Disclaimer: If I owned Princess Tutu, a certain critic that could somehow be mistaken for Ahiru (Good grief! How could ANYONE make that mistake?!) would pop up and start verbally abusing Drosselmeyer and possibly writing him out of his own story. So, in more simplified terms, I DON'T own Princess Tutu.
Additional Disclaimer: My sister says Fakir's "situation" in this fan fiction was her idea first, so apparently that part doesn't belong to me. She'll be writing her own fan fiction with that concept the same time as me, so be sure to read it! ALSO; I may have ended up using a few details that are similar to those of other fan fictions here (Again, according to my sister.), so I'm sorry if I used any details that don't belong to me.
This is an AU fan fiction. There are no heart shards, instead there are unlucky spells floating around that need to be broken. Drosselmeyer doesn't write stories, but he does carve "curses" into an old oak tree that always come true. None of the people are animals...or at least not originally...there is the girl who becomes a duck, and the boy who becomes...well, I'll let you wait and see. Rated T just to be safe.
Mostly cannon parings (I might throw in a couple extras!), and as close to character as possible. They might act a little differently, but that would be because the storyline is different, thus tweaking their personalities somewhat. I apologize for anything anyone might find worth getting upset over. I'm really hoping people like this!
Chapter 1: Awaken
Magical things tend to happen on the night of the full moon. So what does the next morning bring? Will the spells from the night be broken? Or maybe...
A white slippered foot gracefully glided over the still water. A head of silvery white hair, with a small golden crown on the center, bobbed slightly as the prince danced to gentle music. His golden eyes were half lidded while he was lost in the beautiful dance he performed atop the pond waters.
"Qua-," a small yellow duck watched in awe.
'Wow, amazing,' she thought, then her eyes softened, 'But why do you seem so...sad?'
The handsome prince continued dancing, pure and perfect, but missing even the slightest of smiles. As she stepped onto the water, the duck was enveloped in a red light and became a princess worthy of dancing with him. Her short orange hair faded to white halfway down and had a strand that stood up atop her head; just as the duck had had. She wore a pink and white tutu with decorative blue ribbons falling below gauzy yellow butterfly wings, an intricate pendant with a tear shaped red stone set in a pair of silver wings, a pair of pink ballet shoes whose straps crossed up to her knees, and a set of gold bead bracelets around her wrists. Her eyes, just as blue as the duck's had been, looked up at the prince as she spoke softly.
"Please allow me to bring back your smile, your highness."
She circled her delicate hands above her crowned head before bringing them down in a pose that asked the question, "Will you dance with me?"
The Prince paused his dancing to respond with a pose of his own, "Yes, Princess."
With a smile on her lips, she gracefully leaped and twirled her way over to him. He took her outstretched hand as she came to a stop before him...
"...ring, Ring, RING!"
"Ahhh!" a girl in a nightgown shot up in her bed. She had long orange hair tied back in a braid and short unruly hair that stuck out around her face with one strand standing straight up, and currently had very wide blue eyes. A flock of birds waited patiently in front of her window, but as soon as it opened they all flew inside.
"Whaa!" the girl cried, suddenly covered in birds, "Wait! Wait everyone! Aww Jeez! Hold on just a second!"
After a short struggle, the girl set the food dish on the window sill and the birds flew after it. Lying on the floor, the feather covered girl sighed deeply before smiling. The red gem on her necklace gleamed in the light.
"Jeez, you guys need to be a little more patient," she mumbled as she stood and dusted off her uniform.
"Oh well, good morning!" she stepped up to the window, "Sparrow, is your wing doing better?(insert chirping)That's good-hey, don't eat so much Pigeon! You're such a glutton."
A yellow bird flew to her and she grinned, "Ah, good morning Canary Mama! Your babies should be flying soon right?(insert more chirping)Be sure to bring them over!"
The little bird almost seemed to nod before flying from her hand.
Trying to stifle a yawn, the girl leaned partway out her window, "I had such an amazing dream last night, but somehow I still feel tired. And my body feels kinda sore and stiff-"
A chime from the town clock tower interrupted her thoughts. A shocked look covered her face.
"Eh. It's that time already?" the panic suddenly set in and she turned to run, "Oh noooooo! I'm gonna be laaate! Why didn't any one wake me up?!"
She hastily grabbed her books before dashing out of her dorm room, "You're so cruel Pique and Lillie!"
