Crypton was a very large city.

Luka was surprised in spite of herself — she had spent most of her time in towns and villages, not cities, so Crypton's ridiculous size was a little overwhelming. But Luka mastered her surprise soon enough.

For the purposes of her plan, Luka knew that she would have to live somewhere dark and hidden. Luka chose, eventually, a grand theater that her architectural side appreciated well. Four levels, not including the levels in the basement, beautiful, elegant pillars, an inside that was lavish and golden, a breathtaking stage, and, best of all, a large, labyrinthean, multi-level basement that very few people ventured into, aside from the actors at times, and that's only down to the first level of the basement at most.

Luka coolly moved there in the night and considered herself very lucky for having obtained such excellent lodgings at no price. The people living within the theater never saw her, but sometimes Luka was careless in her movements, and they would hear mysterious footsteps, see shadows with hooked noses that disappeared when they turned to fix their gaze upon it. People began to talk and wonder if the theater was haunted.

Perhaps. Luka considered herself to be monstrous already, so she could add 'ghost' next to 'thief' and 'murderer' on her list of accomplishments. She got to know the basement intimately well, and began to feel, in time, a sort of odd affection for it. She began to regard the basement as her possession, and Luka's possessions were always guarded so as to avoid people from stealing it. Thus, Luka's dark mind conceived of many traps and torture chambers that would catch and kill any foolish human, be they actor or cleaner, who penetrated into Luka's home.

The basement was very dark and there was little light save for the candles mounted on the walls. It resembled a catacomb. Luka's housings extended down for three levels, each of them with labyrinthine layouts. On the floor nearest to the ground floor of the theater, there were traps aplenty. It would not be inaccurate to say that the first floor of her domain was nothing but murderous traps. The second floor was composed of torture chambers and devices. The third floor was simple and had her bed, a piano that came with the lodgings, sheet music, her laboratory, and various other knickknacks strewn about.

Of course, now that she had her lodgings set up, Luka had to find Miku. So Luka could not believe her stroke of good luck when she eavesdropped (as she was wont to do) on the managers of the theater and found that Miku was studying to be an actress and would thus be taken into the theater to stay as she studied. This was beyond coincidence. It had to be fate. Fate was what brought Luka and Miku inexorably together. Len was nothing more than a foolish interloper.

Thus, the day Miku was set to move in, Luka scurried into what was to be Miku's room, memorized the rough layout of it, and realized that she could talk to Miku through the wall, which, after some later investigation, could be easily arranged to open up into the first floor of Luka's basement dominion. Luka left the room and waited behind the wall for what seemed like weeks, even though it was merely hours. She had never felt so excited in her life. Meeting Miku again was something so sweet, it was unimaginable. Luka wanted to hold Miku and cry with happiness. She had to admit to herself that she was obsessed with Miku, but Luka could not help it, nor could she control it, so all she did was surrender willingly to the love she knew she always had for Miku.

So it came to Luka's surprise that, when Miku moved in, it was not with shouts of jubilation — it was with angry sobs.

"Shut up!" Luka heard Miku yell through the walls. "Shut up!"

"But, Miku, I—" a male voice.

"Go away!" There was a sound of a door slamming, and then, the sound of quiet sobbing.

Luka had no idea what was going on, but her heart ached for Miku. She didn't want to see her hurt. She had to think of some way to comfort her. Luka realized that now was not a good time to go and meet Miku directly (somehow Luka doubted that Miku would react well to a masked person suddenly appearing in her room, especially after that) so she did the next best thing.

She sang, quietly and softly, a hymn she overheard from churches. It seemed to be a prayer for peace and love, which was good enough. Luka was far from being religious — she thought that if there were higher powers, she was forsaken and damned already due to her face and her deeds, so there was no point in believing in higher powers — but she did enjoy looking at churches and marveling quietly at the beautiful architecture of most of them.

Miku's sobs slowly abated, and Luka heard her walk around the room, searching for the source of the voice. "...who are you?"

Luka thought of how to answer that as she sang. When she finished, she let out a small sigh. She couldn't let Miku know who she was, not yet. Not in this mood. Not here...not now. "I am your friend."

There was a bit of an intake of breath, and Luka thought that maybe Miku recognized her voice, but what Miku said was quite different. "My...friend? Are you an angel?"

