~11 Years Later ~

A young, tall, scrappy fifteen-year-old boy dove behind a stack of crates, using the midnight darkness to hide. He quickly pulled out a walkie-talkie and turned it on, hearing static from the other side. He sneakily pressed his back to the crate and looked to the side.

Dio: "This is Dio to Agent J, I have the room in my sight. What's my next move? Over."

He waited a moment in complete and utter silence other than the gentle sound of wood planks creaking with the sway of the water when a voice came from the other end of the line.

Agent J: "Agent J to Dio, Do you have the lock pick? Over."

Dio smirked and cockily tossed the lock pick in the air, catching it and smiling.

Dio: "Yep. Right here. "

Agent J: "Perfect. Just get in, steal the item, and get out. Quick and easy."

Dio: "On it!"

He quickly turned the walkie off and stood up, faltering slightly as the ground swayed. He stumbled to the side railing, making a quiet oof noise as he looked down at the water.

He swallowed and stood himself up as the boat he was on gently rocked. He had never been good with seasickness, but couldn't let that stop him now. He had a mission to do. He stood himself up, wobbling slightly before regaining his balance. Then he quickly darted to the locked door in front of him. He held up the lock pick when suddenly the wind picked up and nearly blew it out of his hand. He fumbled around, trying to catch it, scrambling around making tons of noise in the process.

Agent J: "Dio? Dio? Come in! What's going on up there?! You're making a ton of noise. I can hear you all the way from the cockpit! Over."

Dio: "Just having some technical difficulties. Nothing to worry about, I assure you. Over."

He finally got a good hold on the pick and began trying the lock, only to fail time and time again. He let out a nervous laugh and spoke into the walkie again.

Dio: "Uhh... Jackie. Funny thing... I'm having trouble with the lock. How do I do it again?"

Agent J: "DIO! What did I tell you? Don't use my name when we're on top-secret missions like this!"

Dio: "So, let me get this straight. We can use MY real name but not YOURS?

Agent J: "Dio, we've been over this. Agent D would sound weird. Your name is already short enough. Stay focused! We, and by we I mean YOU, could get caught by them any minute!!!"

Dio: "Right, right, right! Sorry, So how do I pick the lock?"

Agent J: "We've been over this a million times! You have to envision the lock mechanism, determine the direction the key turns, which is left by the way, and drag the pick along the pins on the inside until you hear a clicking noise! How many times do we have to go over this?"

Dio: "Well if you're so smart, why aren't you the one picking the lock?!

Agent J: "Because I'm the plan person. I make all the smart plans and you execute them."

Dio rolled his eyes and did as she said when the lock finally clicked. He smiled a big smile and pocketed the pick, standing up and carefully opening the door. The room was nearly pitch black inside. He slowly walked in and closed the door behind him, careful not to make any noise.

Dio: "Okay, I'm in. What now? Over."

Agent J: "Grab the target, and get out before we're caught! Over!"

Dio: "On it!"

He attached the walkie to his belt and carefully walked forward. In the corner of this room, was a beautiful guitar standing on a simple guitar stand. He slowly picked it up, carefully sliding his hands over the strings, then smiled and wrapped the strap around his shoulder, the guitar hanging behind him.

Dio: "Got it,"

He smirked to himself, then started towards the door when he realized it was open.

Dio: "Huh... Did I leave that door open-"

Suddenly, he felt someone grab his wrist and shine a bright flashlight in his eye.

Dio: "OW, OW! BRIGHT! BRIGHT BRIGHT BRIGHT! VERY BRIGHT! OW!"

Mr. L: "DIO?! What are you doing in here?!"

Dio squinted his eyes to see Mr. L pointing the flashlight right at him.

Dio: "Me?! Uh..... Sleepwalking! Yeah! I'm sleepwalking!"

Mr. L let him go and crossed his arms, lowering the flashlight.

Mr. L: "Mmhmm, sure. Sure. And why exactly do you have Dim's guitar?"

Dio looked at the guitar strapped to his back and pretended to be shocked.

Dio: "WHAAT?! How did that get there?! I must have picked it up while sleepwalking. Well, I'll be on my merry way! Bye Mr. L!!"

Dio whistled and casually started walking off while Mr. L gave him a condescending look. Then suddenly, Dio's walkie went off.

Agent J: "Dio? Come in. Come in. Are you on your way back?"

Dio stobbed his tracks, freezing as Mr. L lowered his gaze to the walkie, walking over and snatching it, turning it all the way off.

Mr. L: "Explanation, Dio. Now."

Dio tensed his shoulders up, then turned to face him, holding his arms out.

