Chapter Text
Spotting them in the distance, Kirby grinned and took a deep breath. They then began running.
“ Elfiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii-! ” they called out as they approached.
Their target turned and smiled back, holding back laughter at their antics. This gave them a hint, but making assumptions wasn’t very nice, so upon arriving in front of them and stopping to catch their breath, they posed the question once more:
“Lin or Lis?!”
His smile brightened further. “Lin~!” he confirmed for them, nuzzling their face in an approximation of a kiss.
They giggled happily - ah, Elfilin. Exactly who they’d expected, and always a delight.
As delighted as they were to see their partner - partner ! - it still brought them just a little concern.
“Still not back yet, huh?”
Elfilin shook his head. “Radio silence. I do hope they’re feeling alright, but, uh, I’m not really sure how to check in with them.”
Kirby took his hand to cheer him up a little. “I’m sure we’ll see them when they’re ready! C’mon - I bought cake for us!”
Kirby slid onto the bench next to him, in the silliest fashion possible. “Lin or Lis?”
“Still Elfilin!” he confirmed with a little laugh.
Taking that as their cue, Kirby promptly tackled him. Lovingly.
Bandan leaned into view. “Whatcha thinkin’ about, Elfili- uh- um-”
“Lin,” he answered with a smile before Bandan could stumble over his words further.
“Right, yeah!” he chirped, sheepish. “You looked kinda lost?”
“I dunno. I haven’t been forgetting things, or spacing out, or getting serious headaches recently. Which is good! But that means that it’s been days since anyone’s seen Elfilis… have they shown up at all since…?”
Bandan shook his head. “Not to my knowledge.”
“That’s about what I thought. I haven’t even been seeing them in dreams…”
He patted him on the shoulder in reassurance. “Hey - I’m sure they’ll pop back up soon enough.”
“Oy!” called a worker dee hauling some material for the dam, “You wouldn’t happen to be Elfilis this time, would ya?!”
“Woah, you can’t just ask that-!” the dee beside them admonished them, punching them in the shoulder.
“No, no, it’s fine!” Elfilin corrected, “Better to ask than to guess and be wrong! Unfortunately, nope - I can’t help you with your planning. Good luck though! You guys are doing great!”
“Got it!”
Elfilin couldn’t help them, and that was okay.
What an incredible relief!
It was kinda hard to knock on the door of a person who you’d yelled at pretty hard last time you saw them.
It was also kinda hard to knock on a door that wasn’t a door.
He paused in front of it, not sure whether he should just open it, say “knock knock” out loud, or do some other social code for unknockable doors that he simply didn’t know about.
Apparently, however, none of this was necessary, as Leon sensed the presence of someone hovering around awkwardly outside and pulled back the curtain to have a look.
The two stared blankly at each other.
“...Little One?” Leon questioned hopefully.
That snapped him out of it. “Oh- nope. It’s me, uh, sorry. Elfilin.”
He nodded in understanding, but still seemed a little nervous. “How can I help you, Elfilin?”
“You’d never believe it, but I’m actually here for another notebook.”
The much larger of the two opened the door properly, tilting his head and raising an eyebrow while inviting his unexpected guest inside. “Oh? What for?”
“Well,” Elfilin began as he fluttered on in, “Elfilis hasn’t shown back up yet since everything happened, but recently I realized that I wouldn’t actually know if they did - every time they take my place, I lose my memories of, like, what they do, since I’m not them. Then I realized that they don’t know what I do, either! They don’t know if I have plans, or if something happened, or anything, and so I thought of a way to fix that!”
Leon pulled a stack of blank journals out from the library that was his home. “And what’s that?” he engaged him, actually seeming interested in what he was saying.
“I keep track of my dreams to help me remember them with a dream journal… so, if I forget something that happens in the real world, I just need a journal to keep track of life stuff! I can write things to let Elfilis know what’s up, and they can do the same for me!”
“Aha!” Leon’s face brightened up, “That sounds like an excellent idea! Here - you can take any of these.”
Elfilin looked all the covers over. “Are there any that Lis might prefer?”
He shrugged. “They got to pick last time. It’s only fair that you choose this one for yourself.”
Suddenly understanding a puzzle that had been haunting him for so long - namely, when did I choose this book - Elfilin chose the notebook with the most colorful cover.
“Is that all?” Leon checked in.
Elfilin paused. An opportunity occurred to him.
“...can you tell me about Elfilis?”
He smiled softly and gestured for Elfilin to take a seat.
Dear Fecto Elfilis,
Hey! It’s me, your other half! (Let me know what name you want me to use for you in the future, by the way!)
