p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Fakir didn't even bother sending himself back into the real world. Instead, he went straight into Mytho's story. The transition left his head reeling for a moment, and he blinked in the sudden light of day. He had tried to place himself as close as he could to Mytho, but he had somehow landed outside of a large, gleaming white castle. At least he was in front of the gate. He walked up to it and was greeted quickly with a shout, "Hey, you there! What are you doing?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He looked up at the castle wall and spotted a guard staring at him sternly. "I don't have time for you. Let me in!" Fakir commanded, and he put some of his power behind it./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The guard's eyes glazed and he said, "Yes, right away." He pulled a lever, operating the door mechanisms. They creaked open, and Fakir strode purposefully inside. As he entered the castle's courtyard he yelled, "Mytho! Where are you? Mytho!"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"A familiar voice coated with confusion called his name. "Fakir? Is that you?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He turned and saw Rue, standing in a lavish scarlet dress, trailed by two women who were obviously ladies-in-waiting. He stalked over to her, calling, "Where's Mytho? I need to see him."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She pursed her lips into a thin line and lifted her head slightly. "Hmph. I don't know why I expected manners from you. Even a simple greeting is apparently beyond you."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He had now drawn close enough to her to hiss, "I don't give a damn about manners at this moment, Your Highness. I want to know where Mytho is, right now!"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Rue sighed. "Well, I can see I'm not getting anything from you." She turned to one of her ladies-in-waiting and said calmly, "Can you fetch my husband here, please? He has a visitor. Tell him it's a very old friend." The lady, although visibly confused, dipped a polite curtsy and scurried away on her mission./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Having gotten what he wanted from Rue, Fakir turned his back on her and began a search for his next objective. As he looked around the courtyard, Rue followed his frantic path serenely. "So, Fakir, what on earth brings you to see us? It's been nearly a year since you returned us here. It seems as if your power has grown considerably, no? For you to be able to visit here at will is quite impressive."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Shut up, you annoying woman," he growled, ignoring the outraged gasp of the remaining lady-in-waiting./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Oh, you mustn't be too offended by Fakir. You see, he simply wasn't born with any sense of etiquette like a normal human."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He ignored this comment as too silly for acknowledgement./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Rue, however, was persistent. "So, Fakir, what is it? You look as if you've seen a ghost."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He rounded on her, about to spit the most venomous sentence he could think of at her, when he was stopped by a gentle voice. "Fakir? Is that really you?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He whirled around, both satisfied and feeling dread to see the face that it belonged to. "Mytho. There you are." Fakir walked over to his friend, trying his best to shove down his feelings. They would only get in the way now. When they were standing eye-to-eye, Fakir growled, "Fight me."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Rue squealed behind him, "What? Is that what you came all this way for, some kind of grudge match? How ridiculous-"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Without turning around, Fakir snapped, "Shut up, Rue." Not taking his eyes from Mytho, he said, louder now, "Mytho, fight me! Get a sword, or I'll rip you apart where you stand."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""That's the most idiotic-"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Mytho held up his hand to silence his wife, giving her a small, gentle smile that curdled Fakir's blood. He looked back at his former knight and said quietly, "Very well, Fakir, if you want a duel with me, than you shall have it. I owe you an enormous debt, and this is the least I can do for you." He waved at a guard a short distance away, saying, "Bring me two swords."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Well, that saved Fakir having to find his own sword, at least. The guard quickly brought over the requested weapons, handing them to Mytho. The prince offered one to Fakir, hilt first. The ex-knight snatched it away from him and stepped back, settling into a ready stance. "Let's go, Mytho!" he roared, jumping forward in attack./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Mytho parried the attack easily, and countered with his own thrust. As the two of them settled into the fight, swords clanging together, Mytho asked with remarkable calm, "May I ask what you hope to gain from this fight?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Fakir snarled back, "You can ask me that if you win! Otherwise, it won't really matter to you, will it?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Mytho nodded. "Fair enough."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"They parried back and forth for a while until Fakir's desperate fighting began to falter. His swings grew wilder and wilder, until with a clang, Mytho sent his sword flying into the air, and Fakir flying onto his back. As he fell to the ground, he found the tip of Mytho's sword pointed at his throat. He glared up at the white-haired man with hatred as the prince calmly asked, "Now, Fakir, I believe you said you'd tell me what this is about if I won."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The reality of his loss sunk in, and Fakir felt failure settle over him./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Again./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"It was too much. He raised his hands to his eyes, willing the tears in them to not leak over. He spat up in the general direction of Mytho, "Why, you want to lord your victory over me?