charades are a bit difficult to interpret, since you don't have fingers. I mean, I don't either, but..." Waddle Doo studied Kirby's actions for a few more moments. "If you're looking to make something for coloring, there's things in the storage. That will be in the basement level. Just don't touch any of the bottles. You hear?"

Kirby nodded, and hurried off, shouting a garbled, "Thhaaanz yuu, poyo!"

Waddle Doo rubbed his head once again, this time in confusion. "Ahh…he really needs to learn how to talk. Three years and he still doesn't talk..."

Once within the storage, Kirby rummaged around for sheets of paper and cardboard pieces. He already found some scissors and crayons for making the shapes. He had also managed to find some string to tie up the parts of the costume.

Kirby pulled down a few sheets of paper, a pair of scissors, and put them next to what he gathered. He placed an empty cardboard box there, too, to cut out a mask and a fake sword that would resemble Galaxia(as the sacred sword Meta Knight wielded should and would never be used for play; that much he understood).

Kirby was about to get to working on his makeshift costume when he saw a piece of plain blue cloth placed on top of a few others. Delighted, Kirby took that down, too, so he would not have to constantly drag Meta Knight's bedding around. Even his mentor had to sleep with some cozy blankets like everyone else!

Kirby checked the cloth and wrapped it around himself. To his delight, it was like a perfect fit. He set it aside and began to work.

"What? Patrol on the…? But sir…" Sword seemed rather baffled with the proposition.

"N-now, sir, we don't mean to challenge you, but...we live in a time of peace," Blade reasoned. "And the child has managed to defeat Nightmare, even at his mentality level! Isn't extending our eyes to beyond the borders a little...excessive?"

Sword nodded in agreement. "I don't think you really have to worry about the safety of the citizens, Dedede cannot order demon beasts anymore...and anything else that goes wrong in Dreamland can be easily managed by us or even Chief Borun."

"This is true, I am not denying your claims...but we have a job to uphold whether or not we are in peacetime. Even with Nightmare's defeat, demon beasts are still scattered across the galaxy, and perhaps even Popstar. Peace is not an excuse to shirk our duties. Yes, Nightmare is gone, but Star Warriors have always existed to keep the peace...no matter what goes on in our Galaxy." He faced the two younger knights. "Do you understand my reasoning, now?"

Sword and Blade looked at each other. "...Is there any other reason perhaps that you want us doing this?"

Meta Knight was silent for a moment, staring at them intensely before finally answering them. "If you're thinking I'm being paranoid, I understand your concern, but I assure you it's mainly a way to keep us all occupied…"

"Poyo, poooy!"

The three knights turned, distracted from their conversation and were a bit surprised to see the pink puff at their doorway once again. Meta Knight's eyes even flickered orange briefly.

Kirby was...wearing a costume. It was a little crudely made, but it was easily recognizable that Kirby had dressed up as Meta Knight. He had a makeshift mask, tied around his head, cardboard pauldrons, then finally the cardboard collar that was like the stiff fabric one Meta Knight's cape held. The child even had a cardboard Galaxia! The only thing he didn't have were the gloves.

"Kirby, is...that you under there?" Blade asked, humoring the pink puff. "I almost didn't recognize you!"

"You look just like a mini Sir Meta Knight!" Sword said, grinning behind his helmet, glancing at their sir, who had not given any reaction beyond the brief orange flicker of his eyes.

"Poyo!" Kirby wrapped the tiny fabric cape around himself in mimicry of the older Star Warrior, and tried to walk around in the same fashion as Meta Knight...and promptly tripped over his own costume. "Poy...poyo..."

Meta Knight finally smiled at that moment (not that anyone could see it), eyes flickering pink. It was now clear that he was taking the little mimicry fairly well. Sword and Blade moved to go aid the child back to his feet, but Meta Knight gave them a stern glance. He knows how to get up himself. Don't coddle him.

Kirby got back on his feet, shaking his head, cardboard mask askew. He readjusted it, smiling at the knights, not at all upset from tripping. "Poyo!" Sword and Blade both chuckled aloud; the pink warrior was absolutely adorable.

Then Sword stared at the infant for a long time, and noticed something...peculiar.

Kirby really did resemble Meta Knight quite a bit with the way he dressed up as him. He had the same shape of feet, the rounded body physique...even the oval eye shape barely visible via their respective masks...