Hearing that you’re okay was a pretty big surprise, but a welcome one! I know you might not get why, or just be confused in general, but I do think life is better when we’re together! As long as we’re not destroying planets.
I got this journal from Leon. I would’ve tried to get your opinion on which one to pick, but you got the last choice, so I hope you don’t mind. Now we’re even!
This book is for writing about our days and stuff and leaving messages for each other! Kinda to let the other person know where we left off before switching, and to tell each other about really important stuff!
You can also use it as a kinda planner, if you wanna keep helping out around town or in your pack! Or for poetry - sorry if you didn’t want us to know about your writing, but Kirby stumbled on the pages while searching the house. Luckily, they can’t read, so it’s still kinda secret to them! Leon saw too, but I imagine you’d be more comfortable with him anyway.
I also went out and got a bunch of different pens, pencils, markers, and highlighters! Pencils can be erased, so you don’t have to scribble away mistakes, and the other stuff is just super fun! Look, I can write in rainbows and glitter!
I hope that someday, you’ll be able to call this home too, and be happy here. In the meantime, we’ll do our best to make you feel welcome! You don’t have to be afraid and in pain anymore.
Looking forward to hearing from you!
-Elfilin
“Psst,” Kirby snuck up to him as the goofball that they were, “Lin or Lis?”
“Lin,” he whispered back, restraining a laugh.
Kirby gave him a kiss on the cheek and then retreated, running off while giggling mischievously to themself all the while.
The sky shone a vibrant purple, illuminated without a sun or moon in sight.
Elfilin lay on his back against the concrete roads, the cityscape tall above him. There weren’t any clouds that he could see, but the glass above was dusty, and the dirt made it look kinda cloudy.
He sat up at the sound of a sharp, metallic pop. Turning around, he could see a slight orange glow in the distance. Orange and purple, flickering like firelight.
After a second to gain his bearings-
“This is a dream.”
He barely even processed that he’d said the words to himself before everything snapped into focus.
Elfilin was in the city above Lab Discovera.
Last he checked, that city in the real world was pretty much destroyed. A good indicator that this was definitely in the dream realm.
Another pop rang out, echoing across the city.
There was only ever one other person he’d really seen in his dreams.
He took flight, dashing towards the source of the noise quickly, intent on figuring out what it was he was hearing, where they were-
Just around a corner, he found a steel beam with several bolts removed from the side, pried off by a familiar spear.
Elfilin looked at them.
Elfilis looked at him.
“...Hey,” he greeted quietly.
“...Hello.”
Avoiding his gaze, they returned to shoving the point of the blade in the gap between the rivet and the steel.
“Whatcha doin’?” he asked as he approached to get a closer look.
They stopped. They made a face, nose twitching as their eyes narrowed.
“...Trick question?” they asked him, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.
They promptly removed the bolt from the beam.
It seemed that, apparently, they were removing bolts from this beam.
Fair enough.
“Alright, better question: why are you doing that?”
They shrugged. “It’s fun. Breaking stuff here.”
It was then that Elfilin realized that it was a support beam… that Elfilis had removed from a building. The building in question was on its side, very, very broken, and had taken several other skyscrapers with it like an enormous game of dominos.
Taking another look around, he found that they had destroyed… a lot of the city. Turns out that the light that looked like a fire was, in fact, a fire.
“Oh. Uh… cool?”
They snickered at his bewilderment.
“I mean, at least you’re having fun!” Elfilin defended and reassured himself, “and in a… probably healthy way!”
Come to think of it, he had wanted to ask…
“Actually, uh, how are you doing?”
Elfilis froze again. “...huh?”
“You know! Nobody’s seen you in a while and we’re worried about you! This is the first opportunity I’ve gotten to like, check up on things!”
“...worried about… m-me?”
It was apparently a novel concept to them. That made Elfilin feel kinda sad.
“Of course!”
“Oh.”
It was quiet for a moment. They seemed to be really thinking through their answer. Elfilin let them take their time.
“...was taking time. Just need… a little more.” they looked over at him, a surprisingly soft and genuine expression on their face. “I just need… a little time.”
Elfilin nodded.
If it was time they wanted, they could take as much as they'd need.
…some part of him wondered if they’d read his thoughts to get that line.
Elfilin blinked for a second, checking the clock. It was still morning, but… he didn’t remember getting up?
His eyes were watering. Rubbing them clear, he looked around for a second-
Gasping in realization, he dashed to check the new journal.
A bright smile overtook Elfilin’s face as he looked at the tiny note written at the bottom of the first page, in quick, clean handwriting:
Thank you.
The canal had been finished. A familiar teal figure sat on the edge of the wall, looking down at the water. The tides had been successfully thwarted this time.
