Misty white eyes opened up to a dark room. It was early morning; earlier than most would normally be awake, but Meta Knight had long since been in the habit of waking before most. He lay on his side in an unfamiliar bed, his mind still hazy with sleep. The room, too, was unfamiliar to him. For a brief moment, he didn't know where he was.

Then he recalled the previous night's events.

As he'd anticipated, he was immediately overcome with uncertainty at his actions. He'd done such intimate things with someone he'd just met and still wasn't sure he even trusted not to kill him! Even if it made him felt better than he had in ages, it was still so... [i]wrong[/i]. Irresponsible, even. For all he knew, he'd been used in place of a sex toy. How could he have allowed himself to give in to temptation with so little resistance? How could he have let his guard down so easily?

But then he felt the gentle rise and fall of his wing as it rested atop Magolor, who slept snuggled up soundly beside him, his breathing calm and even. He slowly, carefully moved his arm to caress the foreigner's cheek with the back of his hand. As conflicted as he felt, he let the tiniest of smiles creep across his lips.

He hadn't known how badly he missed this feeling until he'd gotten a taste of it again. It had been far too long since he'd felt any kind of companionship at all, let alone in a romantic or sexual sense. As foolish as he felt to admit it to himself, nothing would make him happier than to feel cared for by someone in that way, and to care for them in return. He didn't realize how empty of a life he'd lived for so long, having no one to share it with. It was something he'd denied himself ever since the war had ended in tragedy and everyone he held dear had been lost to him.

It had been an excruciatingly lonely existence at first, but one he felt was safer in the long run. From his experience, being close to anyone had only made him weak and vulnerable. His failure would have been far easier to cope with if he just hadn't cared about anyone he'd lost. For centuries, now, he'd been accustomed to the solitude, and the loneliness had become the norm. Now he wasn't sure he could resist the chance to have someone like that in his life again if he got it. He wanted so badly to believe he'd been given that chance...

Against his better judgment, he decided to yield to what his emotions wanted for now and give the Halcandran the benefit of the doubt, hoping beyond hope that they would end up being more than just partners in the bedroom. He concluded that if he was hurt in the end, he would have only himself to blame, and he could go back to the way things had been before they met. Finally, he set his grim thoughts aside, content to stay exactly where he was and listen to Magolor's rhythmic breathing, feeling the soft beating of his heart until he woke.

He wasn't sure how much time passed. The light of dawn began to filter in through closed curtains across the room as the sun climbed just above the horizon. It was only then that Magolor awoke with a yawn.

His vision was foggy at first, but he could faintly picture the outline of a certain knight holding him close. Smiling weakly, he nuzzled against the winged warrior and gave him a sly lick on the cheek with his flat tongue just barely poking out.

"'Morning, Meta~ That was some night, wasn't it?" He let a hint of sultry playfulness slip into his tone, more comfortable with the other male now that they'd “gained each others' trust,” so to speak. He teasingly traced one hand along the edge of the wing that lay over them both.

"How are you this morning~?"

Before he could even think about answering that question, Meta Knight had to yank his wing away.

“N-not there!” he gasped as a shiver ran up his spine. Magolor looked a little taken aback at that reaction, so he tried to explain. “I'm s-sorry, that's... just a sensitive spot...” he admitted reluctantly, fearful he'd given away knowledge that would be taken advantage of later.

“To answer your question, I'm..." he started, but wasn't sure how to continue. He couldn't completely abandon all caution around Magolor, not even remotely. If he knew how much control he'd just gotten, there was still every chance he'd abuse it.

"... I'm not looking forward to the desert," he sighed resolutely after a moment. At least it wasn't a lie. He didn't tolerate heat well at all.

"Hm?" Magolor looked a bit disappointed in the larger male's response at first. It was only when he thought about it some that he realized what the knight was talking about.

"Oh, right! The ship piece that's in the desert!" he exclaimed in realization, giving his forehead a light smack.