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The prince's voice was gentle as he answered, "No. I want to know why my friend is suffering, and why he feels like he can't tell me about it."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Fakir let out a short bark of harsh laughter. "Well, let's see, where do I start? First of all, I've been trying for a year to turn Ahiru back into a human permanently, but nothing will work. Then, during the last story that I put her in to try to turn her back, she got hurt. She could have died! It was my fault, and there was nothing I could do about it. Nothing!" He fisted one of his hands and pounded it into the dirt at his side. "And I can't let her risk herself anymore in any of my stories that I can't control. I obviously don't have enough power to keep her safe. Not as a knight, and not as a storyteller. I'm useless!" He took a deep breath. "And so I did the only thing I could think of. I came here."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Mytho's voice, unbelievably calm, replied, "To take back my heart shard for Ahiru."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Rue gasped. Fakir flung his hands off his eyes and jerked up to a sitting position, not caring if the sword at his throat cut him or not. He glared up at Mytho. "Yes! I was supposed to take your heart shard back for her, and that would fix her. It would make up for my other failures if I could just...fix her."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Mytho nodded. "And what does Ahiru think of this plan?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Fakir laughed bitterly. "Do you think I told her? Of course she'd be devastated. She'd never want her happiness at the expense of someone else, least of all the man she loves."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Mytho lowered himself to the ground. "I'm glad you understand that, Fakir."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He growled, "Thanks for rubbing that in. I'm well aware that by coming here and threatening you, I'm well past the point of no return with her. She'll never forgive me. But it's not like I can actually give her the man she wants, so I may as well give her the only other thing that she does want. She never has to know that it came from you, and that I had to tear you apart again to do it."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The prince shook his head. "No, I'm not talking about her loving me. I think it's pretty obvious that Ahiru doesn't care for me in that way anymore. She loves you."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Fakir stared at Mytho. Obviously being back in his own story with a loving wife had done strange things to his head. He decided to ignore the obvious insanity. Pulling his knees up, he rested his arms on top of them and sighed, drooping his head. "Well, at any rate, I lost to you. I'm not even good as a knight anymore. Not that I ever was."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"A sharp tap sounded on his head as Rue admonished him, "Don't be ridiculous, Fakir. You are a fine knight. You simply lost your head, which is why you lost the fight."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Her husband nodded. "She's right, Fakir. You have considerable skill. I was only able to beat you because you were unfocused."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Fakir laughed, the sound bordering on being unstable. "Well, either way, it doesn't matter. I have nothing to take back to Ahiru, and no way to face her. I almost killed her, Mytho. Where do I go from here?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Well, I think that you're not giving yourself nearly enough credit," Rue stated. "You were able to simply appear in the middle of our story and waltz into our courtyard with hardly any resistance. Surely there must be something you can do for Ahiru."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""There isn't! Her form is held by Drosselmeyer's power, there isn't anything I can do against that!"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Are you sure about that?" Rue asked. "It seems to me as if you've been trying a lot of different ways to help Ahiru. Isn't there anything that you've learned or noticed during those times?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Fakir was ready to respond sharply again, but then he paused. "Well...in a lot of my recent stories, Drosselmeyer has been appearing randomly," he said slowly. "And I'm not writing him in. I've mostly been focused on it to make sure he isn't doing anything to Ahiru, but there must be some reason that he's putting himself in there."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Maybe he's scared of your power, and wants to control the story himself. Or maybe he's afraid of you finding out something that could ruin his story," Mytho said./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Slowly, Fakir nodded. He hauled himself to his feet, then reached down and offered his hand to Mytho. The prince took it, and allowed himself to be pulled up. Fakir looked at his face for a moment, then flitted his gaze away. "Mytho...I'm really sorry. I should have talked to you instead of...you know, just rushing in here. I don't expect either of you to forgive me for what I tried to do, but I'd like if you could at least not hold it against Ahiru. She really doesn't know I'm here."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I wouldn't be so sure about that," Rue chimed in. "That girl is not as stupid as she seems, particularly where you're concerned."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Fakir looked at her in surprise as Mytho added, "Fakir, there's nothing to forgive. I understand. There are a lot of extreme things I would do for Rue." He reached out and gave the writer a quick hug, letting go as suddenly as he had initiated./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Fakir looked at both of his friends, and allowed himself a small smile. "Thank you, to both of you. I know what I need to do now."