As she vanished down the hall, two doors near her's opened to reveal a girl with blond hair and another with magenta hair. They were both in their night gowns.
"What's with all the noise?" the one with magenta hair mumbled, closing her violet eyes as she yawned.
"Ahiru got the time wrong again," the blond haired girl's green eyes gleamed, "So ADORABLE!"
As she ran, Ahiru took a route through some trees in order to get to the school faster. Her foot came into contact with something large, black, and furry, tripped over it, and somersaulted into a tree with the back of her legs up against it.
"Ow ow ow," she sat up slowly, rubbing her abused head.
When she looked up to see what tripped her, her eyes grew wide with surprise. Lying on it's side was a black wolf. It wasn't moving, and it had blood on it from numerous injuries.
"It's not-" she inched toward it and placed her hand gently on it's shoulder.
After a moment she sighed in relief and smiled, "You're just asleep. Thank goodness."
Then she sobered, "You seem to have been hurt really badly. I'll take you back to my dorm and take care of you wounds for you."
The chime of the clock tower came again and she turned to look at it.
"Eh?! School doesn't start for over an hour!"
Looking back to the wolf, she smiled softly, "Oh well, at least I found you. I'll go get some help, then I'll be right back."
She quickly ran back to her dorm, grabbed a sheet from a dresser, and then whistled out the window. The birds once again congregated outside her window and she smiled at them.
"I'm sorry to bother you guys, but I need your help."
Some time later she and the birds finished carrying the unconscious wolf up the into her room and gently set it on the floor. As Ahiru wiped sweat from her brow, she turned to put out more bird seed for her little friends and they immediately converged on it.
"Thank you so much everyone!"
She went to work cleaning and bandaging the wolf's wounds, somehow tangling herself up in some of the wrapping and then struggling to get out of them. Then she noticed a silver collar around it's neck. It'd been nearly completely concealed by fur, and when she took a closer look, she saw how the jagged edges cut at the poor wolf's neck. She gasped inwardly before taking it into her hands.
"Ouch!" Ahiru pulled her hands back to look at her now injured palms and fingers.
"There has to be a way to get it off!" she frowned and inspected the collar VERY thoroughly.
"Ah ha!" she found a clasp on the underside of the wolf's neck. More carefully this time, she took the collar off the wolf and set it on the floor. She ignored the fact that it was partially covered in blood, and turned back to finish binding the bandages in place.
"There all done!" she dusted off her bandaged hands and looked at the clock, "And I have just enough time to make it to class."
She took a blanket and carefully draped it over the treated wolf, a soft smile on her face as she walked out the door. She completely disregarded the mess of cloth and other various items on the floor, either not really having time to clean or not noticing it at all.
Ahiru made it to class in time and stretched at the bar while her friends gossiped beside her.
"-but no one's seen him today," the magenta haired girl frowned.
"Maybe he's sick?" the blond suggested.
The first one shrugged and turned to Ahiru, "So why were you running around so early in the morning?"
"I heard the clock tower and thought I was late," she grumbled in reply.
"Didn't you look at your clock?" a magenta eyebrow raised over violet eyes.
"I told you, I was in a hurry," Ahiru grumbled again.
"Your so weird," she shook her head.
"Shut up," Ahiru grumbled.
"Did you get into any mischief while you were running around aimlessly?" the blond chirped.
"What?" Ahiru asked.
"I know! You ran into someone, didn't you?!" she exclaimed.
"Lillie?!" Ahiru's eyes widened as the green eyed girl grasped her by the shoulders.
"Dark, mysterious and frightening!" Lillie shook her enthusiastically, "You met him didn't you?!"
"Oh no! Don't tell me your the reason he's missing!" Lillie smashed Ahiru's face, "He's injured isn't he! And in pain, oh so much pain!"
As Lillie let go, Ahiru crumpled to the floor.
"Oh the tragedy! How can you ever forgive yourself! I can just see the pain in your face!"
"That was your fault," the girl named Pique said bluntly.
"No way." Lillie glared in denial.
"But really Ahiru, you didn't run into Fakir this morning did you?" Pique whirled on Ahiru.
"Who?" Ahiru asked in confusion.
"Tall, rude, and handsome!" Pique and Lillie chorused in unison.
"Huh?" Ahiru asked again.
