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It wasn't until Jane had killed someone that Dirk realized something was wrong.
There was a subtle shift in the universe. He had thought. Jane the ever loving, sweetheart of a baking heiress, had done wrong.
It would be a lie if it he said it didn't hurt. His cold and heartless body almost produced a tear.
Nevertheless he fought on, watching the brainwashed girl OBEY. Trapped in her own body.
"She doesn't have control. She can't stop it."
Small comfort, knowing that Crockercorp had control of Jane and that she was helpless. Locked out and locked in at the same time. No way to get around the witch this time.
As the metaphorical shudder passed through the world and Karkat was resurrected, Dirk promised himself they would get her back.
Even after Roxy was deemed unnecessary to defeat Lord English and they disposed of her. The batterwitch had the mother grub egg and they didn't need the Lalonde.
Even after Jake's body appeared on the end of her trident, and she showed no sign of bringing him back.
After all, she had a new prince now. They had hacked his auto-responder, rewired Dirk's brain, and he was one of them.
He was trapped with her. Watching as his body did despicable things. Watching as they bowed to the Condesce and catered to her every whim.
It was only when Jane smiled at him and spoke of their future children that he felt at all right, and even that was wrong, because it wasn't her talking, and it wasn't her smiling. The tiara was talking and Crocker was smiling. Jane's real smile was much sweeter.
He fought what was controlling him. He fought it as hard as he could, but he only ever got to spout a few sentences at her before it silenced him.
"Take the tiara off Jane," he had pleaded one day, "Please, I miss you."
The look on her face and tremor in her hands told him that she was trying to take it off, trying to come back, but soon her arms were still and her face was calm. She was still lost.
He did miss her. He missed her more than feeling his hands work with cold machinery, and drinking orange soda, and rapping. He missed himself but that had nothing on what he remembered about the cakes she made, the jokes she told, her affinity for mustaches, even her bad moods.
It was when his other self kissed her that he truly hated the Jane-that-wasn't and the Dirk-that-wasn't. Their bodies were only supposed to do that on their terms.
They kept doing that though. Kissing and pretending they were in love even though they weren't real.
That anger gave him the strength to reach out, take off her tiara, and smash it. Relief spread through him as her eyes returned to blue, even though he had already lost control of his traitorous body.
She smiled unsurely at Dirk, not certain if she could celebrate returning to her body, knowing that he still wasn't there.
The Dirk-that-wasn't was trying to tell Crocker that something was wrong with her heiress, and Dirk was almost succeeding in stopping him.
The message was sent and the Empress notified.
The witch appeared behind him, cackling at their weak attempt to find freedom. There was another tiara in her hand.
Jane leaned forward and kissed him softly on the lips. A goodbye kiss, and she did it as she wished to do it. "I love you forever," she whispered to him, soft enough that the witch never heard.
It almost made him believe it would be all right.
She bowed her head, opening it to the Empress. The tiara was on Jane again.
The witch, satisfied that she had won, gave one last smirk and walked away victoriously.
Dirk wrestled with the control they had over him and tried to push out his circuits.
Jane took his hand. Her eyes were still blue.
"It doesn't have me yet," she mouthed.
His sunglasses were removed, but that didn't take out his other self.
She sighed at this.
"Keep fighting, Prince of Heart. You'll find yourself."
Jane's eyes went back to red.
He destroyed the Dirk-that-wasn't shortly after that day. When he took off the tiara, there was no more blue.
"Too late!" Jane-that-wasn't told him.
He hugged her, and he was surprised when she didn't protest.
"Love you forever, remember?" he said into her ear.
"I remember,"
She reached out and impaled both of them with her trident. Going through his back, out his stomach, into hers, and ending with the prongs sticking out just below her shoulder blades. Weakly, she wrenched it out again.
"I'm so tired of this life. I had the willpower to make a move, I used it well."she wheezed.
"The dream bubbles will be better." he promised.
The tears rolled down their cheeks, and they held each other as they bled out, sharing their first real kiss.