Blumiere and Timpani slowly step into Castle Bleck, hand in hand.

They both simultaneously take in a shaky breath. Neither of them had been here since everything went down. Since the Ultimate Show.

It didn't feel like home anymore to Blumiere. It felt.... so empty. He couldn't hear the distant chatter of his minions. He couldn't hear Mimi complaining about the clicking noise Nastasia made with the pen she'd hold in her right hand as she reviewed the schedule which no one would follow. Or the sound of O'Chunks' walking.

Or Dimentio's laugh.

He misses it all. Even though Dimentio had betrayed him, he wishes with all his heart that the jester could have been spared.

"Are you alright, Dear?" Timpani softly asks. "We can come back later if you'd like. Or if the memories hurt too much, I can check all by myself."

The two of them would be running away together as they had always planned. They found a small town far far away, where they could be safe. They could be together. But first, Blumiere wanted to check the castle for bodies. Just to give his fallen friend a proper funeral.

"I'm alright," Blumiere breathes. "I'll be alright."

He shivers and wraps his cloak around himself, before starting forward. Every step he takes feels... strange. To be here in this castle as Blumiere and not Count Bleck. It was strange. Almost unnatural.

He refuses to teleport them both straight to where they need to be. When Timpani asks why he doesn't answer. He guesses a small part of him wants to walk through it all one last time. He hates walking through the mirror hall and finds this to be one of the most painful areas. It hurts. He'd look in those mirrors, and see the person responsible for Dimentio's death. He remembers Dimentio floating through this hall often, using trick mirrors to hide from Mimi whenever he playfully messed with her.

But the mirror hall didn't hurt nearly as much as the Inner Sanctum. No, no, no. This room was the room they'd all meet. The room they'd all talk. The room where it happened.

There is a large crater on the floor, broken debris everywhere. Blumiere's breath hitches as he looks around. It had only been a week and a half ago, but it already felt like a lifetime. Like some sort of nightmare. He stares at the giant crater, eyes glassy.

"You don't have to do this Blu. I can look for him-"

"No. I want... I want to help" He assures, waving his hand, magically lifting a large amount of the debris in the crater.

He takes a long, painful breath, before approaching.

Inside, two people. Mr. L and Dimentio. Blumiere frowns and feels his heart ache even more so now. He hadn't known Mr. L would be there as well. Although, it did make sense since he was a part of Super Dimentio.

"Hold up, hold up, you're dead?!" The girl asks. "Then how the heck are you here right now?"

"Now, I never said I was dead," Mr. L points out.

"Well, you kinda implied it," She argues, crossing her arms and smirking. "How could you even survive something like that?!"

"Luigi survived. And nearly unscratched, I might add." Mr. L says.

"Well... he was thrown out before the explosions really happened. You should have died."

"Okay, for the future, I believe it would be in your best interest to refrain from saying the phrase, 'You should have died,' to anyone." Mr. L chuckles.

"Well, it still doesn't add up." She breathes.

"Well, if you sit and listen maybe it will. May I continue?" Mr. L asks.

The girl waits a moment, before nodding. "Alright," She shrugs. "What's next?"

They both were lying on the ground, covered in dried blood and cuts. Dimentio's mask was cracked and lying on the ground, inches from his limp hand.

Blumiere feels his breathing begin to accelerate when Timpani places a gentle hand on his back. "Oh," Is all she can say when she sees that Mr. L is there as well.

Blumiere shakes his head and slowly floats down. He exchanges a glance between the two of them, before kneeling and placing a hand on Mr. L's forehead.

It's not quite cold.

"No," Mr. L horsely spits immediately upon feeling the touch, suddenly tensing up. His voice is incredibly soft, but it still catches Blumiere off guard and makes him jump.

"W-what?! You're alive-"

"Help him first...." Mr. L interrupts in a low whisper, eyes still shut. His expression is pained and his health is clearly in critical condition. It's honestly nothing short of a miracle that he's still alive. Blumiere looks him over to see that he has a variety of cuts all over, which desperately needed attending to.

"Please, help him first," Mr. L whispers, voice strained and rough.

Blumiere slowly looks over at Dimentio, who seems....just dead. His chest isn't rising and falling. There were no signs indicating breathing. There seems to be nothing.

"I... don't think I can," Blumiere whispers to Mr. L, somewhat confused as to why Mr. L cares so much. Dimentio had betrayed him too, after all.