The only differences were that Kirby was, well, pink with blue eyes, and Meta Knight wore gloves...and the obvious size difference, in which Meta Knight was at least two times the size of Kirby.

Were they perhaps...the same species...?

Sword made an odd noise, causing both Blade and Meta Knight to look his way oddly, a little confused. It sounded like a strangely stifled cough.

"Sorry, something was in my throat," Sword said, glad Meta Knight had not noticed he had forced back laughter. No way they could be...it's probably just a coincidence...I can't imagine Sir Meta Knight with a face even remotely similar to Kirby's. "In any case, Blade and I should head out for patrol, correct?"

"Yes, thank you. Good luck today."

The two knaves saluted and exited the room. Kirby waved at them with a merry, "Bye-byyye poyo!"

Meta Knight returned his gaze to Kirby. The pink puff beamed at him from under the mask. "Poyo!"

The older Star Warrior smiled yet again under his mask, a little astounded at how many times Kirby had managed to make his lips quirk upwards that day. Kirby's eyes lit up with delight, because as Meta Knight smiled, his eyes had turned a shade of blue. He hopped up and down, happily crying, "Poyo, poyo!"

"You're funny," Meta Knight murmured, taking a seat in his chair. Kirby began marching around the room, relishing his success in making his teacher smile.

Meta Knight watched him prance around a bit before beginning to lose himself in his thoughts again…something about the situation reminded him of times long past...

"Quite a few of the knights in the army have had children, haven't they?" Meta Knight murmured, staring at the picture of a young Silica that his comrade had shown him.

Garlude smiled weakly and answered him, tone somewhat melancholy. "No thanks to this war, several lives have been lost, Sir Meta Knight, you know this. Many in the army particularly joined us to protect their families from meeting the same fate...to give these generations a chance, a future."

"I suppose I can understand that," the warrior said, handing back the photo to Garlude. She pocketed it safely in her coat, turning back to him when a thought crossed her mind.

"What about you, Sir Meta Knight?"

"...I beg your pardon?"

"Do you ever want to have children someday? Perhaps…when the war is over?"

Meta Knight glanced away, flummoxed by her sudden inquiry. "I don't have time to think about things like that."

"Is that so? Or is it that you never had the thought cross your mind?"

Meta Knight's eyes turned green under his mask, and Garlude knew he was rethinking heavily on his own answer.

"...I haven't. You're right."

"I see..." She seemed a little self-satisfied that she had managed to pry that from the otherwise very private knight.

Meta Knight tightened his cape around himself, staring up at the night sky. "...I don't necessarily have a significant other to have a child with, nor is it really a concern of mine, but I do not...think I would mind? I would most definitely prefer it to happen, if it ever does, long after the war is over...when the universe is...safer..."

"Well, that is up to you," Garlude said, nodding. "You don't necessarily need to start a family of course. I was only curious. You're always thinking of battles, of things to maintain the peace, you hardly do anything for yourself, you know. I can't help but worry."

"Yes...I know...I thank you for your concern, Garlude…" He smiled faintly. "...Don't you forget about yourself, either, though. You actually have a daughter to watch over…"

Garlude returned the smile, inclining her head in a subtle nod. "Well, I'm off now, then, Sir." She saluted him before she headed off with some other knights to discuss the next battle. Meta Knight returned his gaze to the skies.

"A child...of my own..." he murmured under his breath, trying to wrap his head around such a concept.

"Oy, Meta Knight!" A hand patted his back roughly out of the blue, startling him out of his thoughts and his eyes went white for a split second.

"By the stars, Jecra! You actually frightened me!"

"Sorry, my friend!" the other warrior laughed. "I couldn't resist, you looked so dazed!" He looked at Meta Knight. "Your eyes are green, you know. Care to tell me what's on your mind?"

"I was talking to Garlude...and she asked me a question that had me thinking about what I'm going to do after the war..." He murmured, hand to his mask, wishing, not for the last time, that he could do something about his eye color changing with his mood.

"Are you really thinking about this now?" Jecra's grin was a little cheeky. He didn't mean any harm in the statement.

"She was showing me a picture of her daughter. Silica turned one year old today."

"Oh, jeez, I should give her my best wishes for the child..."

"...Speaking of, how is your wife coming along? With your own child?"

"The baby should be born any day, now...I might have to miss the next battle, unfortunate as I am to admit it..." Jecra laughed sheepishly, running a gloved hand through his wild hair. "I haven't gone a day without wondering about how she's doing."