Dio: "Don't look at me! This was her idea! She made me!!"

Mr. L: "Dio, she's nine."

Dio: "SO?!"

Mr. L: "You're fifteen, and you're letting a nine-year-old girl boss you around."

Mr. L sighed and brought him back outside, closing and locking the door behind them.

Mr. L: "Your parents sent you here to teach you about being a role model to Jackie, and instead you do this? Why does she even want the guitar??"

Dio: "Why don't you ask her!?"

Mr. L sighed and let him go.

Mr. L: "Maybe I will. Because as of last I checked, it was WAY past her bedtime. What is it, 3:00 AM?!"

Dio: "Well, because of the time change it's like, 6:00 AM in flipside. So technically one could argue it's not past her bedtime. It's just really early in the morning-"

Mr. L rolled his eyes and grabbed Dio's wrist, walking him around to the back of the ship to the stairs that lead below deck. Dio looked up as the stars filled the sky. He could even see a few shooting stars dart across. The moon shone brightly, and the ocean breeze felt nice.

Dio: "Wait, why aren't you asleep?? How did you catch me?"

Mr. L groaned and continued pulling him forward.

Mr. L: "I was just checking the anchor when I heard you making a big mess."

Dio: "Oh..."

Dio looked over the boat at the small bay they were anchored into. Most nights they would anchor at a small bay of some sorts so they could get a full night of sleep, however, occasionally they would sail through the night. Dio never appreciated those nights, because he'd get incredibly seasick. However, agent J quite enjoyed them. Mr. L was really good at reading the stars and figuring out which direction to sail, and he often would talk to her about them. And in the day, Dimentio would talk of all the places they could go and how unlimited they were out here.

Dio had been visiting them for about a month. Tomorrow they were going to sail to the mainland and have him picked up by his parents so he could go home. Of course, he was excited to go back home, but he'd miss his time on the ship dearly.

Mr. L dragged Dio all the way over to the cockpit, where a young girl was wrapped in a fuzzy blanket, yelling down at a walkie-talkie.

Agent J: "Dio? Dio? Come in, come in! Did you get the-"

She slowly looked up to see Mr. L and Dio standing in the doorway. The color drained from her face, as she slowly hid the walkie behind her.

Mr. L: "Jacqueline, what is this?"

She winced, before tilting her head to the side and forcing a smile on her face.

Jackie: "Whoa, dad. Why are you Jaqueline-ing me?!"

Mr. L: "I don't know. Why are you making Dio steal your father's guitar."

Jackie: "Whaaaat? Dad, I haven't the slightest idea what you're talking about. I was just... uh... checking the cockpit to make sure the engines were functional in case the jib sail gets torn or something!"

Mr. L glared and grabbed the Guitar off of Dio's back.

Mr. L: "Then how do you explain this?"

She gasped and covered her mouth, acting shocked.

Jackie: "Dio! You STOLE my dad's precious guitar! How could you!! I never took you for a thief-"

Dio: "I already told him you made me."

Jackie: "Oh... Dang it."

Mr. L let Dio go and walked up to her, crossing his arms.

Mr. L: "If you wanted the guitar, you could have just asked."

Jackie: "No, but you don't understand!"

Mr. L: "What do you mean??"

She sighed and crossed her arms, a slightly ticked expression on her face.

Jackie: "I wanted to surprise you guys when we pulled into port tomorrow to send Dio home."

Mr. L: "By stealing the guitar?"

Jackie: "NO! Me and Dio were gonna play for you guys! We've been sneaking the guitar to practice almost every night."

Mr. L's eyes softened slightly, as he exchanged glances between the two kids.

Dio: "She wanted to surprise you guys."

Mr. L waited a moment, then sighed and handed her the guitar.

Mr. L: "You can keep it for the night, AS LONG AS YOU GO STRAIGHT TO SLEEP."

She beamed and took the guitar in her hands.

Jackie: "YES! Thanks, dad! You won't regret this!"

Mr. L: "I already do. Now get to sleep. We need you to at least appear well-rested when we send Dio home tomorrow."

Dio saluted.

Dio: "Yes sir!"

And with that, Mr. L yawned and made his way back to his room, leaving the two kids alone.

Dio yawned and shivered slightly. Jackie noticed and offered him her blanket. He smiled and took it, wrapping it around himself.

Dio: "I can't believe I'm leaving tomorrow."

Jackie: "Yeah... I'm gonna miss you."

She sighed and wrapped her arms around him, closing her eyes.

Jackie: "It's always more fun when you're here."

He giggled and patted her head.

