Chapter 2:

Brought Up from Nothing

A sudden chill in the air disturbed Seira as she slept, and it didn't go away when she tried falling asleep again. Thinking Hippo might have opened her window or something, she made to rise, so she could go and close it. But as she did, she quickly realized she was already standing, propped against a broom handle. Her mind more alert, Seira looked around herself to see that she was outside in the snow. Where she was looked unfamiliar, not even resembling anything of her home in Japan. But the streets were dark, so she couldn't see beyond the road. Looking down at herself, Seira noticed her attire was quite removed from the norm.

She had on a patchy dress that looked worn and smudged with dirt and grime as well as wooden shoes. When she tilted her head, something came into view from above. She felt up to discover she had some kind of orange cap on her head as well. Seira did not understand what she was doing in these clothes, nor how she got here in the first place. She looked behind her to see a massive building lit up from the inside. She went up to the window to look inside.

The interior was lit up rather brightly with numerous candles, along with the chandeliers on the roof. Inside looked to be all the water demons and enemies she and her friends had faced. The Dark Lovers, the Black Beauty Sisters, the Winged Ones, and even the Triple Threat. They were all crowding around the tree, tearing into presents or enjoying the various gifts they got. As she watched, she noticed Arara was playing with a nutcracker. When she saw it, she began to realize something.

"Dark night… ragged clothing… a nutcracker…" she contemplated, then discerned, "I'm… in the Nutcracker story? Then that must mean I'm Clara. But how did I get here?" She continued to watch everyone inside, even when Arara struggled with the nutcracker trying to crack another nut.

The fairy wrestled with it, wanting to crack the stubborn nut despite there being no give when she tried as hard as she could.

Seira even began to worry that the fairy would break the nutcracker with how she was handling it.

Eventually, the fairy gave up and tossed the toy aside.

Seira could only look on in sadness at how the little nutcracker was treated. It didn't seem right to just discard it like they did. But she couldn't just go in and talk to them about that. If she was indeed Clara from the story, that meant she could do nothing but watch and wait. But she had to rub her arms briefly when a cold wind blew past. While it got pretty cold back home, Seira had never felt as cold as she did now. Looking back inside, she found everyone was putting out the lights and leaving to go to bed. This meant it was time for her to go inside and clean up the mess for the next day.

Stepping inside, Seira was comforted since the air inside was not as cold as the outside. But she couldn't take too much time to enjoy the respite, as she had to get to cleaning. As she swept the floors and dusted the furniture, she looked around for the nutcracker Arara discarded.

"Where could it be?" she asked under her breath, scanning the room as best as she could for the little toy. There was so much stuff on the ground that it proved to be a challenge just looking for it. Thus, she just continued doing her work, contemplating what she was to do in this place. Was this a dream? Or was she trapped by someone like Dr. Hishki? She didn't know what to believe.

It was in her thoughts wandering that her foot hit something. Looking down, she finally spotted the poor nutcracker, a nut still lodged in its mouth. Setting her broom aside, she bent down to pick it up, resting it in her arms. Having never seen a nutcracker before, Seira found herself drawn to this one. She didn't know why that was. Perhaps it was Clara's feelings for the little toy she was feeling. Even so, Seira felt bad for the toy and how it was treated. Removing the nut, she then placed a kiss on its cheek.

It was then the nutcracker's eyes blinked and moved. They landed on Seira, who was taken aback by the occurrence. She set him down before standing and backing up a bit, unnerved by the sudden occurrence.

Standing upright, the nutcracker spoke, "Greetings fair maiden. I thank you for waking me. Might I ask for your name?" The nutcracker's voice sounded like Hugo's, further startling the mermaid princess.

But she replied, "My name is… Seira." She had struggled to say her name, as if she had originally meant to say Clara. What was going on?

"It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Miss Seira," the nutcracker returned. "I must say, you are quite a giant to gaze upon."

Slightly offended, Seira told the nutcracker, "That was rather rude to say. Besides, you look rather short to me, nutcracker."

Her words confused the toy, who clambered up to a nearby window. Upon seeing his reflection the nutcracker sounded horrified by what he found. "It is true," he gasped in disbelief, "I am a nutcracker after all. How can this be?" He collapsed to his knees, his head resting against the glass as he appeared to cry at his misfortune.

Seira was unable to stay mad at him long, knowing this was hard for him to come to terms with. So she asked, "Nutcracker, might you tell me how you can talk and move about?"