"Things happen. Missing one warrior isn't going to harm us next battle, Jecra."

"And if I'm not there to help you in case something happens? I fear the lives of everyone who goes into battle, especially if I'm not there. I don't mean to make it sound like I doubt anyone, I just can't help but worry!"

"Jecra, it'll be alright," Meta Knight reassured him, keeping his voice low and soothing. "Nightmare will not overwhelm us easily… I won't allow it."

"...If you weren't a fellow Star Warrior, I would have more doubts than I do now." He patted Meta Knight's head, despite the smaller warrior grunting in annoyance at the gesture. "But you're not invincible. If I do miss the next battle, I want you to be extra-careful. The mere thought of possibly losing my best friend is painful."

"I'd be a fool to go in recklessly...Being a Star Warrior has nothing to do with my chances."

"Ah, you are quite correct on that," he mused, with a faint smile.

"Sir Jecra!" a voice shouted, interrupting their little heart to heart. The two warriors turned around, seeing one of Jecra's knaves waving a paper around. "It's a telegram from Lord Arthur. Sir Jecra's lady has sent a message via transmitter saying that your child has been born!"

Nearby soldiers turned hearing the shouting knave, alarmed. "Congrats, Sir Jecra!" one man cried, waving a hand in the air in acknowledgement.

"You should go home right now!" Lady Garlude cried from where she was. "Go see Sir Arthur to tell him you're on your way! Don't waste this chance!"

Jecra was stunned, a bit dazed that he was only discussing this moments ago only to learn it had finally happened, and he shook his head to try and pull himself together. "R-right! Meta Knight, forgive me for being unable to fight next battle-"

"I already told you it's fine..." Meta Knight patted his back, with the same roughness as Jecra had done earlier. "Go, my friend. Greet your family while you can."

Jecra smirked, rubbing his nose. "I'll be back before you know it."

CRASH!

"Poyo, poyoy!"

Meta Knight gave a start, looking up to figure out what on earth the sound was, spotting Kirby amidst a pile of his belongings and looking dazed, his costume crumpled and ruined. "Kirby, what did I tell you about climbing the shelves?" he scolded, admittedly chagrined. He stood up and gathered the things Kirby knocked over, thankfully mostly books and old paperwork. "For goodness's sake..."

Kirby smiled up at him, bashfully, helping him gather the objects he dropped to help fix his own mess. "Poyo-poyo..."

"Well, you didn't break anything, at the least..." Meta Knight couldn't help but think how eerily fitting the current situation was after reliving that memory...although it certainly felt very different than what he had imagined.

…Very much so, he thought as he placed the objects in their original places. He wasn't sure if it even counted…he wasn't Kirby's father.

Kirby gave him the last object that had fallen, a book on constellations, smiling warmly at his teacher with that same affection he gave nearly anyone. Then his eyes drooped, yawning tiredly. He walked over to Meta Knight's cape, ignoring the elder warrior's noise of protest and curled into it, knocking out soon after.

"K-Kirby, the bed was...right there..." The older knight sighed, and after a moment, clipped off his cape to let Kirby sleep in it so as to not disturb him. He sat down beside him, not really having much else to do at the current moment. "Ah…You'll fall asleep anywhere..."

Without really thinking to stop himself, Meta Knight reached out and gently patted Kirby's head. The pink baby smiled contentedly in his sleep, curling up more in the cape with a soft sigh of relaxation.

"Kirby...Kirby of the Stars..." Meta Knight closed his eyes. "Destined for greatness...I could never be more proud of you..."

A/N: (Updated 5/1/2020) I'm really sorry if y'all expected a new entry, life's been hectic and I kinda fell out of practice with writing. Lately, Kirby stuff has been keeping me sane throughout this uh, quarantine as of typing this. Not much changed in this part of this series of one-shots, aside from me editing out the parts that made it sound like it was gonna have some overarching plot and some other writing hiccups, when really I don't know why I wrote that the way I did in the past. The intention of Caretaker was simply indulgence in the Meta Knight/Kirby platonic relationship. :'D

Maybe I'll come back and actually make a new entry while there's still some weeks left, or simply start up some new one-shots. Maybe pick up a project I've had in the works...? And I apologize for like, my lack of schedule for anything ever...I hope everyone's doing okay, and stay strong!