Luka covered her mouth to keep from laughing aloud. An angel! Her, an angel? She was nothing more than a devil, a demon. For Miku to believe her to be an angel was too much. Was her voice really that powerful for someone to actually believe that she was an angel?

But...Luka had always longed to be loved and to be seen as good. Perhaps, she could be Miku's angel, just for her. It would be much better than being her demon, at any rate. Luka smiled a gentle smile that Miku cannot see. "If you'd like."

Luka heard the noise of Miku softly settling down on the floor. "I would."

-o-o-o-

The days passed like so. Luka would spend her time with Miku, who talked freely of her troubles to her so-called 'angel'. She confessed that her mother died when she was nine, and that her father pushed her into acting.

"What I really want to do is sing," said Miku, "but no one thinks it's very good. There's this one girl here who says that my singing sounds like a drowned rat, and she's the best singer in the theater..." There was a pause. "Aside from you, of course," Miku added, "but you're an angel, so it's not very fair."

Whenever Miku referred to Luka as such, Luka wanted to give up the whole masquerade and reveal herself as human, as the freak she really was, not the angel Miku believed her to be, but Miku always sounded so happy and sincere, and, resigned, Luka continued the whole charade.

She was always there by Miku's room, it seemed, and when Miku bought a mirror and placed it against the wall, Luka knew that she had her window. She was an expert with mirrors. One day, when Miku was out rehearsing, Luka snuck into her room again, replaced the mirror with one-way see through glass with a reflectable end. That way, Luka could see Miku, but Miku would not see her, thus keeping Luka's face and identity hidden (naturally, Luka would give Miku privacy as well — she wasn't so depraved as to stare at Miku when she was changing or somesuch).

What she saw took her breath away. Miku had grown beautiful. Whereas Luka stayed ugly and grotesque, Miku had developed into a stunning girl. She was skinny, delicate, and elegant in her movements. She wore her hair, teal just as Luka remembered, down instead of in twin tails most of the time, but sometimes she would still wear it up.

In accordance with Miku's desire to sing, Luka began to tutor Miku in singing, but only after getting Miku to muster up the courage to sing in the first place.

"I can't sing!" Miku protested. "I'm terrible. You're so good at it, I just feel embarrassed." She looked so adorably bashful then that Luka was almost tempted to swing the mirror open and hug her, but Luka held back.

"If you don't sing, you'll never get better," said Luka. "You want to be a good singer, right?"

Miku sighed. "I don't sound good. My voice isn't good."

"Don't be ridiculous!" Luka put her hands against the glass, longing to touch and comfort Miku, but she couldn't. "You have a beautiful voice!" She really did, too, a nice soft voice that was music to Luka's ears.

"You're just saying that," Miku hugged herself and frowned.

"Trust me," said Luka. "If people say you sound like a drowned rat, then they're probably jealous of you. Please sing, for me."

Miku was clearly hesitant, but she eventually mustered up the courage and sang the same hymn that Luka sang to her the day Miku moved in. Luka didn't know if it was a conscious choice or coincidence, but she concentrated on Miku's voice. It was rough and unrefined, but it was far from sounding like a drowned rat, and Luka could detect that Miku had some hidden talent in her. With training, she would truly have an excellent voice. Luka began to try to think of ways to train Miku accordingly.

Luka was so lost in her thoughts that she did not say anything after Miku finished the song, and only Miku's voice broke her out of her thoughts.

"Um...you probably think it's really bad, huh?" Miku smiled in a self-deprecating way. "I'm sorry. I hope your ears aren't bleeding too horribly."

"No, no," Luka said, hastily. "You have talent, Miku. I'll tutor you."

"R-really?" Miku stared straight at Luka, even though Luka knew Miku could not see her through the mirror. "You mean it? You'll really tutor me?"

"Yes," said Luka.

A smile spread on Miku's face, and she beamed. "Thank you! I don't know how to repay you, but I—"

"You don't need to repay me," said Luka. "I have no use for monetary things now."

"But, something...I can do something for you...if only I know what," Miku frowned.

"Well," Luka smiled. "We can discuss how to repay me later. Let's focus on the tutoring, first."