Dio: "Well who knows. Maybe when we grow up we can have some real adventures of our own."

She giggled and yawned.

Jackie: "Yeah..."

She briefly opened her eyes and looked up at him, eyes a shade of perfect blueish green.

Jackie: "Can you show me my dad's mask again?"

Dio: "Oh. Sure!"

He got up and fumbled around for his bag until he found the porcelain mask and handed it to her. She giggled and ran her fingers over it. Then, she raised her hand to the green bandana tied in a neat knot around her neck. The bandana her dad gave her when she was young.

Jackie: "Hey... you've been on an adventure, right?"

Dio: "Me? Yeah!"

Jackie: "Can you tell me about it?"

Dio briefly hesitated. 

Jackie: "Please. I just want to know about the guy I'm named after."

Dio sighed and wrapped the blanket around her as well.

Dio: "Well... some say he was a bad guy. And when you look at everything he did, it seemed pretty bad... but... at least in my eyes, I didn't see him as a bad man. I saw him as a friend."

Jackie: "Was he cool?"

Dio: "Yeah. He seemed pretty cool to me. Although, he was lost. He was lonely."

Jackie: "Pfft, then why would they name me after him?"

Dio: "Well, because in the end, he was Uncle Dimmy's brother. He was loving. Not everyone is 100% good or 100% evil."

Jackie slowly nodded, then yawned again.

Jackie: "Okay... "

Dio sighed and hugged her, as they both began to drift off.

Dio: "I'm gonna miss hanging out with you. You're like the little sister I always wanted."

Jackie: "I'm your cousin, weirdo."

Dio: "You know what I mean."

She giggled and yawned.

Jackie: "Yeah... goodnight Dio."

Dio: "Goodnight Jackie."

~ About a Day Later ~

The smallish sailboat pulled into port.

Dimentio: "Jackie! Can you and Dio lower the mainsail?"

Jackie nodded, then grabbed Dio and got to the lines, pulling them down.

Dio: "I can't believe this is the last time we lower the mainsail together..."

Jackie: "Don't say that. You'll be back someday..."

Dio: "Not until after I finish high school...."

Jackie: "Well, we'll see. Maybe you'll be back sooner..."

She looked down and sighed after the mainsail was lowered, the sun beginning to set. She nearly forgot that Dio was getting sent to boarding school. 

Dio: "Hopefully.... you got the guitar?"

Jackie: "It's in my room. I'll bring it out once we get to shore."

As if on cue, the boat pulled into port. On the dock, Timpani and Blumiere were waiting.

Dimentio ran to the side of the boat and jumped to the dock, tying the boat down so it wouldn't drift away. Then, he pulled Timpani and Blumiere into a hug.

Timpani: "Dimmy!! We missed you so much!!! How's D-"

Dio: "MOM! DAD!"

Dio leaned over the railing and happily waved at them, Jackie standing beside him.

Mr. L grabbed a rope and swung down, landing on the dock as well.

Mr. L: "He's been pretty good. Jackie loves him."

Dio and Jackie quickly ran down the stairs and carefully stepped onto the dock, Dio immediately tripping and landing on his face.

Dio: "Ow... sea legs..."

Blumiere chuckled, then picked him up with his magic and pulled him into a tight hug.

Blumiere: "We've missed you so much."

Dio: "Ow-, Dad. Too tight!"

Timpani: "Too bad!"

She quickly tackled him in an even tighter hug, as Dio struggled to breathe.

Blumiere: "Well, shall we be getting home?"

Dio: "Wait! Not yet! We have a surprise for all of you!"

As if on cue, Jackie ran back into the boat.

Dimentio: "What? I wasn't aware of this."

Mr. L just smiled and shrugged as Jackie came out holding Dimentio's guitar.

Dimentio: "Wh- hey! Is that my guitar??"

Jackie: "Yep! And Dio's gonna play it!"

She walked up to the teenager and handed it to him. He smiled and kneeled down, so he was closer to her height. Then, the two smiled at each other, as Jackie explained.

Jackie: "Before Dio leaves, we wanted to sing for you guys! I remembered the lullaby my dad use to sing to me. You know... the one about the boats. So I decided to change a few lyrics and sing it back!"

She nodded at Dio, as he began to play the guitar, the sun setting in front of them.

- Music Start -

Dimentio's eyes softened, as the young man played, Jackie, standing beside him, her brown hair gently blowing in the wind.

Jackie: "Barges, I would like to go with you, 
I would like to sail the ocean blue.
Barges, have you treasures in your hold?
Do you fight with pirates, brave and bold?

