Archive of Our Own ^beta

Meta Knight blinked himself awake, the early morning light through the shuddered blinds brought a smile to the Star Warriors face. Listening to the cracks and pops of his wings as he stretched, a flower petal caught his eye.

It was somewhat pointy, and a rather beautiful shade of purple.

That was… odd. He couldn’t recall having any flowers in his room. Most unbefitting for a knight after all. Maybe Sword or Blade had bought some recently and he had dragged it in… Yes, that was it.

The thought of his apprentices brought a smile to his face. After the defeat of eNeMeE, they had grown ever closer. Meta Knight hurried his morning routine along, hoping to see them before his morning patrol.

Not that he would admit that, of course.

Meta Knight coughed suddenly, repulsed by the mere thought of such. No, Sword and Blade looked up to him too much for him to be so soft. What would the others think?

He shook the thoughts away, realizing that he had been staring off into space for about a minute now. He could worry about that later, he was much too busy to be preoccupied with friends.

As feelings and flowers faded from his mind, Meta Knight put on his mask and cape. It was time for patrol after all.

“Sir Meta Knight!” The knight in question turned around, biting down the urge to grin. Just the ones he wished to see. “Good morning Sword Knight, Blade Knight.”

“We almost missed you at breakfast! You have eaten right?” Sword asked worriedly, earning an unseen eye roll from Blade.

Meta Knight wished he could laugh at the remark, sure that his eyes had changed to pink. He felt bad for worrying them, but it was nice they cared.

“I am quite alright, I had some food this morning.” The lie tasted bitter in his mouth. Or maybe that was just the scratchiness of his throat, which felt a lot less metaphorical than the former.

Sword seemed satisfied with the answer, nodding carefully. Blade’s face was covered, but Meta Knight could practically feel the fond exasperation his apprentice held.

“Hbhdfkgbkdfbkvd” He laughed, oblivious to the misfortune of the author who had to type this. Something along the lines of ‘you worry too much’, causing Sword to huff in mock offense.

The two bickered for a little bit, but Meta Knight’s mind was elsewhere. He ended up tuning them out after the first playful insult. Was the castle always this bright?

Meta Knight coughed violently, feeling something hit the inside of his mask. His apprentices whirled around, startled as their friend practically hacked up a lung. “Are you alright, Meta Knight? That sounded painful…”

Meta Knight nodded, not trusting his voice at the moment. He left without a word, and in the process, two very concerned knights alone to ponder.

After patrol, Meta Knight escaped to the corner of the library, only pausing to take off his mask when he was certain no one could see it. Whatever had fallen through the visor that morning had been quite a nuisance so far, and he was glad to be rid of it.

But the Star Warriors eyes widened as a very familiar petal fell out, stained black with demon blood.

That was… disconcerting.

Meta Knight stumbled back, bumping into a bookcase with a loud clatter of metal and wood.

“Is someone over there?” The knight threw his mask on in a panic, just in time to see Tiff turn the corner and stare in surprise. “Oh! Sir Meta Knight! What brings you to the library?”

“Just some light reading.” He excused, covering the bloodied petal with his boot.

“...You don’t have any books with you.”

Meta Knight blinked, pulling out a random book from the shelves while Tiff looked around. Upon closer inspection, it was a light green book with loopy writing written in cursive, ‘Floralia’s Guide to Flowers.’ How convenient.

“...Yes I do.” He said nonchalantly, stifling another cough. Tiff let out an embarrassed “oh,” before wishing him a good day and going back to whatever she was doing. Meta Knight sighed, relieved, and opened up the book.

Ah, there it was.

“Gladiolus Flowers, or “Sword Lilies” are beautiful blooms that appear in many vibrant colors, each with their own different meanings. Yellow, for example, represents compassion, while purple means mystery and grace.”

Well that answered one question.

Meta Knight read further, but ultimately found nothing of note. He scanned over every book on flowers he could find for hours, ignoring a curious gaze from Tiff as she finally left the library.

The knight sighed, which turned into a cough, blood splattering against his mask. Gross.

Maybe he’d try again tomorrow. It was almost time for his nightly patrol. Some had asked him why he still patrols, as if eNemEe’s death simply made everything okay. Until every demon beast was gone, he would patrol. And if he was tired? So be it.

Meta Knight chuckled at the irony of the situation, if you had told him centuries ago he’d be fighting demon beasts till his last breath, he’d have called you insane.