"I guess you didn't then," Pique said as they both shrugged, "Not too surprising considering you only started here a week ago."
As Ahiru sighed deeply and shook her head, the doors to the studio opened and the teacher stepped in. Clapping his hands, the tall man with violet brown hair and small yellow eyes called for everyones attention, "Alright everyone, take your places and we'll begin."
"And no slacking of. Or else-," perspiration gathered on his face as the Wedding March began to play and he finished the sentence in a lower voice, "-I will have to have a meeting with your parents!"
The room became absolutely silent as he gave all of them a look. Then he took out a handkerchief to wipe away the sweat and composed himself. Soft music filled the room as all the girls went through the basics at the bar. As the teacher gave directions on what to do, Ahiru's thoughts began to drift.
'So much has happened today, and it's barely past morning! First that dream where I became a princess in a tutu and danced with a beautiful yet lonely prince. Then I found the injured wolf. I didn't even know they had wolves out here!' Ahiru frowned, ' And Pique and Lillie are going on about some guy named Fakir, but I almost thought they somehow knew-'
Sensing the intimidating aura behind her, she snapped back to reality.
"Ahiru-san," the teacher said.
"Yes?!" she said.
"Straighten your posture," he told her.
"Yes!" she immediately corrected her mistake.
"Ahiru-san-" he closed his eyes and furrowed his brow in irritation as the Wedding March started again, "If you don't take this seriously, I will have to-"
"I'm terribly sorry!" she put all of her effort into the basics before he could finish.
The teacher stopped barraging her and walked away while wiping his brow with a handkerchief.
After the class finished the basics, everyone took their seats on the floor as the teacher spoke.
"Today we will watch a Pas De Deux performed by Rue Bertram from the special class, and her partner Mytho Schmied."
As he said their names, the pair gracefully entered the room. The girl known as Rue was absolutely lovely, midnight brown hair gently curling out from her bun, with the bangs almost touching her vibrant red eyes. Her dance attire was red with slight frills at the sleeves and a short skirt, fitting her form in a flattering way. With one look it was plain to see she was a true prima ballerina.
Ahiru's eyes widened as she turned her attention to the boy named Mytho. The beautiful prince from her dream shone through his white hair and golden eyes. While his attire was just a simple white shirt and shoes with black leggings, an air of royalty seemed to emanate from him. As Ahiru continued to look at him while he and Rue stepped into the center of the room, she couldn't help but notice how empty his expression was. It was as though he felt nothing at all.
"Hey now!" Pique whispered as she nudged Ahiru out of her revelation, "You've already fallen for Mytho, haven't you!"
"What?!" Ahiru gasped, a small blush creeping over her face.
"Unrequited love!" Lillie fawned over her, "So adorable!"
As the music played, the couple began their dance. The entire class watched in awe, every movement was perfect, each gesture graceful and lovely. But Ahiru closely watched Mytho's face.
'Just like in my dream,' she thought to herself, 'I wish he would smile, even just a little!'
After class, Ahiru hurried in the changing room, 'I need to check on...huh, I wonder if I should give him a name? Ah! Anyway, I should hurry back!'
"What's the rush Ahiru?" Pique noticed.
"A secret date?!" Lillie proclaimed hopefully.
"No way!" Pique's eyes widened.
"You guys, there's just something I need to take care of!" Ahiru grabbed her stuff and ran off, "See you later!"
"I heard Fakir came to class late," Pique insinuated, "And he was in a really bad mood."
"And he'll surely reject poor Ahiru!" Lillie understood her friend immediately, "We'll have to console her later."
They nodded to each other in agreement.
Ahiru quickly made her way to her dorm room, but when she got there the door was open and the wolf was nowhere in sight.
"He's gone!" Ahiru rushed back out. She barely noticed that the sheets and floor were littered with torn and blood stained bandages.
"I have to find him! He might still be hurt!" she searched seemingly everywhere, even in the most unlikely places.
"Where could he have gone?!" she ran while searching right and left. While she wasn't looking forward she accidentally she crashed into a boy, sending them both to the ground.
"Ow! I'm really sorry! Are you alright?!" she leaped to her feet as he casually did the same.
"Yeah, I'm fine," came his monotone voice. Then she realized it was non other than Mytho.