Collecting himself, the nutcracker explained, "Certainly, Miss Seira. You see, I was not always a nutcracker like you see me now. Rather, I was a prince from a far away kingdom some time ago. My parents were celebrating with me and our honored guests at the time, when she came."

"Who?" Seira asked, though she already knew the answer.

"The Rat Queen," the nutcracker revealed. He went on and said, "She was always a jealous sort, especially of my family. But she was also a master of magic. She used her magic to terrorize the counts and dukes attending the party, her son nearby to enjoy the torment she caused. I was a young lad then, but I could not allow the queen to go about her business. Throwing my scepter, I knocked her crown from her head. This seemed to do the trick, as she began to disappear once the crown had been removed. But before she did, she cast a spell on me. I see now that she had turned me into a nutcracker then. I was unable to move or speak, as still as the toy I became. It was then her son took up her crown, vowing vengeance on me for what I did.

"Now you see my situation, Miss Seira," the nutcracker finished. "I must find a way to restore myself to who I was. And I must be careful of the prince who swore vengeance against me."

As he looked back at his reflection, Seira was further moved by his plight.

He had done a noble deed defeating the Rat Queen, only to be spell-bound as he was into the form of a nutcracker.

She was a little nervous, recalling the story saying that the Rat King would come tonight with a legion of his minions. But she had faced much worse as a Mermaid Princess. Not to mention she was big. No rats were going to beat her.

She then offered, "Mr. Nutcracker, might I help you at all? Whatever you need, I want to help."

He looked back to her, a small smile on his wooden face. The nutcracker replied, "You honor me with your kindness, Miss Seira. I would be most grateful for your aid."

Seira smiled, picking up the nutcracker once he finished. This little toy was something she had not expected.

It was then they heard scrabbling sounds from a nearby corner of the floor. The two looked over to see a hole being dug from underneath. And emerging from that whole was a rat as black as night, with a crown all in black on their head. The rat had what looked like a navy-blue cape and a sword strapped to their side. This must have been the Rat King.

Seira grabbed her broom and held it before her, keeping the nutcracker close to shield him. The Rat King was then joined by a great many rats, all a bit smaller than he, coming out to seize the girl. But Seira would not have it, and swept them away with her broom to keep them from advancing on her and the nutcracker she protected. She swept back and forth, driving back hordes of rats with ease. That is until she noticed sparkling dust falling around her. And following that, the room seemed to grow, and even the rats and nutcracker got bigger. She looked to the Rat King, seeing the remnants of some sort of spell he cast.

I forgot! She realized too late. The Rat King made Clara small while she tried fighting them off. Pretty soon, she was a similar size to the rats, who all eyed her hungrily. Seira was terrified by the change of circumstances, having no means to protect herself. She didn't have her pendant and pearl on her, which meant she couldn't sing her way out of her predicament. She wasn't sure what she could do.

That was when the nutcracker imposed himself between Seira and the rats. He urged, "Go Miss Seira! Climb the tree to safety. I will hold them back as long as I can."

Fearing for him now, Seira pleaded, "I can't just leave you nutcracker. Come with me."

"I will follow shortly," he assured her. "You must go. Hurry!"

Not having any choice, Seira was forced to climb the tree. She was amazed at how easily she could pull herself up the branches. She wasn't a particularly strong person at school during fitness classes, but she was by no means a weakling. She climbed and climbed, hearing the rats and nutcracker clash below her. She did not dare look back, for fear that her resolve would fail, and she would rejoin the nutcracker down below.

It was only when everything stopped that she dared a glance. And it was then she saw the nutcracker being held by the rats as the Rat King slowly approached, his sword at his side.

Snickering, the Rat King regarded, "Look what we have got here, my subjects. The loathsome nutcracker. The very thing that took my mother from us. Silly little thing thought it could play the part of the hero. What foolishness."

"You will not prevail today, you rat!" the nutcracker snapped back. "Your kind will not seize what you seek."

Holding his sword under the nutcracker's jaw, the Rat King replied, "Dear little nutcracker, all I want is your head. I will avenge my mother and finish her work. Starting with you." He raised his sword to prepare for the strike that would claim the nutcracker before him.

Seira looked on in fright, thinking desperately on what to do. She tried to recall what Clara did in this situation. What did she do in the story that saved the nutcracker? She struggled to think, but couldn't come up with a solution. But it was in desperation that she made her move.

Before the king could strike, she took one of her shoes and chucked it at him.

