...Did everyone Read The Announcement Post Very Carefully?

That's right. Kirby of the Stars: The Magic Crystal and The Mysterious Maze was my "A.P.R.I.L. F.O.O.L.S" joke! Sorry! XD

It started at the end of January when I remembered that I'd made a joke grouping of the four Dream Friends that get consistently left out of the novels: Marx, Adeleine, Ribbon, and Dark Meta Knight. I wanted to do something special for them and, partly inspired by Jojo's roleswap cover emulating the FL novels, I thought to make a fake novel cover just for MY forgotten favorites! Gryll and the Fairy Queen are a bonus, because if I was doing this, I would go all out!

I took a huge amount of reference photos, both from the novels and from Tau and Poto's "Find Kirby" books (the only place they've ever drawn Gryll! The Fairy Queen I referenced from Wave 2's ending picture in Star Allies - that's why her crown looks slightly different. Speaking of, Ripple Star Castle (?) is WEIRD looking, y'all!)

At ~40 hours~ of sketching, drawing, painting, refining, trying to get those distinctive Kirby novel touches right (don't get me started on emulating the cover's texture. I was a dumb bunny and remade it by HAND out of a clean scrap about the size of Kirby's body!) this was an immense challenge and the most time I’ve ever put into any illustration, but it was also a huge labor of love for Kirby and its cast!

For what it's worth, I actually did come up with a full on "plot" for this fake novel of mine! (And yes, it was a big stretch to combine Kirby 64 with Amazing Mirror, Milky Way Wishes, and Star Stacker!!)

Here is the "chapter list" (in English and Japanese!)

!!NEW KIRBY NOVEL ALERT!!

Am I dreaming?!?

Pinch me if so, because this is...it's-...! IT'S...!!

RRGGGGHHH!! :sobbing clawing screaming:

I...phew... I gotta rein my enthusiasm in for a sec!! (Ahhhhhhhhh!) T-The title is (roughly) "Kirby of the Stars: The Magic Crystal and The Mystery of the Mirror Maze!" To be honest, I'm getting flashbacks to that other maze-themed novel with them cramming in a bunch of unrelated plots and characters except...EXCEPT-...!!

LOOK AT THEMMMM! It's almost everyone who was missing till now?! (At least among the Dream Friends) plus Gryll (!?!) plus the Fairy Queen?!?! (Name drop? Name drop at last?!?) Also EVERYONE IS SOOO CUTE!! (Except Marx, lol but I don't even mind! The fact that he seems to be the antagonist of this piece means we'll probably get more pictures of him anyway! :fingers crossed:)

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Finally...! My beloved Salty French Bread getting the spotlight! And to think, I was just telling myself earlier this year that I need to draw something BIG for them for their anniversary as well! >w<

Oh, right! ^^; The summary! Not every character or plot point is mentioned, so I don't know what the explanation is for Dark Meta Knight or if he'll be an illusion (which would be sad...) nor why they're doing Crystal Shards (??) plot with Marx (except they already used Nova in Dreamy Gear...) but even if everyone only makes cameo appearances it could still be the Best Novel Ever?! Anyway--!

One snooze-filled morning in Dream Land, the magician, Marx arrives, inviting everyone to attend his special one-day only traveling carnival! There's food, fun, and games to be had. Best of all, it's free to everyone?! An excited Kirby and King Dedede race each other to see who can pack in the most attractions in before sunset! The biggest challenge? A gigantic maze made of mirrors!

Locate one of the crystals hidden deep in the maze and make your way out to win. But not only is the maze filled with strange, scary reflections that chase you on their own, some say they've seen what look like distant worlds in the mirrors as well?!

Stranger still, Kirby encounters a young fairy girl while wandering the maze who says these crystals are vital to her planet! Is there more to this tricky carnival game than meets the eye?!

[Update]