You already know what month it is. And after some technical difficulties we're glad to announce...
METADEDE WEEK 2025 IS HERE! ❤💙
This year we'll be celebrating five years from Kirby Fighters 2's release, and our third MetaDede week! Our dynamic will be a little different this time, but we continue with the same bases.
Keep reading for more details! 👇
⭐What's going on this time?
We'll be celebrating through the Moon Paths. Each of them represents one of our beloved Sworn Partners. Take one of the two prompts per day, and make your MetaDede based on it.
Double prompts, double fun! Who's gonna win?
⭐Can I draw both prompts from the same day?
Sure! You can work for both of them if you desire, they're simply here to offer you more options. You may choose the one you like the most and the path you want to support, or even combine them on a single entry!
⭐ And do I have to stick to a single path?
Don't worry about it! While a count will be made after our week is over, this event is made for fun and celebration to our fav ship. Feel free to jump between paths, omit days, and create your MetaDede content at your own pace.
See you on MetaDede day! And thank you for patience and support.
hey guys!!! im very much alive so here's a lil sneak-peak chapter from the 2025 mtdd fic
i've yet to finish and probably won't before the submissions are over. just posting this on tumblr now, but complete work will be posted to ao3 when finished (although its nowhere near done sorry guys)
Anyways pls enjoy reading the full chapter under the cut!! comments are always appreciated too! (also for context this is written as gijinka fyi) <333
Chapter 2: Night Bat
Dreamland was a quietly quaint corner of the known Gamble Galaxy. The days were long, the nights were peaceful, and most netizens of such a land slept soundly with ease.
However, such easy-coming dreams were a pleasure not extended to the land’s most skilled knight.
“What in Nova’s name are you doin’ outta bed?”
Dedede had sat up from his warm blankets, drearily with half-lidded eyes, at the sound of too much racket being made in the corner of his chambers.
Across the room from him sat a pajama-wearing Meta Knight, adorned with tired eyes, a ballpoint pen in his right hand, and far too much energy than any regular person should possess at 4 o’clock in the morning.
“I’m aware I said I would remain in bed until morningtime, but I’ve just had a revelation that is too valuable to this kingdom’s structure that I must relay on pen and paper now before I forget.”
“Okay, yeah, maybe I would’a understood the first time, but this has been the third time of you gettin’ up in the past hour.”
The warrior glanced down at the large paper spreadsheet before him before turning his attention towards the King.
“Has it only been an hour?”
“Not the point I was tryna’ make here,”
His Majesty pinched his temple and sighed.
“ -What I’m sayin’ is that ya can’t be both an early bird and a night owl. That kinda sleep schedule just ain’t good for you, y’know?”
The warrior quickly shot back at his partner’s concerns with a scoff.
“My circadian rhythm is fine, thank you.”
“I don’t believe ya.”
“Fine.”
Meta stood up slowly, but with great ambition, as he swiftly made his way over the bedroom’s balcony door. He paused in front of the double doors for a moment before swinging them open as a gust of cool air swept through the room.
This quickly threw his Highness into full lucidity.
“The hell do you think yer doin'?!”
Without turning to look back at the King, Meta Knight replied colder than the wind that had overtaken the bedroom.
“Leaving.”
“H- Huh?!” Dedede gasped.
The soldier sighed, pausing to elaborate.
“I don’t want to keep disrupting your beauty sleep, but I’m yet to feel tired. I have many more ideas that I could assess on the Halberd, so I’m taking my leave there.”
Now, Dedede was also standing tall atop the floor. However, instead of standing deadly still like his knight was, the King hurled his large figure straight for his partner.
“Oh no, you don’t!”
In a singular, fail swoop, Dedede wrapped a pair of mighty arms around Meta as the King pinned his partner’s back into his chest.
“What are you doing?!” The warrior cried as his free arm waved helplessly about. “Release me at once!”
“Ha!” Dedede pridefully laughed. “I ain’t that dumb to just let ya fly off back to yer ship. Either you’re gonna talk to me ‘bout what’s goin’ on or we’re both gonna be stuck like this ‘till the sun comes up!”
The knight stopped flailing to quickly assess the options the King had laid out for him. While both choices were less than satisfactory, Meta knew he couldn’t beat Dedede in a show of such brute strength like this. Especially when his wings were already pinned together and his arms bound tight.
Meta sighed as his shoulders sank; a clear sign he’d accepted defeat for the time being.
“I concede." The warrior mumbled, his pride clearly hurt.
While Dedede usually cared enough to spare Meta the occasional, light ego death, he was far too tired to empathize with such a thing.