Luka was a strict tutor, and many times, Miku was left frustrated, but Luka knew that eventually, with more and more time, Luka could bring out Miku's talent, so she worked hard, and thus Miku worked hard in turn. Her singing improved more and more with each day, and Luka noted, with some happiness, that Miku now seemed somewhat more...dependent on her. She would come into her room with that seeking glow in her eyes, and she'd walk over to the mirror, and sit down, and tentatively begin the conversation, and Luka would, of course, always reply.

To Luka's surprise, Miku did not mention Len at all. Perhaps they had a falling out. Perhaps she was yelling at Len that first day. Whatever it was, Luka was glad.

Then, the day came.

"You're ready to perform," said Luka.

Miku's eyes widened. "Really?"

"Really," said Luka.

Miku seemed nervous, and she fidgeted with the fabric of her dress. "I. I don't know. I'm not sure." She seemed so childish in her timidity. "I...I've never sung before. And I'm an actress. I don't sing. I...I act."

"Miku," Luka's voice was gentle and she infused it with all of the persuasive power she had. "Trust me." Luka had found that Miku would be easily intoxicated by her voice, and today was no exception. Miku nodded obediently, although there was still nervousness in her expression and posture.

"I trust you," she said, softly. "What do I do? Who do I tell about this?"

"You don't need to tell anyone," Luka sat back. "I will do the work, Miku. You don't need to worry about anything."

-o-o-o-

She had to get the lead singer out of the way. Luka was agile and stealthy, and by now she knew the theater as well as the back of her hand. The star singer was a woman nicknamed Sweet Ann, someone who had a good voice, but Miku's was better. There was to be a musical performance a few days later, so Luka had to act quick, and also, position Miku as the prime candidate for Sweet Ann's replacement.

That last part was easy enough; by this time, Luka had cultivated quite a position for herself, as she was known as the ghost of the theater, and the managers were fearful of her, and Luka knew that it was she who held the true power of the theater. Convincing the managers would be a simple feat. No, the difficult part was to get Sweet Ann out of the way.

The best way to do this, Luka decided, was the administration of a simple potion that would induce sickness, but would not kill Sweet Ann. Luka did not want to scare Miku unnecessarily, after all. After gathering the requisite plants, Luka returned to the theater, and began working on her potion, a simple process.

When it was finished, all Luka had to do was to put the potion into Sweet Ann's food somehow. That was arranged easily enough. Sweet Ann, as a somewhat spoiled prima donna, had her own table, so all Luka had to do was sneak a few drops of the potion into the food before Sweet Ann got to the table. Since no one really saw much need to guard tables in dining rooms, all Luka had to do was hide herself in shadow and tap a few drops of the liquid into the food. She had done it very quickly, without being seen — years of thievery and poisoning had taught her that much.

And it was done. Luka had a brief meeting with the managers later. She spoke from a hollow column and threw her voice so that it would seem like it came from the chair in the main meeting room, and the managers, cowed by what they thought to be a ghostly demon from hell, agreed quickly to whatever she asked.

Luka, satisfied, looked forward to an excellent show later on.

-o-o-o-

Miku was obviously nervous when she came up on stage, and for a moment, Luka feared that she would lose her nerve. Luka was sitting in the private box that she had threatened the managers into giving her, and she watched anxiously. The crowd was silent and inhospitable today. Luka could tell that they wanted Sweet Ann, not some unknown girl. Miku apparently picked up on the crowd's mood, for she looked sad and forlorn, but she seemed to gather strength within herself. The lights dimmed, Miku began to sing, and Luka closed her eyes.

-o-o-o-

It was perfect. A standing ovation, and a baffled Miku stared as people threw flowers at her feet.

Luka herself was feeling quite ecstatic. A feeling of pure happiness spread within her. She was proud, of herself and of Miku. She watched with fondness as Miku was helped off the stage — the poor girl couldn't even walk, so unused to praise was she. Luka could see Miku glance around, as if trying to look for her angelic tutor, but Luka couldn't show herself. Not now. Not here, in the crowded auditorium. Luka smiled and left her box.

At Miku's room, Luka waited for her return, but when long minutes passed without any sign of the girl, Luka began to feel a little perturbed, a perturbed that quickly grew into full-fledged worry. Perhaps the managers wished to talk to Miku? Horror invaded Luka's body, replacing her earlier happiness. Would the managers ruin the whole 'angel' facade by telling Miku of the ghost of the theater? No...Luka couldn't let that happen. She rushed out of the basement and hid herself in the columns of the theater, looking for Miku.

