"You should really use your bed once in a while." Meta snapped awake, reflexively hurling an eraser at the source of the noise. Sailor Dee let out a startled squeak as it bounced off of her nose and fell to the floor. She then watched her esteemed leader stare at her with drool dripping off of his chin.

"S-sorry about that," he muttered, snatching a tissue from the box on his desk and wiping his face clean. He set to work on the puddle left before him as Dee sighed, rubbing her nose.

"Anyway... you've been holed up in your office the whole day, so I came to check on you. Got any work done, or are you just napping?" Dee quipped. Meta looked up from the drool-stained paper he was holding at arm's length and huffed.

"I was merely resting after drawing up some schematics-"Dee grabbed one of the scattered papers before he could react and studied it. It appeared to be a crude drawing of Meta with rippling muscles on a throne as multiple equally poorly drawn subjects groveled around him.

"The mini masks on the nipples are a nice touch sir," she snickered. Meta snatched the paper back and shoved it into the wastebasket.

"I've just been... rather uninspired today," he sighed, gathering all of the papers that had fallen victim to his drooling and sliding them into the trash. Meta grabbed one of the few actual schematics and studied it. It was an intricate diagram of a device capable of firing pieces of metal at high speed through the use of a combustible powder. Apparently he'd reinvented the handgun whilst half asleep.

"You know, nobody would judge you for taking a day off once in a while," Dee said gently. Meta sighed again, and slid a form from the edge of the desk before him. It was an exceedingly complex order for a multitude of vital materials.

"I would really rather not let this work pile up." He shuffled a few more pages around, searching for the measurements he needed. He finally found the proper sheet, only to find the calculations half finished. Meta was an engineer, calculations and measurements were his bread and butter. But right now the thought of even beginning to complete the paper made his arms feel like lead.

"I'm perfectly capable of handling this for a day. You hired me for a reason, you know," Dee offered. Sailor Dee was in no way a proficient fighter, but her intellectual capacity made her a vital component of Meta's crew. He'd never seen anyone program faster and she was more accurate than anyone he knew when it came to mental math.

"You have your own duties, and I would rather not overburden you," Meta mumbled, reading the same line of numbers for what must have been the tenth time. Dee gave him a heart wrenchingly concerned look, and he averted his eyes. She was an angel in the body of a Waddle Dee.

"What's wrong? Something's eating at you," she asked. Meta grimaced.

"If I tell you, you have to let it remain a secret from the others," he groaned. Dee perked up, interest piqued.

"Of course! What's bothering you then?" she chirped. Meta drummed his fingers on his desk, chewing his lip anxiously.

"You are aware of my... Mirror World counterpart, correct?" he began.

"Yeah, you told me about him..." Dee said, anger clouding her usually cheerful countenance.

"Well, apparently he doesn't die but rather temporarily shatters before reforming," Meta continued, tenting his fingers in front of him.

"Oh, right! The King encountered him during the Floralia incident, correct? Even though I'm pretty sure he embellished the fight a little bit, he did say that Dark Meta Knight shattered into glass upon defeat. And you told us about the incident with the Dimension Mirror where Kirby shattered him as well! Is that like a Mirror-Worlder trait or something?" Dee babbled.

"You are exceedingly astute as usual. Yes, apparently those from the Mirror World cannot suffer permanent death, but rather shatter temporarily before reforming," Meta said.

"But King Dedede said he shattered the Dimension Mirror as well. Why is Dark Meta Knight even relevant if he's still trapped in a parallel dimension?"

"Apparently his abilities are not what I assumed them to be. Though he cannot utilize them to cross over, he can use regular mirrors to contact those in our realm," Meta explained, watching the realization dawn on Dee's face.

"He's been contacting you?!" she squeaked.

"It's more akin to bothering me than anything. I can barely even use mirrors anymore, he replaces my reflection! I went to a meeting with doodles all over my helm because I couldn't see them!" Meta ranted, gritting his teeth.

"Woah woah woah, he talks to you? What does he say?" Dee urged.

"Absolute drivel is what he says. He insults my appearance, compliments his own, propositions me, insults my tastes-"

"He propositions you?!" Dee squealed, putting a hand over her mouth. Meta rested his face in his hands.

"He's some sort of malignant narcissist. I'm sure he'd just as soon tape a mirror over some poor sod's face and go at it," he snorted. Meta squinted at Dee as she let out a short laugh.

"Sorry, that's just really weird," she tittered. Meta shook his head as he realized his important discussion had devolved into petty gossip and steeled his expression.

"I'm certain that he is attempting to lull me into a false sense of security. There is no conceivable way a megalomaniac like him isn't harboring a grudge against our dimension," he said. Dee folded her arms and nodded, her expression turning serious as well.

"We should warn the people guarding the shards, as well as the King. He has the frame, so I'm certain he would be struck first in the event of another attack," she offered. After the latest incident, the Dimension Mirror's shards had been scattered, given to different people to safe keep. Meta shook his head.

"There's no way for him to enter our realm. The only way for the mirror to be reassembled is for someone from this realm to gather the pieces," he explained.

"Couldn't he manipulate somebody?" Dee asked.

"All of the shard holders are aware of his treachery. Even if he convinces one to assist him, he'll have the king and seven others to contend with."

"Right. So you think he's just annoying you because he's trapped?"

"Correct. It's just a pathetic final power play," Meta growled, snatching a pen to angrily fidget with. Dee frowned, giving him a sympathetic look.

"Maybe avoid mirrors for now? He'll lose interest eventually, right?" she soothed.

"Perhaps, but I refuse to give him the satisfaction. That pompous, self-important, egotistical wretch is going to lose this little game of his," he hissed, gripping the pen tighter.

"No need to get all worked up!" Dee said, backing away slightly. Meta would never harm his crew in anger, but he was still a terrifying sight to behold when properly enraged.

"Waltzing into my home and insulting my intelligence-"his grip finally exceeded what the pen could withstand. The loud crack of plastic buckling foretold the spray of black ink that spattered both Meta and his desk. He slowly looked at the dark splotch across his chest, and then at the puddle of the stuff on his desk. Meta let the remains of the pen slide out of his hand, and took several deep breaths. Dee eyed the vein still throbbing on his forehead.

"Now just calm down-"

"GODDAMNIT!" Meta slammed his fist down onto his desk, splattering the ink puddle everywhere.