No matter, might as well get this over with.

The Knight prowled down the halls, looking down corridor after corridor for anything even remotely suspicious. The only noise was the soft metal of his shoes hitting the concrete flooring, and the occasional clearing of the knight’s throat. It was much too quiet.

It wasn’t that he minded patrolling… but it got lonely at times.

Meta Knight had never been a particularly social person. The opposite, really. But company was nice sometimes. He wouldn’t mind if Sword or Blade joined him.

Eventually, he passed the Ebrum’s door, and smiled wistfully at the smell of homemade cooking and the chatter of the residents inside.

His mind wandered towards Blade and Sword. What would they be making for dinner? Meta Knight rarely joined them, which he supposed he should feel bad about… Maybe he should, just this once.

A loud coughing fit brought him out of his thoughts, and he swiftly continued his walk, pretending not to notice how the distant speaking seemed to falter. He should get back to patrol.

After all, he had two knights he needed to see.

—

Meta Knight sucked in a deep breath. He couldn’t believe he was actually nervous about this… putting on his stoic facade, the knight opened the door.

“Sir Meta Knight! You’re back early!”

“Dghhfdhjk?”

“It was a quick patrol.” Meta Knight held a smile, but he could guess his eyes had flickered to a soft blue based on the startled look on Blade’s unmasked face. Sword however, was beaming.

“Are you joining us for dinner?”

Meta Knight felt relieved. He silently thanked Sword for not making him say it himself. “I don’t suppose it would hurt…”

Sword’s smile practically lit up the whole room, and he immediately ran to the kitchen to grab another plate.

Blade gave Meta Knight a teasing smile as he sat down, making some sort of about him finally taking off his mask. The knight, in response, simply gave an amused smile. “Maybe I will.” He joked, barely containing his laughter at Blade’s baffled expression.

Soon, Sword arrived, and Meta Knight took the plate. His grateful nod made Sword grin. All three knights sat at the table then, and Meta Knight’s apprentices continued eating.

Meta Knight reached for some of the food the others had served. Admittedly, he had never learned much about Dreamland’s cuisine, but Sword and Blade’s cooking was always great to him, even if he didn’t spend much time with them.

Carefully, Meta Knight lifted his mask just enough, and disregarding the awed looks from his apprentices, bit down on the heavenly food.

A loud growl silenced the table.

It became apparent to the knight that he hadn’t eaten all day. And judging by the alarmed looks on the other’s faces, they had noticed too. Blade let out a startled laugh.

Meta Knight slapped his mask back down again and glared embarrassedly at his apprentice, to the gentle concern of Sword. He hated how familiar it was… but at the same time, he could never stay mad at these two.

The knight grabbed a glass of water, the liquid washing away another cough rising up. The table fell into a comfortable silence, spare a few worried glances from Sword.

It was always something he loved about them. Blade may poke fun at times, and Sword may be a little of a worrywart, but they forced him to answer. They weren’t like the others, overwhelming him with questions. They just accepted it, and…maybe they’d-

Suddenly Meta Knight was gasping for air, barely hearing the shouts of concern. He gripped the table as he coughed, distantly feeling blood soak into his glove.

Something hit him, and a dull pain came from his back.

The knight flinched, Galaxia suddenly unsheathed. He heard panicked cries. A blade was pointed towards-

‘META KNIGHT!’

Meta Knight flinched again at Galaxia’s voice, blinking as he looked at his surroundings.

He was shaking. He had stood up during this and was pointing Galaxia towards two horrified Knights. Sword and Blade.

His hand was covered in demon blood.

“Sir Meta Knight! I am so sorry- I- I didn’t mean to-” Sword looked terrified. “I mean- you were choking so I-” Oh. So that’s what that was.

Blade was looking at this all in pure shock, looking uneasily at the sword being pointed at him. “Shdjhsdjgnsjkdgnksjnfgf?”

“I-” Meta Knight faltered- no, knight’s don’t falter.

“Apologies, I have to go.”

Meta Knight fled, the door to his room shutting with a final click.

—

Meta Knight ripped off his mask, throwing it to the ground with a loud clatter. The smell of blood and pollen was suffocating.

‘Dear heart, are you alright?’

Meta Knight looked away from his sword in shame, before wiping some blood from his face. “I’m fine Galaxia.”