Out of my window, looking in the night,
I can see the barges flickering light.
Anchors start to pull and engines start to roar
As the barges pull away from shore."

Jackie and Dio: "Barges, I would like to go with you,
I would like to sail the ocean blue."

Jackie: "Out of my window, looking in the night,
I can see the barges'"

Jackie and Dio: "Flickering light."

Jackie: "Taking their cargo,"

Jackie and Dio: "Out into the sea,"

Jackie: "How I wish that someday,"

Jackie and Dio: "They'd take me."

Jackie: "How my heart longs,"

Jackie and Dio: "To sail away with you,
As you sail across the ocean blue."

Jackie: "But I must stay beside my window, clear."

Jackie and Dio: "As the barges sail away from here.

Barges, have you treasures in your hold,
Do you fight with pirates, brave and bold?

Barges, I would like to go with you,
I would like to sail the ocean, blue."

The young girl smiled at her dads, as Dimentio whipped a tear, then quickly pulled her into a hug.

Dimentio: "That was beautiful. What an excellent performance."

She giggled and patted his back.

Jackie: "Thanks dad. And thanks for giving me the song."

Dio stood up and slowly handed the guitar to Dimentio. 

Dio: "I believe this is yours."

Dimentio smiled, before handing it back.

Dimentio: "Nah. You keep it. It suits you."

Dio: "Wait, really??"

Dimentio: "Yes. Take it to school with you."

He let out a shaky sigh and placed a hand on Dio's shoulder, looking at his unique face.

Dimentio: "And please... never let anyone be cruel to you."

Dio: "Oh, I'm not worried! I mean, who could be mean to this smile!"

He smiled a goofy smile and chuckled.

Dio: "I'll be okay!"

Dimentio smiled and let go.

Dimentio: "Alright...."

Blumiere: "Dio, we need to get home so you can pack for school-"

Dio: "Just give me one more minute."

He walked up to Jackie and kneeled down so he was at eye level with her. 

She wiped a tear and quickly hugged him.

Jackie: "I'm gonna miss you."

He waited a moment before hugging back and patting her head.

Dio: "Hey, don't be sad. Someday... when we're both grown-ups, we can go and have our own adventures. Won't that be fun?"

She nodded, softly crying into his shoulder.

Jackie: "I'll still miss you."

Dio: "Me too, Agent J. Me too."

He playfully ruffled her hair and stood up, walking up to his parents and grabbing their hands.

Dio: "Alright... let's go home."

Blumiere nodded, then briefly turned his head and smiled back at L and Dimentio, mouthing a quiet, 'thank you.'

Dimentio bowed his head, as L waved, then Timpani Dio and Blumiere all flipped away.

Jackie let out a long sigh once they were gone, then slowly got back onto the boat.

Dimentio: "You okay, Jellybean?"

She slowly nodded, as she sat down, leaning her feet over the edge. He smiled and sat next to her as L got the boat ready for departure.

Jackie: "Yep. I'm just gonna miss him. That's all."

He wrapped an arm around her and smiled.

Dimentio: "You could go with him, you know? They did offer to let you stay with them and go to school."

Jackie: "Yeah... but I don't wanna yet. I like being on the boat with you guys. Plus, I like being homeschooled."

He lightly laughed, as the cool ocean air blew around her, making her shiver. He immediately snapped his fingers, making a light jacket appear around her.

Jackie: "Dad... I've been wondering... if you have magic and can teleport wherever you want, then why do you need a boat?"

Dimentio: "Aw, Jackie. This isn't about getting places. It's about going places."

He ruffled her hair, making her giggle.

Jackie: "Dad, stop it!"

Dimentio: "No can do, Jellybean. I'm your dad. It's my job to annoy you."

She groaned and gently elbowed him.

Jackie: "Oh, haha. Very funny. So where's our next stop?"

Mr. L finished hoisting up the jib sail and sat down on the other side of her, pointing out to the horizon.

Mr. L: "Anywhere and everywhere."

She softly smiled, the wind blowing through her hair, before getting up and running to the bow, feeling the ocean breeze blow against her, smiling as seagulls flew overhead. Mr. L and Dimentio exchanged glances, then got up as well and got to work, Dimentio standing at the wheel and Mr. L dealing with the sails, as Jacqueline sat at the front, enjoying the steady rise and fall of the ocean.

She looked out at the horizon, to see a pod of whales playing. Then, next to the boat, a few dolphins started jumping. She giggles as they lightly splashed her, holding up a hand to prevent saltwater from getting in her eyes.

For now, this was where she loved to be.

Home.