"Ah! Mytho-sempai!" Ahiru freaked out a bit, "I'm so so so sorry! I should've been watching where I was going! How stupid of me, right? I'm so strange, my friends think I'm strange, heck even I think I'm strange! I'm sure you think I'm strange."
"Not really."
"Really, you don't think I'm strange?!"
"Yes."
Ahiru finally calmed down somewhat, her face partially red, "You really are a nice person. And you dance so well too, just like a prince!"
"Hey!" someone behind her called angrily, startling her witless.
A young man with thick, green black hair pulled back in a low ponytail strode swiftly past her to Mytho.
"I was looking for you," he said, his forest green eyes displeased.
"Ah, Fakir," Mytho said, "I wasn't sure how to find you."
"Moron, let's go," he grabbed Mytho's arm and forcefully lead him in the general direction of the dorms.
"W-wait, um-" Ahiru tried to say something.
"Stop bothering us," Fakir didn't so much as look her way.
"You don't have to be so rude you know!" Ahiru shouted at him.
"Shut up," he said as they went out of earshot.
"Jeez," Ahiru huffed, "What's his problem? I just wanted to ask if they'd seen a wolf around."
She walked off to continue her search, "Oh well, I doubt someone like him would help anyway."
As the sky darkened, she knew it was time to call off the search and go to bed. The full moon rose behind her window, and the now cleaned silver collar gleamed in it 's light. It sat atop the end table next to the window. Ahiru stared at it sadly from her bunk bed.
"Why would anyone be so cruel?" she thought aloud as she fell back onto her bed, clutching her duck pillow to her chest as her eyes began to close.
"I hope he's alright. I wonder if I'll ever see him again..."
After she fell asleep, her pendant suddenly began to glow. Her body was soon engulfed in a mysterious red light.
The next morning Ahiru was out early, trying one more time to find the wolf. She was walking by the boy's dormitory when she saw Canary Mama with her babies. The yellow bird flew from the edge of the building near the nest, and one by one the babies fallowed her example.
"They're learning to fly today!" Ahiru smiled up at them.
But then the last of the fledglings hesitated. It flapped it's little wings, but didn't move from the spot.
"Oh," Ahiru's eyes became sympathetic, "It's scared."
A window not far from the nest opened, and Mytho stepped out onto the sill.
"Ah! That's dangerous!" Ahiru said, but he couldn't hear her.
The boy simply stared at the frustrated fledgling, the breeze teasing his hair and nightshirt. Ahiru was the first to notice a dark shadow shoot through the sky toward the baby bird, but she couldn't do anything to stop it. The mother flew at the raven before it could touch it, but then the baby bird panicked as the scuffle came close to it and hopped of the edge. As it fell, Mytho leaped off the window sill and caught it in his hands, curling his body protectively around it. Ahiru ran to where the boy was falling, trading her worry with the determination to save him. A red light spread from her pendant, engulfing her entire body as she ran. When it finally retreated, it wasn't Ahiru running to save Mytho, it was the beautiful princess from her dream!
"Waltz of Flowers!" she called out, pirouetting around and around. Flowers sprouted from beneath her pointe shoes and created a soft landing for him. His golden eyes opened as he fell into the cushioning petals. The princess gracefully lifted him back up and out of the flower bed. As Mytho took his free hand from his chest, the fledgling peeped softly before flying up into the sky.
"I'm glad you're alright Mytho," the princess said.
"You know who I am?"
The princess nodded.
"Who are you?"
"I-," she paused, her brow furrowing slightly, "I am-"
'Who am I?!'
"Quack!" her hands covered her face as she fearfully stepped away from Mytho, 'Oh no! The spell-'
He continued to look at her as she ran and vanished into the nearby trees.
'What happened back there?' Ahiru thought to herself as she ran. The shadow of her tutu clad form shrunk down into the shadow of a small duck, 'Who was I?'
The little duck fell down atop her shadow, Ahiru's red gem pendant skipping to a stop above her yellow head, 'I feel so...tired.'
To be continued...
Even though I'm sure everyone caught on to the constant hinting by now (except for Ahiru), but I'm not going to say it outright until maybe the third chapter. Please be patient for the next chapters! There's more to come! Any advice or comments are welcome! R&R, even if it's no more than two syllables, I'll be grateful for it!
I hope to get better with each chapter I write, so don't be too put off by the first chapter if you think it's not that great. I'll do my best to have the next chapter up by October 3rd!