He did mean it, really.

Guilt tore at him for ruining such a peaceful dinner… Sword seemed so happy about him staying…

Another cough ripped at his lungs. The Knight winced as another sword lily dropped to the floor. It was coated in blood. He’d probably have to clean that up later.

The light creaking of his bed felt distant to him. This whole scenario was so confusing to him. This really didn’t seem like a normal sickness, right? A decade on this planet and he didn’t even know all the ailments on it…

‘You should rest, you can figure this all out later.’

Meta Knight’s eyes widened. “You don’t know what this is?”

The sword was silent for a moment.

‘...I have an idea. I don’t think you’d want to hear it though.’

Meta Knight rolled his eyes. “I’m sure I could handle it. I’d rather not be coughing flowers any longer than I have to.”

‘Have you considered… that…’ Galaxia seemed hesitant. ‘You may… love those two?”

“What.”

‘Well, it only makes sense, with you having Hanahaki of course. Although I don’t doubt you haven’t heard of it.’
He couldn’t love Sword and Blade… He couldn’t. They were soldiers, there’s no room for love in war. Not that they would see him that way. The three were friends at best…

“Galaxia for Nova’s sake get to the point.” Meta Knight snapped. He felt bad about it but hell, he just needed an explanation. This sickness was getting on his nerves.

‘Well… Hanahaki is a disease that you get when you experience… unrequited love. It’s a flower that grows in your lungs, and the only cure is to have the other person love you. If they don’t… then…’

Galaxia faltered.

‘You will die.’

Meta Knight looked at the demon blood on his shaking, gloved hands. Admittedly, this wasn’t the way he thought he’d go out. He chuckled darkly, which turned into a violent cough.

Meta Knight suddenly retched over the side of his bed. The smell of blood filled his senses. The knight groaned pathetically, surrounded by flowers. He was going to die.

‘Meta Knight…’ Galaxia sighed. ‘I said there was a cure, you know.’

“I am not doing that.’

‘The only other option would be surgery… but that means you can never feel love-’

“Great. I'll choose that one then.”

‘Have fun explaining that to Sword and Blade then.’

Meta Knight held a cough at the reminder. “Simple, I don’t tell them.”

…

‘You can’t be serious.’

“I’ve never been more serious about anything in my life.”

‘Well- er, how would you tell Dr. Yabui about this then? I’m sure he doesn’t know how Hanahaki works either-’

“I’ll do it myself.”

Galaxia, at this point, seemed too baffled to argue.

Meta Knight got up from his bed, carefully stepping around the blood puddle as if he hadn’t just been told he might die and put his sword in emotional distress.

The smooth metal of his mask calmed his shaking form, just a bit. It still had that horrible smell, but at least it didn’t actively have flowers in it now. His footsteps were quiet as he walked to the bathroom, in contrast to the concerned shout of surprise that came from his apprentices.

He walked faster, hoping they didn’t notice all the black stains on his mask.

Closing the door with a soft click, he looked in the mirror…

Wow. He looked awful.

Meta Knight took off his mask hesitantly… It was worse. His pale face was smeared with blood, his sickly face graced with a light blush. His armor looked relatively fine, but his cape somehow got those horrible purple petals stuck to it.

Meta Knight heaved into the sink, oddly grateful that it was only blood and petals this time. Picking the sword lilies out of the sink and into the trash, he let the water wash it down.

Once he was sure no flowers were left, he put on his mask and opened the door.

The knight felt his face heat up as he saw the two in front of him. Knowing seemed to only make it worse.

‘Sorry about that…’

“Don’t worry about it..” Meta Knight mumbled.

“Sir! You- oh and you’re already leaving- okay.” Meta Knight rushed back to his room immediately upon hearing Sword’s voice. Blade said nothing, but he could feel the disappointment in the room.

It’s fine. Like Galaxia said, he could sort it out in the morning.

—

He hadn’t sorted it out in the morning.

Although, to Meta Knight’s credit, he did eat breakfast this time.

The Star Warrior had woken up, and upon looking around his room, it was suddenly very apparent that the Hanahaki had not calmed down in the night.

The whole room had flowers and petals scattered around the floor, most of them stained with dried demon blood. Meta Knight winced. Hopefully Sword and Blade won’t see any of this.

Meta Knight got out of bed as quickly as possible, grabbed some rations for breakfast, and hid from Sword and Blade the whole day. It was tiring, but he made due.