“Better get to explainin’ then, Hon.”
Meta Knight cursed under his breath a few seconds longer before finally complying with His Majesty’s wishes.
“You’re already aware I don’t tend to sleep very soundly during the night,” The knight began steadily; however, Dedede only craved the important, more dramatized details.
“Go on…”
“But I merely have more energy and motivation after the sun sets. It’s so bizarre. It’s as if I become a completely different person.”
The sudden explanation of Meta Knight’s somewhat wild behavior was enough to make the King’s weaken, although only a smidge.
“I mean, ya said you might be somewhat nocturnal, didn’t ya?” Dedede questioned nervously with a hand wrapped around his nape.
“To be honest, I always thought you were jokin’...”
“You know I never purposefully jest,” Replied Meta. “Although, recently, incidents like these have been happening at a more frequent rate than they used to a few years prior.”
“Well… Maybe it’s just a side effect of getting older?”
It took less than a second for Dedede to realize the sheer gravity of the words he’d just
unleashed onto Dreamland. Neither man even had to say anything, the downright disgusted look Meta Knight had given him was enough deterrent as is.
“Just because I’m older in terms of your species doesn’t mean I’m old in mine,” The soldier explained as patiently as he could, considering his current situation. “Honestly, I’ve grown tired of explaining that fact to you over and over again.”
“Hehe… My bad, my bad…”
After the King’s nervous laughter had subsided, a foolproof plan began to form in its place.
“Hey, Meta… I think I’ve got myself a pretty good idea here.”
The warrior tried to remain collected, but he was at least somewhat interested in whatever thought had grabbed his partner’s attention.
“Elaborate.” He demanded.
“Well, If you’re so restless, maybe ya just need somethin’ to wear yourself out, y’know?”
“‘Wear myself out’..?” Meta parroted with a rather unserious tilt of the head.
The soldier repeated the question once more under his breath before shaping his mouth into a small “O” in realization.
“Dedede… you know you can simply ask me to partake in such things,” Meta began softly as a faint blush overtook his features. “While I’m not exactly in the mood for such an activity- and it’s quite late at night, I’d have to add- I’d be willing to make an exception for you.”
“Not in the mood for- ?”
And just as suddenly as he repeated his partner’s words, the King’s jaw fell to the floor in awe.
“Whoa- Whoa- WHOA!” Dedede roared at the top of his lungs regardless of the late hour. “That is NOT what I meant! Why do you always gotta take me for such a sleazebag?!”
Meta Knight simply sighed, shaking his head back and forth.
“That is not what I was implying either.”
“Ugh,” His Majesty sighed. “Let’s start over,”
The King looked down at the man in his hold.
“What I was goin’ to say before someone rudely interrupted me was that if you’re so energized right now, maybe we should go on a nighttime walk outside the castle?”
Dedede loosened his grip over the pair’s conversation just enough to give the warrior a decent amount of wiggle room to turn his head and look back at his partner.
Although, strangely, the knight never said anything.
“Hello? Popstar to Meta- Do you read me?”
Unfazed, the man in question responded blankly.
“I accept.”
The King looked down with a quirked brow and crooked smile.
“You have a real talent for makin’ everything weirdly formal, you know that?”
The couple stared into each other’s eyes for such an extended period of time that it would be deemed strange for anyone else.
“You’ve told me before, Mi Rey.
However, for the heaven-shaking partners, moments of silence like these would always remain intimate and encouraged.
“But that’s what I like about ya.”
“You’ve told me that before as well.”
“Just get yer shoes on already, Smartass.”
--------
The cool nights in Dreamland were practically a staple of the environment. They perfectly paralleled the sunny skies that the citizens basked in during the day, while also offering an evening that wasn’t too chilly or dark.
A few torches from the castle wall further illuminated the walk between the couple as they strolled meaninglessly about.
In a relatively cheeky manner, the King threw his arms behind his head as the warrior beside him remained rather stiff with his body wrapped tightly in a violet cape.
“Now ain’t this nice?” Dedede questioned with a smile. “I think it’s better than makin’ yer back and wings all sore by bendin’ over on my floor.”
Quickly, Meta Knight shot the King a disapproving glance through his mask at the double entendre that came with such a comment.
Dedede’s carefree attitude soon became overcome with a red face and a tone full of frustration.
“Stop thinkin’ everythin’ I say is some kinda dirty joke!”
However, Meta Knight was not as easily aggravated as His Majesty. The warrior easily found himself ignoring Dedede’s angry advances towards an argument.
“This is rather peaceful,” Meta commented in response to his partner’s previous comment.