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Rue nodded regally. "And now that I know you are capable of it, you must come visit us again some time. And be sure to bring Ahiru, once she's human again."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Fakir's smile widened. "It's a promise."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He looked up at the castle wall and spotted a guard staring at him sternly. "I don't have time for you. Let me in!" Fakir commanded, and he put some of his power behind it./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The guard's eyes glazed and he said, "Yes, right away." He pulled a lever, operating the door mechanisms. They creaked open, and Fakir strode purposefully inside. As he entered the castle's courtyard he yelled, "Mytho! Where are you? Mytho!"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"A familiar voice coated with confusion called his name. "Fakir? Is that you?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He turned and saw Rue, standing in a lavish scarlet dress, trailed by two women who were obviously ladies-in-waiting. He stalked over to her, calling, "Where's Mytho? I need to see him."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"She pursed her lips into a thin line and lifted her head slightly. "Hmph. I don't know why I expected manners from you. Even a simple greeting is apparently beyond you."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He had now drawn close enough to her to hiss, "I don't give a damn about manners at this moment, Your Highness. I want to know where Mytho is, right now!"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Rue sighed. "Well, I can see I'm not getting anything from you." She turned to one of her ladies-in-waiting and said calmly, "Can you fetch my husband here, please? He has a visitor. Tell him it's a very old friend." The lady, although visibly confused, dipped a polite curtsy and scurried away on her mission./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Having gotten what he wanted from Rue, Fakir turned his back on her and began a search for his next objective. As he looked around the courtyard, Rue followed his frantic path serenely. "So, Fakir, what on earth brings you to see us? It's been nearly a year since you returned us here. It seems as if your power has grown considerably, no? For you to be able to visit here at will is quite impressive."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Shut up, you annoying woman," he growled, ignoring the outraged gasp of the remaining lady-in-waiting./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Oh, you mustn't be too offended by Fakir. You see, he simply wasn't born with any sense of etiquette like a normal human."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He ignored this comment as too silly for acknowledgement./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Rue, however, was persistent. "So, Fakir, what is it? You look as if you've seen a ghost."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He rounded on her, about to spit the most venomous sentence he could think of at her, when he was stopped by a gentle voice. "Fakir? Is that really you?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He whirled around, both satisfied and feeling dread to see the face that it belonged to. "Mytho. There you are." Fakir walked over to his friend, trying his best to shove down his feelings. They would only get in the way now. When they were standing eye-to-eye, Fakir growled, "Fight me."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Rue squealed behind him, "What? Is that what you came all this way for, some kind of grudge match? How ridiculous-"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Without turning around, Fakir snapped, "Shut up, Rue." Not taking his eyes from Mytho, he said, louder now, "Mytho, fight me! Get a sword, or I'll rip you apart where you stand."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""That's the most idiotic-"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Mytho held up his hand to silence his wife, giving her a small, gentle smile that curdled Fakir's blood. He looked back at his former knight and said quietly, "Very well, Fakir, if you want a duel with me, than you shall have it. I owe you an enormous debt, and this is the least I can do for you." He waved at a guard a short distance away, saying, "Bring me two swords."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Well, that saved Fakir having to find his own sword, at least. The guard quickly brought over the requested weapons, handing them to Mytho. The prince offered one to Fakir, hilt first. The ex-knight snatched it away from him and stepped back, settling into a ready stance. "Let's go, Mytho!" he roared, jumping forward in attack./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Mytho parried the attack easily, and countered with his own thrust. As the two of them settled into the fight, swords clanging together, Mytho asked with remarkable calm, "May I ask what you hope to gain from this fight?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Fakir snarled back, "You can ask me that if you win! Otherwise, it won't really matter to you, will it?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Mytho nodded. "Fair enough."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"They parried back and forth for a while until Fakir's desperate fighting began to falter. His swings grew wilder and wilder, until with a clang, Mytho sent his sword flying into the air, and Fakir flying onto his back. As he fell to the ground, he found the tip of Mytho's sword pointed at his throat. He glared up at the white-haired man with hatred as the prince calmly asked, "Now, Fakir, I believe you said you'd tell me what this is about if I won."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The reality of his loss sunk in, and Fakir felt failure settle over him./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Again./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"It was too much. He raised his hands to his eyes, willing the tears in them to not leak over. He spat up in the general direction of Mytho, "Why, you want to lord your victory over me?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The prince's voice was gentle as he answered, "No. I want to know why my friend is suffering, and why he feels like he can't tell me about it."