The knight decided his first stop was the convenience store. Surely they had like… a bucket there, right?

Miraculously, they did. But walking through Cappy Town wasn’t without consequence. Meta Knight had to face the most dreaded thing…

Questions.

Plus, he had left Galaxia at home, so he couldn’t even have the extra intimidation points.

“Hey Meta Knight! Wanna try my new dish?”

“Meta Knight? What brings you through Cappy Town?”

“Ha! You look five minutes from death! What, that mask on too tight?!”

That last one had been Tokkori. Meta Knight was so fed up by the time he reached the bird that he genuinely considered throwing that feathered menace into the nearest tree.

Thankfully he made it into the store without any random acts of violence. The knight searched the shelves, the visor on his mask was barely keeping him from going blind. Nova, this store was bright. It was like that in the castle too… Meta Knight vaguely remembered that being a side effect of sickness.

He left the store, bucket in hand. Now, time for the knives.

Admittedly, Meta Knight had no idea how surgery worked. It probably wasn’t too hard right?

“Hello, Dr. Yabui.” The knight’s voice sounded raspy and horrible. Dr. Yabui turned to him in surprise.

“Meta Knight! Pardon me but, are you sick? You sound dreadful.” The bluntness of the sentence made the knight narrow his eyes in irritation.

“Of course not.” He replied, maybe a bit too quickly. “Do you have any… er… Scissors? Or… Scal..pels..?” Those were things you needed for surgery, right?

“Well, yes but-”

“Great, I will be borrowing those then.”

Without a second thought, Meta Knight pushed Dr. Yabui aside and reached for the cabinet. He’d return them later anyway. He was only borrowing them.

“Stop! I’m afraid I can’t let you use those! It’s strictly forbidden to steal medical equipment you see-”

“You misunderstand, I’m not stealing, I’m borrowing.”

“But-” Two familiar voices broke through the conversation.

“Sir!”

“Jhfskarygd?!”

Meta Knight froze, getting an odd look from Dr. Yabui. The knight caught white eyes, pale with fear inside the doctor's glasses. He quickly blinked it away before turning to the newcomers.

There stood Sword and Blade, looking just as startled as he was, standing in front of a very angry and confused Tiff.

“Sir Meta Knight! What are you doing? Blade and Sword told me you were acting weird, and now you’re taking medical equipment?! What has gotten into you???”

Meta Knight stared at them, an awkward silence filling the hospital.

…

“Well?!”

Meta Knight looked at his fellow knights. His eyes must have changed color again by a sudden gasp they let out. It had been doing that a lot recently.

In a moment of brilliance, Meta Knight let out a strangled,

“...Bye.”

Meta Knight ran towards the window, ignoring the shouts of surprise and cries of concern. Dodging waves of confused cappies, he sprinted until he couldn’t hear anything except for the sounds of metal on grass and his own ragged breaths.

Meta Knight collapsed onto the ground, holding onto the bucket for dear life and throwing his mask to the ground. Seems like those rations weren’t much use.

The knight rolled over, utterly exhausted. Gasping for air, suddenly there were petals on the ground. A lot of them.

So there laid Meta Knight, maskless, covered in black sludge and petals, and utterly miserable. Maybe it would’ve just been easier to confess and get it over with.

Whatever, he had gotten this far.

Picking up the scalpel and scissors, Meta Knight prepared to do the stupidest thing he’ll ever do.

—

Blade held Sword’s arm as he tried to run after their lord. Solemn eyes met fearful, and they walked back to the castle.

He remembered those terrified, white eyes, and a puddle of dread settled in his stomach. He never wanted Meta Knight to feel that way again. It was uncanny, seeing such a stoic face, with such horror.

Tiff asked about it on the way out of the clinic, but Blade didn’t think she really understood.

The two knights walked to their abode alone, Tiff having left for the library. She said something about researching the black goo on Meta Knight’s cape.

Neither Sword or Blade had missed that. It was a shock the first time, seeing him covered in demon blood on the way to the bathroom, but after a bit of thinking, they had a theory. Blade could only hope it wasn’t true.

Entering Meta Knight’s room… It was so… so much worse.

The room was covered in purple flowers, stained black with dried blood. The room smelled horrible, and just looking at it made Sword want to throw up. But something caught the two’s attention…

“Galaxia?”