The pair found themselves in an unusual moment of silence. While the quiet pauses between the two were never overly awkward or uncomfortable, they were often swiftly ended by one thing or another.
“...” The knight held a growing silence in his throat before finally mustering up a single sentence. “...So now what?”
If Dedede didn’t know better, the question would’ve made him pop a blood vessel in his forehead from the stress Meta Knight always seemed to be bestowing upon him.
“Whadd’ya mean ‘now what’?!” He cried in a mixture of rage and defeat.
“Well,” Meta Knight began. “We’ve already gone on our walk. Yet I still feel restless. Perhaps I should’ve just returned to the Halberd earlier and saved myself the effor- ”
Before the warrior could finish, Dedede quickly grabbed his partner’s wrist with a firm, yet gentle grasp.
“Stop tryna run away from me, dammit!” Dedede yelled loud enough to wake any guard sleeping on the job.
While snide comments weren’t often the cause of Meta Knight releasing his bottled-up anger, there was just something “different” about a phrase when it came from Dedede.
The King knew just exactly how to press the warrior’s buttons to shake him out of his usual detached state.
“For the last time, I am not attempting to run from you!” Meta yelled back, even angrier.
“Then why are ya actin’ like it?!”
Meta Knight drew his cape tighter and turned away from Dedede.
“I’m not acting like anything of the sort.” He argued.
“Why won’t ya just tell me what’s wrong?!”
The King was practically pleading with his partner at this point.
“Because there is nothing wrong to begin with!” The warrior rebuttled. “Perhaps I’m merely not as lazy as others and have actual responsibilities to take care of,”
The warrior spun around and pointed a sharp finger into Dedede’s chest.
“Just because you are able to ignore your duties does not mean I possess the same luxury.”
Now that was a low blow, Dedede decided.
“What the hell, Meta?!” His Majesty cried with his arms outstretched in hurt. “I go through all this crap just to help ya go to bed, and ya won’t even try to listen to what I gotta say?”
“You aren’t listening to me either!” Meta Knight expressed angrily.
“I’m tryin’ to get you to tell me!” Dedede roared with growing fury. “I’ve been tryin’ to get you to tell me ‘bout it all night!”
While His Highness’s rage was far louder and more expressive, the knight’s anger seeped deeply into his heart, freezing it icy cold and rock-solid.
“Enough of this,” The warrior stated blankly with a lifeless expression. “I’m leaving.”
“Just STAY dammit!”
With his sheer, unrivaled strength, the King grabbed Meta Knight by the wrist and squeezed. It was an action lacking complete logic; something entirely driven by personal desire.
And yet-
“Fight me.”
-It was the only thing Dedede could’ve possibly done to convince Meta Knight to stay.
“Wha- What?!” His Highness yelped in shock. “Meta, it’s like five in the mornin’! I ain’t gonna fight ya right now.”
“Then I’m leaving,” He restated just as coldly. “Goodbye.”
“Fine!” The King quickly caved. “Dammit, if a fight is what you want to be happy, then a fight is what you’ll freakin’ get!”
The quarreling couple found themselves front and center of the castle’s courtyard and screaming their heads off at each other in order to prove their point.
The sun had yet to rise; however, both men had already moved to adjacent corners of the courtyard in preparation for their impromptu duel.
Meta Knight spoke first, raising his sword just enough to point itself at the King.
“Be warned, I will not go easy on you just because we are courted.”
“Oh, don’t even think about it, Honey,” Dedede spat sarcastically. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”
It took less than a second for both men to draw their weapons. It took even less for the pair to begin charging towards each other with increasing speed.
From a child, Dedede had always taken a straightforward approach to life.
This was no different when it came to his personal fighting style.
Quite literally, as the King charged straight for his partner without a single thought in his head. Usually, he was far more prepared than this, but perhaps the early hours of the morning and the lack of much-needed sleep were beginning to get to him.
Just as His Majesty was charging up to send the Meta Knight flying with the force of his hammer, in a split second, the warrior who was once hurling towards him with great speed had stopped to push himself off the ground and was now flapping his wings 20 feet in the air.
In a flash, the once skyborne soldier was now in a nosedive towards the King with his sword pointed first.
Thankfully, since Dedede was still in a charging position, he had enough time to deflect the attack with a wide swing.
“You’re gon’ have to do better than that if you wanna best me, Mety!”
The warrior looked at his King with growing impatience.
“Who said I was finished?”
With a flash of his dimensional cape, Meta Knight was now directly behind his partner and swung his sword with enough force to send Dedede a few feet, although he had been bracing for the blow.
Once no longer in motion, the King attempted to wring the motive for doing this out of his partner.