"No," Mr. L replies, voice still quiet, but slightly louder than before. There's an almost desperate quality to it. "Please help him first."

"Mr. L, you desperately need medical assistance. You've got wounds all over-"

"He needs it more," Mr. L pleads.

Blumiere looks back at Dimentio then down at the floor. "... I think it's too late. I think he's already-"

"Don't" Mr. L interrupts, voice quaking. "Don't say that. Please, don't say that. I can... I could feel his heartbeat," Mr. L whispers, before wincing and tensing up again. There are large burns all over him, including his neck and face.

"Mr. L, he's-"

"No. Count, help him first," Mr. L pleads. He curls up even more so and coughs up a little blood. "Please. When I woke up, I could still feel his heartbeat."

Blumiere just stares, before sighing and nodding. "Very well."

He shifts over to the broken jester.

Turns out Mr. L was right. There was a faint pulse and soft breathing. But from the outside, he appeared completely dead.

"You can help him, right?" Mr. L's small voice asks. Blumiere scrunches his face up as he checks, still unsure of why Mr. L is caring so much about this. He always had taken Mr. L as a somewhat selfish person, who was a loyal minion, yes, but who was also always looking for ways to make himself come out on top.

"I am unsure," Blumiere admits, lifting Dimentio into his arms, leaving the broken mask on the floor.

"Please help him. He.... hasn't spoken. He hasn't moved," Mr. L explains with a touch of fear in his voice.

"I'll try. I'll try," Blumiere assures, before looking up and calling Timpani down.

She immediately comes when called upon and gets to work on Mr. L. Blumiere summons some medical supplies for her so she can help the man in green. Mr. L still doesn't open his eyes, but his shivering subsides once he is all bandaged up and wrapped in a blanket.

While Timpani cares for him, he's constantly asking about Dimentio.

"Is Dimentio awake yet?"

"Is Dimentio alright?"

"Are you helping Dimentio?"

"Dimentio will be okay, right?"

Whenever he asks these questions, Timpani simply hushes him and tells him that they're doing their best to help. She's not one to bring down the mood with negativity, but she's not one to lie either.

"Mr. L?" Blumiere asks a moment later.

"Y-yes? What is it? Is he alright," The man in green quietly responds. "Can you save him?"

"I cannot,"

Mr. L falls silent. "... what?" He asks, voice so soft, if you weren't listening for it you wouldn't be able to hear.

"My magic can't give him what he needs." Blumiere slowly explains. Mr. L tenses up, his breathing beginning to quicken. "No, you have to be mistaken-"

"However," Blumiere interrupts. "What he needs is something to jumpstart his heart. Like an electrical shock of some kind.... so... I am aware you possess the power of thunderhand?"

Mr. L hesitantly nods, eyes still shut. "Yes, I do... but I'm not sure if I could do it right now...." He replies.

"Well, if you wish to save him, I think you'll have to try. I know it will be difficult, and you are in no condition to, but his heart rate is continuing to slow and his breathing is alarmingly soft."

Mr. L just lays there, frozen for a moment before relaxing slightly. "I'll.... try," He manages to say. Timpani helps move him closer to Blumiere and the jester and helps him sit up. Then, he opens his eyes for the first time in a week and a half. He had been scared to do so earlier, not wanting to see everything that had happened here. And oh boy, it was even worse than he imagined. The room was destroyed. His arm was covered in bandages. His head rang loudly, and the world looked painfully bright. But the worse thing to see was Dimentio in Blumiere's arms, maskless and broken looking.

His face... he's never seen it before. He had always wondered what it had looked like but never asked since it was none of his business. There is a lifeless frown on the Jester's face where that lively smile use to live. His eyes are closed, and his hair is covered in dried blood. It's jet black, and it falls over his face to the tops of his eyes. There are also cuts, burns, and bruises all over.

Mr. L sighs, then holds out a shaking hand, only to immediately wince and recoil upon moving his arm.

"Sorry," Timpani whispers, voice soft. "Your arm was pretty beat up, so moving it will hurt."

He holds his arm to himself for a moment, eyes shut in pain, before gathering the courage to move it again.

He slowly holds it out in front of him, reaching for Dimentio. He whimpers quietly in pain, his own throat and lungs burning. Then, he placed his hand on Dimentio's chest. The fabric of the Jester's poncho-like cloak was slightly torn. The same went for his poofy pants. There were rips showing bruised and cut knees which would most definitely scar.