Kirby walked up, already smiling from anticipation.
They sat down beside them. “Lin or Lis?”
One big ear flicked towards them, their nose twitching, then they turned to face them fully, a look of amusement and confusion on their face. “What was that?”
“Lin or Lis? Like, are you Elfilin or Elfilis right now, wigglenose?”
Kirby explained without thinking about it. Realizing that they were explaining a concept that Elfilin was very familiar with, to who they thought was Elfilin, however-
“O-Oh.” they stuttered, flustered, voice dropping to a whisper that already sounded far more comfortable and natural than the chipper tone they’d used before, “Okay- L-Lis. Is that right?”
Kirby was absolutely ecstatic at this news. It took all of their energy to not explode into loud cheering - they had a feeling Elfilis wouldn’t appreciate the sudden noise and activity.
“Uh huh! Hi, Elfilis! It’s, uh, nice to meet you!”
They smiled a little. “Thank you… we’ve met before.”
“Not formally! I’m excited to get to know you! But, like, the real you, and not the fake you, or the bitey you!”
Elfilis nearly snorted at that comment. “Fair enough. Don’t really know… who that is, yet. Still learning,” they informed them before showing them a playful grin, “ Always bitey, though.”
Kirby laughed as they imitated a lion’s growl, spreading their wings to appear larger. It sounded cute in their little voice - probably not what they were going for, but adorable all the same.
“You sound way happier, at least!”
“Happier than Elfilin?”
“You’re not Elfilin, silly-”
“Meant the fake one.”
Kirby nudged their shoulder. “Yes! Happier than when you were pretending to be someone you’re not!”
They hummed to themself thoughtfully at that.
“...here,” Kirby started, “If you don’t know who you are yet, let’s find out! How are you with, like, physical stuff? Affection? Hugs and snuggles, all that good stuff?”
Elfilis tilted their head, seemingly intrigued by the concept of figuring themself out this way. “Only if… I do first.”
“Gotcha! Sorry for tapping you just now! What about, uhh, this thing you helped make!” Kirby gestured out to the rushing water. “How do you feel about it? You made a thing!”
“Technically, the-”
“Yes, yes, I know, the Waddle Dees built it. But they wouldn’t have if you didn’t tell them how!”
Elfilis blinked at them in surprise. “Are you psychic?”
“Huh?” Kirby asked before realizing, “Oh, nope! I just know a little humbling when I see it. Be proud of yourself and the stuff you do!”
“Got it,” they mumbled. “Happy with it. Seems sturdy. Well-done. At a good angle. Holding up nicely - tides were… my fault, anyways.”
“Yep!”
They raised an eyebrow at them.
“I’m not gonna tell you not to apologize or feel sorry for throwing a planet at us, Lis. Yep. You did that.”
They snickered. “Deserved.”
Kirby nodded.
…
“...wait. That’s not enough words. Do you mean, you deserve to be called out on it, or…?”
A big grin spread across their face.
“...or that I deserved getting a planet thrown at me?”
“Oh, you know.”
“ Elfilis! ”
For the first time, Kirby heard them laugh, like, really, truly laugh. No forced giggles to indicate that they were listening, no exaggerated fake evil cackles during a game of laser tag, no. Elfilis wheezed and squeaked and let out a high-pitched, sincere laugh.
Right then, Kirby opted to lecture them on the morals and ethics of throwing planets at people at a later date.
“Alright, alright, you pest! I’m not done with my questions yet!”
Elfilis rolled their eyes. “One more.”
They’d have to make it count, then.
“Hm… how do you feel right now?”
The sound of the water flowing beneath them was just familiar enough to be comforting, but not overwhelming. A reminder of what they were used to, but not the same.
The breeze was soft. Awoofies howled in the distance. Cravens cawed in response, beating their wings hard to fly off into the woods. The brick they sat on was warm from the sun, a rough texture against their thick coat.
Their head was clear. The thoughts of others nearby bounced around aimlessly like an echo, indiscernible. They could hear laughter and chatter from waddle dees up in the town. It wasn’t a sound they ever thought they’d get used to, but here they… heh.
They were the reason this structure existed. They’d put aside their differences with the new arrivals to this world and created a plan to protect them from the mess they’d made… and they were happy with it. Somehow, amazingly, they were happy with it.
They could pinpoint Leon’s exact location from where they sat. Same with Carol - they were glad that she’d recovered nicely. Hopefully she appreciated their gift as much as Leongar had. The beasts had integrated nicely with the waddle dees. It felt like two worlds coming together at last. Two souls, reunited.
Kirby stared at them expectantly, waiting to hear their answer.
Elfilis smiled.
“Free.”