"I've heard interesting things about the desert. The heat there sounds absolutely lovely! It sounds like a perfect place to go out and relax with someone~" he hinted. His mind was wandering off, thinking of how nice it would be to spend a whole day in a refreshing place like a desert. It likely sounded strange to Meta Knight, but it would be the equivalent of a spring breeze to the Halcandran.

As nice as the concept sounded, the warrior couldn't agree less with the location choice. Wearing steel armor in the blazing sun was [i]miserable[/i], and dark colors absorbed heat as well, making the effect even worse.

"I prefer the sky..." he mused aloud. It was almost too easy to picture the two of them out on the deck of the Halberd as it idly cruised through a clear, cloudless sky... even if he felt utterly ridiculous picturing it. Still, it was a nice thought. He'd have to consider making that offer at some point.

"We should get up," the knight blurted quickly, throwing the covers off of himself to sit upright. He didn't want to let himself continue on that train of thought, and he [i]definitely[/i] didn't want to give the Halcandran a chance to coax him into doing anything physical again for now. With the others likely awake, or at least soon to be, it was far too risky.

"You're right, we should..." Magolor nodded in disappointed agreement, knowing it was for the better if they didn't do anything else yet. He stole one last little nuzzle against the winged knight before getting out of bed and retrieving his clothes. He had to look presentable, and [i]not[/i] like he'd just spent the night with the best swordsman in the land.

It was immensely difficult for Meta Knight not to return the nuzzle, but he was sure that if he let himself do it, he wouldn't be able to hold back from stealing another kiss, and from there the whole situation could spiral even further out of his control than it already was. He reached under the pillow he'd used to grab his mask and sword.

“I'll go out first,” he offered, thinking strategically as he adjusted the mask's strap around his back. At least having his face hidden again made him feel slightly better. “If we were to walk out of the same room at the same time, that would be... questionable.”

"My thoughts exactly. As... fun as last night was, it's better that none of the others ever find out,” the smaller of the two agreed, clearing his throat. He hovered a bit awkwardly beside the door, watching the knight re-dress.

"Um... Thanks again for last night, by the way! It was fun..." he said sheepishly, hiding a small smile underneath his collar.

“That it was...” Meta Knight concurred, contemplating what would happen next as he equipped his shoulder pauldrons. He couldn't shake the feeling that it would only be a one-time thing, or worse, they would wind up with no relation to one another outside of frequent sex. He decided to chance it.

“Would, er...” the winged armsmaster faltered just a little, reaching down off the bedside for his boots. He wasn't sure how to word this without it being awkward, and he feared what the answer might be. He kept his eyes on the task at hand for a moment, then tried again once he had his footwear on.

“... Would you like to do it again, at some point...?” he ventured, glancing over at his host and trying to search his eyes for the answer to his [i]real[/i] question while keeping his own expression as neutral as possible.

[i]Is there any possibility of us having something more than just sex?[/i]

Magolor's eyes lit up at the question.

"Y-yes! I-I mean, of course! If... if you want to, that is! You're uh... you're v-very..." he trailed off. His gaze fell to the floor.

"You're very fun to be with..." he mumbled, blushing as he pulled his collar up to cover more of his face.

"W-would you like to do it again later tonight?" he offered, finally looking back up at his guest.

Well, at least that wasn't a [i]bad[/i] reaction, but it didn't give away much. Maybe the slight shyness was a good sign?

“I would, si,” the soldier answered honestly and nonchalantly, reaching his arms straight up over his head to stretch them. Two quick wing flaps accompanied the stretch before he slid off the bed. He unfolded his cape and wrapped it around himself before making his way to the door.

“The thought of another night with you will be all that gets me through the day,” he murmured in a low tone that made Magolor blush beet red. He pushed his mask up just enough to expose his mouth but still cover his eyes, took one of Magolor's hands in his own, and gave the back of it a firm, slightly drawn-out kiss, feeling it shake a little in his grasp. He then re-adjusted his armor piece and cracked the door open.

