I forget how long it's been since I first listened to the box. Alexander has been coming to talk less and less. Apparently the other D-men have been complaining about the noise, and giving him a hard time about it, but I don't care.

I just sit here, day in and day out, holding the box, and letting it play.

Whenever the music stops, I begin to shake. I always have to immediately turn it back on to keep myself calm. I can't even fall asleep unless the music is playing.

I feel myself getting more and more attached to the box, but I allow it. It's not like I have anything else. It's mine. It was given to me. It's the only thing I have left.

However.... others have grown not so fond of the box.

Eventually Alexander stops coming. He's replaced with this new guy, who doesn't speak to me other than telling me to please shut the music box off.

I never listen.

At night I can hear other D-Men whisper, talking about how annoying the constant sound is. I hate them. I miss Alexander. I hear them whisper how he isn't in charge of me anymore due to 'not being able to control me,' whatever that means.

It makes me a little sad.

I don't think I hate him anymore. I hate these new guys though. They don't speak to me other than to yell, they don't sneak extra food in for me, and they don't even tell me their names.

"SERIOUSLY, ENOUGH WITH THE MUSIC!" A D-Man tells me the next morning.

I say nothing, and continue listening.

"DID YOU NOT HEAR ME?! ENOUGH WITH THE MUSIC!"

"I heard you," I quietly respond. "I just chose to ignore your request."

I smile, and lean my head to the side, when I suddenly hear my cell door open. I quickly turn my head and look up to see a D-man standing in the doorway, gripping his spear.

"If you won't turn the music off, then I'll be forced to do it myself," He says. I grab the box and hold it close to me. "You wouldn't dare. Have you forgotten who I am?!"

I feel my heart accelerate.

"Have YOU forgotten who you are?! You've gone mad! Listening to the same thing day in and day out! It's a problem, and it's annoying the heck out of us!" He takes a step closer.

"Don't," I hiss.

"I'm the guard. You're the prisoner. You don't get to tell me what to do," He states. Then, he quickly snatches my box out of my hands and takes a few steps back. I try grabbing it back, but the chain on my ankle prevents me from doing so.

I begin to shiver, rage coursing through me. "GIVE IT BACK!"

He smiles. "No."

I feel my face het up as I desperately reach for it. "THAT BOX IS ALL I HAVE! GIVE IT BACK!" I scream, afraid.

I have never felt so terrified of losing something. Actually, I've never felt so terrified, ever.

Then, he lifts it into the air....

My eyes go wide.

And, he throws it onto the ground, causing the beautiful box to shatter.

It shattered.

It shattered.

IT SHATTERED!!!

I let out a scream as the music stops. Then he kicks the remaining pieces back to me, and shuts the door. "That'll keep it quiet," He mutters.

I begin to breath heavily, as I pick up all the pieces. I feel tears begin to fall. "You killed him," I say. "LOOK WHAT YOU DID! YOU KILLED HIM!"

"Him?" The D-Man questions. I shake, as he laughs. "You really have lost it. It's just a stupid box."

No, it's not.

Then he walks away.

I break down, and gather all the pieces. I don't know how to fix it. I can't fix it.

It's broken....

I begin to cry. "He's gone...."

I cry over the broken parts. "He's gone.... He's gone, he's gone, he's gone!"

I cry, looking down at the mess. It use to be something beautiful. But it got ruined. All I can see, is broken wood, broken gears, a crumpled piece of paper, and- .... wait.

There's a small piece of paper inside the wreckage. "H-huh?" I mutter, carefully pulling it out. I've never seen this before.

There's words on it. The handwriting is somewhat messy, Like a doctor or an engineer's handwriting. I rub my nose, and quietly read.

"Dimentio,

I know there's probably no use in me making you this. I feel pretty foolish writing this down, if I'm being honest. I'm honestly not sure what I'm doing, and what I hope to accomplish by doing this.

Just, please, don't do it. I don't know what 'it' is, exactly, but please don't. I can tell by that look in your eyes that it's not good. You're going to get hurt. And for some reason, I don't want that. I don't want you getting hurt. Especially if I could have done something to stop it. I can tell you're acting. I can tell you're more behind that mask. You just wont let anyone see.

Just please, don't do anything you'll regret in the future. I know that this probably wont do much, but this is the only thing my useless mind can think of to try to stop you.

Although.... if we're being honest, odds are it's already too late. Odds are I wasn't brave enough to give this to you in time. But, if I'm not too late, then please, just don't do whatever you're going to do. I can see you have a plan, you have a list of things you're checking off, and it's rude to ask you to abandon that plan, but perhaps we can make a new plan. I'll be there to help you in anyway I can. I just don't want you doing something drastic that you can't take back.

You're not alone, Dimentio. Even if you think you are, you don't have to be. I'm here, and I want to help you. Just please, let me help you. Don't do whatever you're going to do. I don't want to see you get hurt. Not if I can stop it.

Oh, Grambi, I feel like an idiot just writing this. If we're being honest, I'll probably never give this to you. You'll probably never read this. But if you do, please just consider some of the things I said. I'm here for you. You don't have to act in front of me.

Love, L"

I watch as more tears drop onto the small note, ruining that as well. I choke on a sob, then crumble the note up and drop it.

I really do ruin everything I touch.

"I'm.... an idiot."

There's a pit in my stomach, and this is when I realize, the reason I always wore a mask. The reason I always hid myself. It was to prevent me from realizing feelings like this. Because, I saw these feelings as weaknesses. As things that would distract or stop me from my plans.

"I... I love him."

Oh, Grambi, it's horrifying.