She found her, but Miku was not with the managers. She was with a boy with blonde hair tied up in a ponytail and blue eyes.

"You did a great job today, Miku," said the boy enthusiastically. "I had no idea you could sing like that."

Miku looked a bit taken aback, and blushed prettily. "Th-thank you, Len."

So this was Len! Luka stared at him, committing his features to memory. A deep frown appeared on her face. This was her competition.

Len scratched the back of his head. "Look, I know I...we haven't parted on the best of terms before, but I want to say that I'm sorry for what I said."

Miku was apparently on a happy high from her success, for she nodded and grinned. "It's okay. I forgive you. It's my fault too."

"Oh," Len smiled. "That's good. Then, if you're not too busy, how about I take you to a celebratory dinner? There's an excellent restaurant down the way."

Luka gaped. A celebratory dinner at a restaurant...that was something that Luka, ugly and deformed as she was, could never give Miku. No...if Miku were to be with Luka, Luka knew that she would have to stay in the basement with her, due to Luka's deformed face. Luka felt depressed, saddened, even angry. It was unfair. Her life was unfair. Why couldn't she have been born normal? Undeformed? Why was it that she had to be born with this face and cast down and disregarded?

Miku, to Luka's surprise, hesitated. "I...I'm sorry. I have a previous engagement."

"What?" Len blinked. "You have a prior engagement?"

With who? This was a surprising development. Luka pressed her face closer to the column so as to hear better.

"Yes," Miku said, and she looked down. "I'm...I'm sorry, Len. I can't cancel..."

Len frowned.

"Very well," he said, somewhat stiffly. "I suppose I should have called upon you in advance, then. Perhaps, maybe next time?" His voice was hopeful now.

"Maybe," said Miku.

Len nodded, raised his hand, and after a brief (and somewhat awkward) exchange of farewells, walked off without looking back. Miku quickly turned and headed down the hall, the other way. Luka followed after her through the walls. Miku took a turn here, a turn there...and then she went into her room.

Luka stared. She was meeting with someone in her room? No. No! Luka panicked and ran back down to the basement, as fast as she could. She nimbly avoided her own traps and took a sharp turn to the one way mirror glass. By the time she reached it, she was panting heavily. She looked through the glass, almost dreading what she would see.

She saw, to her surprise, Miku kneeling before the mirror, looking worried. "A-are you there?" Miku said, timidly.

The relief washing over Luka was like a wave. However, Luka felt some odd need to keep Miku hanging, so she did not reply. Miku's shoulders dropped, and she looked down.

"I...I'm sorry," said Miku, softly. "I guess I didn't do a very good job...are you mad at me? I'm sorry. I'll practice more. I promise. Please say something...anything! Are...are you there?"

Luka noticed, with some alarm, that Miku was beginning to cry, and she feared that perhaps her little joke went on for too long.

"I'm here, I'm here," said Luka soothingly and gently. "You did excellently, Miku. I am very proud of you."

Miku sniffled and looked up. She seemed so vulnerable. "R-really?"

"Yes," Luka said. "I'm sorry for not saying anything earlier. I was taken aback by how beautiful your singing was. You were superb."

Miku blushed heavily, and Luka could tell that it was, in the end, her praise that Miku desired the most. "Really?"

"Really," said Luka, and she leaned back against the wall and stared at Miku, who was smiling and blushing. That smile was infectious, and Luka started to smile herself, and she carried that smile with her all the way to her own bed, where Luka clutched onto her blankets and allowed herself this happiness tonight.

-o-o-o-

That happiness was short-lived. Len was irritatingly persistent. He would leave flowers in Miku's dressing room. More than once, he would visit Miku backstage, talking to her, talking about an old childhood friendship they had, occasionally bringing up his sister Rin and how much fun they all had together, hinting that Miku should drop by their estate sometime to catch up, and it made Luka sick with jealousy and rage — even more so when, in unguarded moments, Miku smiled shyly at him.

Luka had hoped that he would be a silly, foppish boy chasing after every pretty skirt that came his way, but no - he was unquestioningly and hatefully devoted to Miku. Luka could see, bit by bit, Miku giving up more and more of herself to Len, and that made Luka frightened. She saw a future where Miku would not need her anymore. Where Miku would no longer come to her room to Luka, no, a future where Miku would, instead, come to her room with Len. She would not need Luka anymore...Luka would be resigned to history, forgotten and hated, known only as the ghost of the theater, a murderer, a thief, and above all, a deformed grotesque.