“For the last time,” His voice boomed throughout the yard. “Why do you wanna fight me so fuckin’ bad?!”
Meta Knight, with his heart pumping full of adrenaline, paused for just a moment to answer Dedede’s question.
Although it was not the answer the King wished to receive.
“I can’t disclose that until one of us wins.”
The warrior breathed heavily through a series of pants as Dedede continued to smack-talk.
“I guess I’ll just have to kick yer ass then!”
“So be it.”
Just as Meta Knight was about to fly towards Dedede with another onslaught of attacks, the King had come far more mentally prepared this time around.
His Highness slowed himself down just enough to appear unready as to tempt the warrior into flying within his range of attack. However, just when Meta was about to unleash the wrath of his power, Dedede used his left hand within the knight’s blind spot to grab one of his wings and hold him steady.
Now that Meta Knight was stuck in a fixed position, all the King had to do was wind up as much as he wanted and release.
And he did exactly that.
With a single swing, once Meta and the hammer made contact, the warrior went soaring across the courtyard.
Thankfully, his reaction time was just quick enough that even when disoriented in the air, Meta Knight was able to adjust himself accordingly and land on his feet- Even if both hands ended up touching the ground below him in order to further steady himself.
The soldier rapidly flicked the wing Dedede had been holding to loosen up the sore muscle a little bit.
“Still not givin’ up, huh? Should’a known when it comes to you, Mety,”
Turning his full attention to the King, Meta Knight’s pale eyes widened in an unparalleled fear.
“Ya see, while you were busy flyin’ through the air like a cheat, I was spendin’ my time wisely- ”
Gripped firmly between both of Dedede’s large hands, his once wooden hammer was now in the shape of a metal jet engine with blue and orange flames roaring from the back of the weapon.
“-I was busy chargin’ up! Now taste my jet hammer, Mety, so we can end this once ‘n for all!”
Although the initial sight shocked the soldier to his core, he swiftly steadied his resolve and gripped Galaxia likewise.
Within the span of a few seconds, a copious amount of energy so strong and concentrated it was visible to the naked eye began flowing around Meta Knight’s body as he kneeled over to reveal the split in his back, now doubling the amount of wings he possessed from two to four.
A deep, scarlet hue bled over the once pale color of the warrior’s irises as he now felt renewed with a dark power.
“Prepare to meet your maker!”
Now, with the immovable object of Dedede’s hammer versus the unstoppable force of Meta Knight’s sword, it was a draw left up to Nova to decide which man would come out victorious from such a battle.
Once the pair’s weapons had met the other’s, one of them did not topple over in defeat like the other had thought. Instead, a shockwave of unbridled power shook throughout the heart of Dreamland.
Both men had been thrown from the final strike due to the blast and had each found themselves hurling in opposite directions.
They each had an airtime of about 3 seconds before hitting the cobblestone and dirt beneath them.
Hard.
While a normal person would have fallen unconscious after such a feat, neither Meta Knight nor King Dedede fell under the criteria of a “normal person,” as both men slowly began peeling themselves off the ground.
The pair limped towards each other with deep sighs and heavy breathing racking each of their frames.
Once both men had finally met in the middle of the royal courtyard, their hands white-knuckled their respective weapons as if they’d lose the match if either of them were to loosen up for just a moment.
Then, as the couple made unwavering eye contact, the pair realized they were no longer standing tall, ready to continue fighting until one of them begged for mercy.
Instead, the two had found themselves face-up against the ground as each man had given their all in the duel and tumbled toward the floor in exhaustion.
They both lay still for a moment as shaking breaths rattled them from outside-in.
The once unrelenting grip they each had on their weapons folded as both a sword and a hammer were now scattered haphazardly around their bodies.
This time, Dedede was the first to break the silence between the two.
“Wha… What’s the matter? Finally feelin’ defeat, Mety..?”
Not wanting Dedede to get the better of him, Meta Knight quickly shot back.
“I could… I could say the same for you, Mi Rey…”
Both soldier and King had attempted to lift themselves from the ground using the palms of their hands and scraped up elbows to prop themselves each in an upright position. However, even an action as simple as that was undeniably strenuous in the face of the fatigue they each felt.
“You know what…”
Dedede panted as Meta watched closely to the way his large chest rose and fell in a rhythmic fashion.
“I’m… I think ‘m done.” He sighed as beads of sweat rolled down his brow. “I ain’t sayin’ you won or anythin’, but… but I think we should pick this up… at a later date, yknow?”
For the first time in several minutes, the couple was able to agree on the same thing.