The Rat King took the blow, his crown knocked off his head. Dropping his sword, the Rat King tried to catch the crown before it fell, juggling it as he tried to get a grip. But it was no good, for the crown slipped off his fingers and crashed to the ground, shattering into pieces that emitted a black dust. As the cloud rose, the Rat King began to sniff the air. When he did, his nose twitched, and his face scrunched up before he let out a mighty sneeze. And then, he disappeared with a puff of smoke.

His subjects looked worriedly around, just as the dust reached their noses as well. One by one, the rats sneezed and vanished before Seria's very eyes. One of them desperately fought the urge to sneeze, running for the hole they came from. But the dust seemed to cling to him, even as he ducked into the hole in the floor. At last, he gave a great sneeze, disappearing forever more.

It was then that the night was still. The nutcracker lay on the ground, motionless.

Seira worried the Rat King's crown did something to him too. Perhaps the crown cast magic on him to make him become a complete nutcracker. How she dreaded such a fate. She began to descend to see what befell the noble toy, when his body was engulfed in light.

The light seemed to cause a change about him. His figure rotated until it stood where he was, and his body seemed to morph and shrink a bit. When it faded a bit, Seira was greeted with the sight of what the nutcracker had been: a prince.

Not just any prince, but Hugo.

Seira was taken away by his appearance, the boy adorned in a blue jacket with orange fasteners and tassels, white pants rimmed with orange, and black boots, and on his head was a small crown.

He looked up as Seira reached the floor, smiling softly at her.

He soon noticed the shoe Seira threw to save him, bending down to retrieve it. As he came over, Seira's heart raced in her chest and she stood stock still as he came over to her, unsure what she should do. It was then he bent down and replaced the shoe on her foot. When he did, light pooled from his touch and spread up to the tips of her hair.

Her shoes were adorned with jeweled flowers, her dress turned into an orange gown with pink pace, ribbons attached themselves to her finger and back, a choker with a small jewel nestled on her neck, and a tiara set itself in her hair.

When Seira opened her eyes to see these changes, she was blown away. This was beyond anything she could have imagined. She looked up to Hugo before taking the hand he offered, and pulled into an embrace.

"Thank you Seira," Hugo addressed affectionately. "You have shown much kindness and courage in saving me. I wish to repay your kindness however I can."

"Hugo…" Seira muttered lovingly, resting her head on his chest. This moment she wished could last for eternity.

But she began to hear someone calling for her, and the scene around her dissolved.

"Seira, wake up," came Luchia's voice. "It's Christmas. Time to go open our presents."

The young Mermaid Princess opened her eyes to see her mentor hovering over her, urging her awake. And after she had such a lovely dream. She got up at last, stretching and letting out a huge yawn. Once she was prepped, Seira got out of bed to go with Luchia downstairs. She remembered to grab the Nutcracker book to give back to Hugo.

Down in the lobby, the girls and boys were all tearing into their various gifts given to each other. Nary a frown was found among the group as they enjoyed their presents. Seira dug into hers with some relish, but she seemed to drag as the dream lingered on her mind.

Hugo noticed this, coming over to check on her. "What's wrong Seira?" he inquired. "Did you have a bad dream?"

The Orange Mermaid Princess shook her head, replying, "The opposite. I had the most wonderful dream. But the dream ended after it reached the most amazing moment. I'm sad that I was taken from it."

Wrapping an arm around her comfortingly, he requested, "Why don't you tell me about this dream."

And so Seira relayed the dream she had. About how she went through the Nutcracker story he had told them last night. She told him about her playing the part of Clara, how she met the nutcracker who was him, and how she saved him in the end just like Clara did. Hugo kept a neutral face during the retelling, but he was engrossed in her relaying the story to him.

When she finished, Hugo said, "That sounds like a wonderful dream. I can see why you would be so down after something like that."

Seira nodded, looking down at the gift she was supposed to be unwrapping. But she had lost any motivation to open it now.

Seeing this, Hugo took up the book from where Seira put it and placed it in her lap. "Why don't you hold on to it," he offered. "As my Christmas gift to you."

Surprised by this gesture, Seira asked, "But isn't this your favorite Christmas story? You should hold onto it. Plus, I can't read it."

"Not yet," Hugo assured. "But I know you love it just as much as I. So hold onto it. You can look at it as much as you want. Maybe you'll have that dream again, and it will go longer than before. I'd love to hear what comes after."

Seira smiled at his kindness, giving him a great big hug. She muttered her thanks as Hugo returned her embrace.

The others all paused in their merriment to watch the two sharing a moment. No one said a thing, but they all were heartened by the scene all the same. And that Christmas was the best anyone ever had, to see two hearts brought together.

Two hearts united, no matter who or where.

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a goodnight.