Stabbed into the floorboards, stood Meta Knight’s sword.

“Fdgdjgnfvb…” Blade made an awkward comment about property damage before Sword elbowed him.

The two knights hesitantly grabbed the hilt. The result was instant, and suddenly Blade had a blinding headache.

‘YOU TWO.’ An angelic voice broke through the pain, but it was loud, and frantic.

‘Find him, quickly. Before it’s too late!’

“Wha- Galaxia-”

‘FIND HIM NOW. ASK QUESTIONS LATER. HE’S IN WHISPY WOODS!’

Getting the hint, Sword grabbed the weapon out of the ground, and the three sprinted towards Whispy Woods.

The two had never run as fast as they have in their life. Blade had never personally talked to Galaxia, but he could guess this was serious. And if Meta Knight was in danger… He’d risk life and limb for him.

Blade Knight glanced at Sword. Despite wearing a mask, he could sense the internal panic and worry.

His heart panged for his friend… Hopefully when they get to Whispy Woods he could help.

—

Alright, his lungs were… here, right?

Meta Knight was left with the startling realization that in all his years in the gsa, he had never actually learned how puffball anatomy worked. Did he even have lungs…?

“Wait!”

“Ffjshfjksh!”

Oh no. Meta Knight wondered how this might look to them. He lowered the scalpel.

Suddenly, Meta Knight jolted. He wasn’t wearing his mask.

Meta Knight dropped the scalpel, frantically covering his face with his cape. He heard the blood bucket fall over too. Great. Sword let out a shout of surprise at the demon blood coating the grass.

The metallic-pollen smell had not gotten any better, it seemed.

“Meta Knight…” Two figures sat down in front of him. The air was quiet and suffocating.

“Please, just tell us what’s wrong.”

“Fhfhhgj…” A gloved hand slid his mask under the cape. Meta Knight hesitated. No, if he was going to do this… then… they deserved to see.

Lowering the cape, Meta Knight solemnly looked at the two in front of them.

The others had also taken off their masks, and Meta Knight winced at their awed and startled looks.

“...Sword… Blade… I-”

A violent cough struck at the knight's lungs, and he doubled over. Blood coated his gloves. Flower petals stuck uncomfortably to his face. It was worse than ever.

Sword Knight froze up, looking at Galaxia (wait how was he holding it-) in surprise.

He quietly gave it to Blade. Meta Knight felt two sets of gentle hands holding him close, he felt his face heat up as he looked up at his knights.

“I…” Meta Knight hesitated. “I’m sorry-”

“...What?”

“For ruining the dinner, I mean. I never really apologized for that so-” He was interrupted by a bone crushing hug as the two knights held him.

“Yhyoure andfdg idioythg” Blade laughed.

“Yeah! We love you, Meta Knight.”

Meta Knight was speechless. The whole forest seemed to go silent. “...I love you too.”

Suddenly, there was blinding pain. Meta Knight screamed in agony as he coughed, breathlessly. He was wrong earlier, this is where he would die.

Meta Knight heard distressed voices, and he felt tears run down his face. It was so painful.

And then… nothing.

Lungs sore, Meta Knight looked at his gloves, bloodied and stained. His head spun, but not with sickness. An abrupt laugh hit him as it registered what was in his paws.

A single Gladiolus Flower, roots and all. The Hanahaki was gone.

Meta Knight looked at Sword and Blade, covered in blood and exhausted… and smiled.

—

The next day, the three knights returned the medical equipment. They wouldn’t need that anymore. They never should have needed it in the first place.

Meta Knight turned to his knights, no, his partners.

They had been practically filled with questions, but they had been patient thus far… They sat in Meta Knight's room, thankfully blood free.

Carefully, Meta Knight took off his cape.

Sharp demon beast wings unraveled from the dimensional confines of his cape, delicate and frail from disuse. Sword let out a quiet gasp.

“You look like a little bat!”

“Dfgjndknhbn”

Meta Knight glared at the two affectionately, they were just as bad as Jecra and Garlude… “Fine then, you don’t get any more secrets today.”

He crossed his arms as his partners laughed. That’s it. No more secrets for the whole week. They’d just have to deal with it.

It was nice though, to not have fearful or distrustful eyes upon seeing his wings… He hadn’t told them the details but… That was okay, he’d tell them when he was ready.

For now, it was time for patrol. And this time he’d have company.