Mr. L lets out a breath, then raises his gaze to Blumiere, a wave of worry in his eyes.

"What if I kill him?" He whispers, fear behind his voice.

Blumiere pauses a moment, before replying, "I thought he was already gone. Don't think of it as us trying to save him. Think of it as us trying to bring him back. That way, if it fails, it'll just be that. A failure."

Mr. L slowly nods, then takes a few deep breaths, trying to summon all his strength and focus.

Meanwhile, a part of Blumiere was unsure of why he was even doing this. Dimentio betrayed him, and who knew what bringing him back could do? He could still be angry. He could try to finish what he had started.

Or, Blumiere could get someone he once considered a close, trusted companion back.

He still hadn't the slightest idea why Mr. L seemed so concerned. Perhaps it was because for a week and a half the man in green had to lay there, completely broken and helpless with nothing to do but lay there and listen to the sound of the Jester's heartbeat. Perhaps that was why Mr. L was so worried. He didn't want that heartbeat stopping.

The man in green closed his eyes when his fist began to glow. Electricity coursed through his broken arm, out his fingertips, and into the Jester's chest as Mr. L let out a cry in pain. After a short moment, three seconds tops, the pain became too much and he stopped, quickly bringing that arm back to his own chest and holding it.

"Agh! Did it work?!"

Timpani's face pinches in worry as she sees Mr. L's face lose its color, becoming ghostly white, She immediately places the back of her hand on his forehead, only to recoil. "Mr. L, your face is burning up! W-we need to get you to a hospital now!"

She gently tries picking him up, when he firmly grasps her arm.

"No," He spits. "Not... not until I know he's alri-" His sentence is interrupted by a coughing fit. His breaths, short and shallow, striking worry in both Blumiere and Timpani.

"I'll have Blumiere keep an eye on him, but we need to get you out of here," She mutters, grabbing him by the shoulders and trying to lift him. He doesn't comply, kicking his legs and struggling against her.

"NO! What if his heart stops beating and I'm not there?! Unhand me!" He shouts as loud as his lungs let him. He meant to sound powerful and certain, but his voice came out more weak and squeaky. It sounded less demanding and more desperate.

"I'm sorry, Mr. L," She says, slowly dragging him away. "We're gonna get help. Blumiere, stay with Dimentio. I'm gonna get Mr. L to a hospital."

"NO! LET ME GO," Mr. L begs, kicking his legs frantically as Timpani drags him away. "What if his heart stops?! PLEASE! LET ME STAY!"

"I'm sorry," is all she can say as she drags him away. Blumiere shudders as his screams become more and more distant, but not any less desperate. Eventually, the screams and cries fade away to nothing, which was almost more unsettling. He looks down at Dimentio, a fresh burn on his chest. Blumiere lets out a sigh and places his ear to it, listening in for a stronger heartbeat.

"Come on, old friend," he pleads. "Please be alright."

After a moment of silence, the heartbeat slows to nothing. Blumiere slowly sits back up and takes his hat off, holding it in front of him and bowing his head in shame

"I'm sorry," He mutters, placing his hand on the jester's forehead. In his mind, he could still hear Mr. L's screams. He couldn't help but feel that he had let him down. He already had believed that Dimentio was dead, but hearing his heartbeat had given him a false sense of hope.

He slowly stands up and places his hat back on his head, turning away so he could go meet up with Timpani. He wishes he didn't have to be the one to break the news to his wife and Mr. L, especially since Mr. L seemed so desperate to keep Dimentio alive, but this was just how it had to be. It hurt, but what happened happened.

He's about to flip away when he suddenly hears a fit of coughs from behind him. Blumiere immediately turns around to see Dimentio still lying on the ground, shaking now as he struggles for air.

Blumiere immediately kneels down behind him and places an arm behind Dimentio's back, pulling him upright as the jester coughs.

"Shh, shh. Just breathe," He quietly suggests, as Dimentio continues coughing. Blumiere could feel his heartbeat had accelerated and was silently grateful.

"I'm gonna take you somewhere to get you help," He states, gently scooping him up as Dimentio continues coughing. His eyes were still shut, so Blumiere couldn't tell if he was able to hear him, or even conscious for that matter. But he was alive.

He immediately flips away to meet up with Timpani and Mr. L.