“See you in a few momentos.” He waited before leaving to gauge what kind of reaction he'd get.

"Y-yeah... See you in a bit..." Magolor swallowed, waving the knight off as he left.

[i]He... He really does want to do it again? He actually enjoyed doing those things with me? But... that was supposed to just be something that happened last night... Maybe once or twice more, but... why am I thinking about going further? I just met him, after all![/i]

He stared disconnectedly at the back of his hand. Despite having met such a short time ago, it seemed as if the knight actually [i]cared[/i] for him, at least to some extent. He'd been so tender and gentlemanly the previous night, so attentive to his needs. He was interested in doing more. He hadn't directly rejected the idea of spending time together outside of the bedroom, either. That had to mean something, surely...?

For the first time, Magolor felt conflicted about his intentions. Too conflicted for his taste. He shook his head, tossing that thought away. His primary concern was getting the Lor fixed and returning home. Then he could worry about this... “relationship” that may be forming.

___

Meta Knight entered the ship's lobby and found only Kirby and Bandana Dee waiting there.

“I'm assuming the King won't be joining us today, then?” he asked to whoever would answer. It would make sense if His Majesty didn't go with them this time—he was a penguin, after all, so the desert heat would be the worst for him out of the four.

"I-I'm afraid not, Sir," Bandana Dee spoke up and bowed to his superior in rank, sweating a bit.

"His majesty insisted on staying behind. Once he realized what our next destination was, he demanded to sleep in and stay here. However, he has ordered me to come with you and Kirby, t-to..." He was sweating more now. It had never happened before, but he was so used to the King's outbursts, and the knight was so intimidating, he was always afraid of angering him in case he suddenly lashed out. He didn't want to say what was next, but...

"… To k-keep an eye on you both..." he mumbled.

“Right...” What he could mean by that, the swordsman had no idea, but he thought it best not to question it. He was used to His Majesty's quirky nature by now, and knew better than to try and find reason where there was none.

"Good morning, everyone!” Magolor entered the room a moment later, greeting the lot of them cheerfully.

“I just caught what was said. So, I'll be in the company of His Majesty for today, then? W-wonderful..." Magolor had trouble keeping his fake smile on for once. He'd hardly spent a minute in King Dedede's presence before immediately deciding he was his [i]least[/i] favorite of the group.

Meta Knight flashed an apologetic look toward the alien. He knew better than most how horrible it could be to stay in the King's company for long, and could hardly fathom how much worse it would be without his army of waddle dees catering to his every whim. It was practically like babysitting and acting as a low-ranking servant all at once. It was even worse than having to monitor Kirby single-handed.

“We'll be as quick as possible,” the swordsman announced, turning to the front entrance. “I'll lead,” he ordered rather than offered. Bandana Dee was too indecisive for the job, not accustomed to leading rather than following orders. Kirby was too easily distracted by anything that moved to make good time, even if he genuinely tried to hurry. Even things that [i]didn't[/i] move could catch his attention and get him side-tracked, especially anything he thought was edible. Which happened to be most things.

“Wh-whatever you say, Sir!” the dee snapped to attention, agreeing without a hint of complaint.

Kirby had, once again, been staring dazedly at the ship's monitor, and probably hadn't heard a single bit of the conversation.

“You.” Meta Knight addressed Bandana Dee curtly, and indicated Kirby with a sideways glance. “Keep an eye on him. He'll wander off if we let him.” Without waiting for a response, he turned toward the ship's main entrance.

“Yes, Sir,” the waddle dee answered anyway, giving Kirby a tap on the shoulder to get his attention. The puff turned to him with a blank and oblivious expression, then noticed his mentor leaving through the door and rushed to follow him, nearly bumping right into him in the process.

Without any protest from the others, the knight led them out through the ships' front entrance, and for once, dreaded the sight of a clear sky. He bit back a sigh. There wouldn't even be so much as the temporary shade of a passing cloud to shelter him from the desert heat.

[i]This is not going to be one of my better days...[/i]