“Ah… Agreed…” Meta replied slowly. “...Gracias…”
The warrior spent remaining energy to turn his head towards his partner's face to better gauge the King’s expression.
“‘Thank you’?” Dedede translated and then swiftly repeated. “What for..? All I did was… was kick your ass a ‘lil bit.”
“Not that- And to be fair, I got most of the hits in myself,” Meta began, not missing the opportunity to gloat. “I’m thanking you for helping me in my pursuit of rest.”
His Highness whipped his head towards his boyfriend as his mouth lay wide open.
“IS THAT WHAT THIS WAS ALL ABOUT?!”
“Of course,” Meta Knight responded so matter-of-factly, Dedede could feel himself growing increasingly pissed off. “Why else would I want to find the need to fight you unless it was to build my exhaustion and increase fatigue?”
“‘Cuz you were just mad at me a few minutes ago..?” The King mumbled unsurely.
“While you are not wrong, I was more frustrated at the fact that you weren’t understanding what I was trying to tell you.”
“‘Trying’ is an understatement here, I’ll tell ya that.”
“I told you I wished to duel, did I not?”
“Well- Yeah- But ya never explained why ya wanted to fight me in the first place. Sooo, I kinda just assumed it was ‘cuz you were upset and needed to blow off some steam.”
“Oh...”
The warrior stopped and reflected upon his actions within the past few minutes as a growing realization overtook him.
“I see how you could’ve misinterpreted my motives.”
“Is that all ya got to say for yerself?!”
“Forgive me, Dedede,” The soldier apologized. “You know my attempts at explaining myself are… underwhelming to say the least.”
Dedede laughed at Meta’s self-admission of poor communication skills.
“That’s good… I ain’t mad at ya either,” His Highness claimed. “Frustrated, maybe. But yer too cute to stay mad at for very long.”
“If that’s how you see fit…” The warrior whispered, once again flustered by Dedede’s words.
Several minutes of deep breathing and silence passed as the two were finally processing their emotions like adults should. Wanting to ditch the courtyard and shower all the sweat and debris off his body, Dedede tried sitting up while using his hand as a crutch to support his pounding head.
“Hey, Honey,” The King started in a gentle tone. “We should prolly get back to my room before people start talkin’ ‘bout how we spent the night out here. I don’t want any weird rumors about us spreadin’ through my castle walls, y’know?”
While the King was used to filling the silence between the couple, as Meta did not enjoy speaking as much, it was the sheer length of the silence that Dedede found to be unusual.
“Meta?”
Removing his palm from his face, His Majesty was met with a sight sweet enough to make his heart explode. Meta Knight had covered himself in part of Dedede’s velvet robe and snored softly under the damp concrete of the castle’s walkway.
Any frustrations or grudges Dedede had felt towards his partner in that moment instantly vanished as the King bent over to hoist Meta onto his back, and began walking back towards his chambers with the sleeping prize unconsciously clinging to him in turn.
While the Meta Knight was out cold, Dedede used the opportunity to plant a tender kiss right on top of the warrior’s metal-covered forehead and tuck a stray strand of hair behind his ear.
just in case, shaymin-sylph participated too but I don't think their art shows up in the tag. so you might have to dig a little into their blog to find their entries.
Just sending in an ask to let you know that I've drawn for days 24-29 { except 25 as I didn't have many ideas }, just in case my posts weren't visible in the tag. Apologies if this notification wasn't necessary ^^;
Noted! There's still several posts waiting for the queue and yours are very likely there too. Still, if you still see days passing without any reblog on your pieces feel free to send another ask (and this goes for everyone who's reading this)
And don't worry about notifying! On the other way, we're deeply sorry for taking this long.
Finally done! I'll also be making an update post tomorrow for those interested in other fall things I'll be doing in the future.
Rambling below about this image/Nextgen:
Even after everything, one who once ruled passed his crown down to someone else, and one who once swore to protect the universe has had to step down from his place. The two, once at each other's throats, now try to adjust to a new life together without the meaning that was once a heavy part of it.
When it comes to retirement, Dedede manages to adjust somewhat well though always makes sure he's open to do a job or two. Even though the ex-king doesn't rule anymore he's still happy to help the community. Meta knight on the other hand...takes his retirement harder than one normally would. He feels meaningless, and useless now that he is being cared for and not the other way around. What was once is identity is now gone and he is left with only the real Meta. Days used to be so rough that the knight wished he had died in the thrill of combat in his prime than live out his days as an old no one (There is a lot of character/angst potential for comics here).
Eventually he learned to be lazy and live out his life in ways that didn't hurt him. Though this took quite a while.