I love him, but I always told myself to never show any emotions. I always told myself that love was weak. But now, here I am. He's gone forever because of me. Even if Luigi's still alive, he isn't! He never even was real! Just a creation. Not even real.

But I loved him. I loved him, and now he's gone forever because of me.

I cry louder. I cry, and I don't care about my plan anymore. I don't care about anything, because I killed the only worthwhile thing there is.

And I'm stuck down here, forgotten. I'm a forgotten villain in a franchise larger than I can possibly imagine. I'll never amount to anything. I am NOTHING! If I just listened to him, if I just LISTENED, I could have been happy. I could have stopped myself. I could learn to love. But I'm an idiot, and I'm a fool.

"CUT THE CRYING OUT," Another guard says, and I turn my head to face him. I can see his glare through the small slot on my door.

"No," I respond, picking up all the pieces.

"No?" He asks. "You don't get to speak to me that-"

"No. You don't get to speak to ME that way!" I snap back.

And, I feel a hint of Magic tickle my fingertips.

Love isn't weak.

"Excuse me?! You're the prisoner, and I'm the guard! You don't get to-"

"Too bad," I say, and I snap my fingers, teleporting away.

______

I land just above the river, and run. I don't know where. I shouldn't even be able to do magic. I have no idea where that surge of power came from. I just run and run and run, holding the broken box close to me.

I run, right into Alexander, who is walking behind the castle. I flinch, since he's a D-Man, and it's his job to send me right back where I belong.

But he doesn't seem upset. He doesn't seem shocked. He just smiles.

"Dimentio? Why, look at you," He says, when I frantically shove the parts at him, tears falling faster and faster. "They broke it! They broke my music box!! C-can you fix it?!"

He seems a little shocked at the outburst, then smiles at me. "Awww, the look in your eyes. Did you finally realize you're-"

"Yes, yes, can you fix it?!" I beg.

His smile slowly fades as he shakes his head. I hear a small squeak come from my mouth, and I break down to my knees.

"N-no.... please no. It's all I had.... it's...."

"What are you doing out here?" He asks me. I rub my nose and continue crying. "I don't know..."

"Well, here. Let me help you up. You can't stay here by the castle, you'll be caught," He tells me. I slowly freeze, and look up at him, eyes watery "W-why aren't you turning me back in? Aren't you a D-Man?"

He smiles and rocks back and forth on his feet. "Heh... not anymore. Got fired."

I give him an even more confused look. "Wait, r-really?! But why? You've done nothing wrong."

He just places an arm on my shoulder and beams, like he's the happiest person on earth. "Don't worry. I've no regrets. I got fired because I talked back to the Queen after trying to convince her to end your sentence so you could roam free in the Underwhere."

"WHAT?!" I spit, almost dropping the music box pieces. "W-why would you do that?!"

"Because, Dimentio. I don't like seeing people locked up for all eternity. It... kinda makes me sad, and it does nothing for them but makes them worse. And I could tell, ever since you first listened to that music box, that you finally realized what you had done wrong. I didn't really think you deserved to be locked down there anymore."

"Are you serious?! How could you tell?! What if I was merely trying to trick you!"

He smiles and points down at the broken music box in my hands. "Well.... if I was wrong, then why are you up here, with the pieces of that box, asking me to fix it?"

I freeze. That is a good point. "But... I...."

He stops me, and points behind himself. "If you wish to get out of here, you could head up to the North section of the Underwhere. There are not many D-Men up there, since it's further from the Castle. You could probably be safe. It's actually quite a big place down here. You could probably hide out from them fairly easy. Plus, the guys they put in charge of the other sections are usually rookies."

He gently begins shoving me away, as I stammer on my words. "B-but, wait a minute. I don't, I can't- I can't fix the box!"

"Well, find someone who can, then! I'd hurry off now, before someone catches you."

"Wait, but I-"

"Go on now!"

He continues shooing me, as I stumble off, careful not to drop any of the pieces. People like him completely baffle me. Why does he always insist on being so kind to me? So helpful?

Because he's your friend.

Friend.... yeah, friend! I like the sound of that.

Because he's my friend.

I take a step forward. "Alright, alright. I'm going." Then, I turn to face him, still holding the broken box in my hands.

"Alexander..... thank you. You.... were a really good friend to me. Way better than I deserved."

He beams back at me. "It was my pleasure, Dimentio. Go on now, and if anyone asks, you never saw me! I could get in a WHOLE lot of trouble if the guys found out I saw you out here, even though I was already fired."

I nod, then turn and run, never looking back.

And I find myself wondering, what's his story. I mean, everyone has a story. I only ever knew him as the D-Man in charge of me. Maybe he had a family, or maybe he was lonely growing up, which is why he felt the need to constantly talk to me. Or maybe he was just one of those kinds of people who saw the good in everybody.

I find myself walking, until I collapse next to a wall. I look down at all the broken pieces in my hands, and can't help but sob again.

I really did break him.

I could find a way back to the surface. I could find Luigi, but it wouldn't be the same. Nothing will be the same.

I don't want Luigi. I want L. I want the man who made me this box. The man I knew.

But I can't have him. It's all broken, and I don't know how to fix it.

I can't fix it.

I set all the pieces down, and lean my head on the cold wall. If only I had lost the mask earlier. How could I do this? I set the broken pieces on the ground, and look down at them, feeling empty. Feeling like nothing. That's because I am empty. I am nothing. Just a forgotten villain, doomed to rot alone down here for all eternity. There's no happy ending for me. Even if I escape Jaydes and her D-Men, I'll still be alone. Because I killed the only person who ever actually cared enough to do something for me.

"I can't fix this," I murmur. "I'm too late."

Then, I feel a gentle hand on my shoulder.

"Hey,"