In her jealousy, Luka lashed out to Miku.

"You've been with that boy again!" Luka yelled after a particularly bad night.

Miku shrank. "I-I'm sorry! I try to treat him coldly...I try, but...but he won't leave me alone...I can't avoid him..."

If he wouldn't leave her alone...Luka frowned. Perhaps she had to take out Len herself. She had no aversion to killing obstacles like him. She didn't want to hurt Miku, no...but hurting Len, Luka had no such aversion to.

"Oh?" Luka's voice was icy. "So, Len Kagamine is unavoidable now? My, such an obstacle he must be! I suppose he shapeshifts into a boulder that prevents you from going past him now, does he? He is an eminent magician, after all, I'm sure he could do that."

Miku trembled and she looked cornered, trapped. "I...he was waiting for me backstage, I didn't ask for him to meet me—"

"You deliberately encourage him!" Luka would pound on the mirror if she could.

"No!" Miku seemed to have all of the strength taken out of her. "I...I don't, I swear! Please, please don't get angry at me, I...I wouldn't be able to bear it if you did, I'm...I'm so sorry, so sorry, please don't get angry at me, please..."

Luka's anger, however, was still there, and she felt some deep need to punish Miku for what she had done in continuing to talk to that boy. To Luka, each of Miku's words read as lies. She turned away from the mirror.

"No," said Luka. "The time for anger has passed. I have made my decision. Until you purge this...failing from your soul, you will not hear my voice again. We angels do not grace the wicked with our presence."

Luka did not leave, however; she merely looked back to see Miku's reaction. Miku fell to her knees, her expression bewildered, fearful.

"No...no!" Miku stammered. "He means nothing to me! I swear! He doesn't mean anything! I...it's true that we...that we used to be together, but we fought, and...and...he doesn't mean anything to me anymore! Please don't leave me! Please!"

Luka stayed silent. Miku continued her apologies, over and over, her delicate frame shaking. Luka stared down at her gloved hands, thinking. She was beginning to realize just how far of a gap existed between her and Miku. While Luka spent most of her life running and skulking, living in hate and fear, her hands seemingly constantly bloodstained, Miku lived an ordinary life, like any other girl should. She didn't grow up to become twisted, like Luka did.

Luka's anger dissipated, leaving nothing but an empty hollow in her chest. "...Miku."

Miku immediately gave a start and looked up hopefully.

"Calm down," said Luka, softly. Miku nodded and sniffed and put her hand over the mirror, and Luka slowly placed her hand over Miku's — not that either of them could feel anything through the cold glass of the mirror. Before Luka could stop it, she began to speak. "I will give you one chance."

"Anything," Miku said, her voice little more than a whisper. "A...anything, just as long as you don't leave me."

Luka's mind stood back, horrified, as her mouth spoke words that sounded cold and manipulative even to her own ears. "Tell me that you will never see Len again. Treat him coldly and reject his advances and his flowers." Luka stared at her own trembling hand.

Miku bowed her head, suddenly appearing very weak and fragile, and nodded.

Luka took her leave, and it was only when she reached her bed that the full extent of what she did crashed down on her.

"O-oh god," Luka whispered to herself. "I'm so sorry."

She had taken advantage of Miku — taken advantage of the girl's need and trust in her, twisted it into something cruel and dependent like this. Their relationship had been good and pure, before. But now...but now...Luka had perverted it into some cruel, controlling relationship. She didn't mean for it to happen. She just wanted Miku to be happy, but Luka was too jealous, and she loved Miku too much, and she was too angry at Len to think rationally. She was no angel, she knew that now. No, she was truly a freak and a monster. She really had a rotten heart. If Luka could go down on her knees and apologize to Miku, over and over, she could, but fear held her back, fear that Miku would leave her...and that would be too much for Luka to bear. She knew that what she did was wicked and unfair, but Luka couldn't stop — she needed Miku too much. She couldn't let Len take her from her. Not after Luka spent years searching and searching for Miku.

So Luka apologized to Miku in her mind instead, as heavy remorse took over her heart. With a sinking feeling, Luka realized that things would never be the same between the two of them again.