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Fakir let out a short bark of harsh laughter. "Well, let's see, where do I start? First of all, I've been trying for a year to turn Ahiru back into a human permanently, but nothing will work. Then, during the last story that I put her in to try to turn her back, she got hurt. She could have died! It was my fault, and there was nothing I could do about it. Nothing!" He fisted one of his hands and pounded it into the dirt at his side. "And I can't let her risk herself anymore in any of my stories that I can't control. I obviously don't have enough power to keep her safe. Not as a knight, and not as a storyteller. I'm useless!" He took a deep breath. "And so I did the only thing I could think of. I came here."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Mytho's voice, unbelievably calm, replied, "To take back my heart shard for Ahiru."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Rue gasped. Fakir flung his hands off his eyes and jerked up to a sitting position, not caring if the sword at his throat cut him or not. He glared up at Mytho. "Yes! I was supposed to take your heart shard back for her, and that would fix her. It would make up for my other failures if I could just...fix her."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Mytho nodded. "And what does Ahiru think of this plan?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Fakir laughed bitterly. "Do you think I told her? Of course she'd be devastated. She'd never want her happiness at the expense of someone else, least of all the man she loves."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Mytho lowered himself to the ground. "I'm glad you understand that, Fakir."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"He growled, "Thanks for rubbing that in. I'm well aware that by coming here and threatening you, I'm well past the point of no return with her. She'll never forgive me. But it's not like I can actually give her the man she wants, so I may as well give her the only other thing that she does want. She never has to know that it came from you, and that I had to tear you apart again to do it."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"The prince shook his head. "No, I'm not talking about her loving me. I think it's pretty obvious that Ahiru doesn't care for me in that way anymore. She loves you."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Fakir stared at Mytho. Obviously being back in his own story with a loving wife had done strange things to his head. He decided to ignore the obvious insanity. Pulling his knees up, he rested his arms on top of them and sighed, drooping his head. "Well, at any rate, I lost to you. I'm not even good as a knight anymore. Not that I ever was."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"A sharp tap sounded on his head as Rue admonished him, "Don't be ridiculous, Fakir. You are a fine knight. You simply lost your head, which is why you lost the fight."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Her husband nodded. "She's right, Fakir. You have considerable skill. I was only able to beat you because you were unfocused."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Fakir laughed, the sound bordering on being unstable. "Well, either way, it doesn't matter. I have nothing to take back to Ahiru, and no way to face her. I almost killed her, Mytho. Where do I go from here?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Well, I think that you're not giving yourself nearly enough credit," Rue stated. "You were able to simply appear in the middle of our story and waltz into our courtyard with hardly any resistance. Surely there must be something you can do for Ahiru."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""There isn't! Her form is held by Drosselmeyer's power, there isn't anything I can do against that!"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Are you sure about that?" Rue asked. "It seems to me as if you've been trying a lot of different ways to help Ahiru. Isn't there anything that you've learned or noticed during those times?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Fakir was ready to respond sharply again, but then he paused. "Well...in a lot of my recent stories, Drosselmeyer has been appearing randomly," he said slowly. "And I'm not writing him in. I've mostly been focused on it to make sure he isn't doing anything to Ahiru, but there must be some reason that he's putting himself in there."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Maybe he's scared of your power, and wants to control the story himself. Or maybe he's afraid of you finding out something that could ruin his story," Mytho said./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Slowly, Fakir nodded. He hauled himself to his feet, then reached down and offered his hand to Mytho. The prince took it, and allowed himself to be pulled up. Fakir looked at his face for a moment, then flitted his gaze away. "Mytho...I'm really sorry. I should have talked to you instead of...you know, just rushing in here. I don't expect either of you to forgive me for what I tried to do, but I'd like if you could at least not hold it against Ahiru. She really doesn't know I'm here."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I wouldn't be so sure about that," Rue chimed in. "That girl is not as stupid as she seems, particularly where you're concerned."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Fakir looked at her in surprise as Mytho added, "Fakir, there's nothing to forgive. I understand. There are a lot of extreme things I would do for Rue." He reached out and gave the writer a quick hug, letting go as suddenly as he had initiated./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Fakir looked at both of his friends, and allowed himself a small smile. "Thank you, to both of you. I know what I need to do now."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Rue nodded regally. "And now that I know you are capable of it, you must come visit us again some time. And be sure to bring Ahiru, once she's human again."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Fakir's smile widened. "It's a promise."/p