Nezumi woke with a start. He had been dozing on his horse again as he rode down the dark winding path. The dark-haired man frowned and clenched the reins. He had been dozing more recently. He knew he was beyond exhausted, but he had to stay awake. The adrenaline that allowed him to ride on for almost three days now was wearing thin. The dark-haired man was tired and anxious. He was on the third day, yet he had no idea how close he was to his goal. The lack of food wasn't helping. He managed to take some food when he stolen a new horse that morning. This current horse didn't like him very much and kept slowing down if Nezumi wasn't paying attention. This had caused him more anxiety and stress worrying if he wasn't going fast enough. In the distance Nezumi heard the should of a hunting horn. To his alarm it sounded closer than last time. It had taken two days for Sir William to catch up with him. Ever since that morning soon after he switched horses, he had started hearing sound of dogs barking and the hunting horn.

Another loud horn sounded followed by a loud howl from one of the hounds. In his sling Sion shivered and shrunk closer to Nezumi. He was afraid of the hunting dogs. Last time they were hunted, Nezumi had let Sion go in a desperate attempt to save him when he was captured. Sion had tried to run but was surrounded by the dogs. They bit and snarled at him until one of the guards pulled the helpless creature out of their reach. Nezumi had agreed to go back with them quietly as long as they allowed him to have Sion.

"It's ok." Nezumi muttered patting the trembling creature's head. The horse snorted with exhaustion and tried to wrench the reins out of Nezumi's hand. The dark-haired man grabbed them and pulled the horse back under his control. From behind him third horn sounded. Nezumi's heart started pounding. That one was too close. Sir Williams was probably only a couple minutes away.

"Damn it!" Nezumi glanced back over his shoulder. The knights were not visible yet through the trees. He knew however it was only a matter of time. The knights had better horses that were trained to ride at high speeds for multiple days. The one that Nezumi had was from a farm. It had good stamina but wasn't very fast.

Nezumi turned his attention back to the road ahead of him and kicked the sides of the horse trying to get it to move forwards. The horse snorted again but didn't change speeds. The dark-haired clenched his teeth as frustration threated to overwhelm him. He should have reached this place by now. Not only were the guards closing in, but he was running out of time. In the last town he past the town clock read 8:00. Nezumi knew it had been least three hours since then. It wouldn't matter if he could outrun Sir William or not. If he didn't find the Midnight Fairy Circle in time Sion was as good as doomed anyways. He was too exhausted to keep running if this failed.

A sudden clock chime made Nezumi's heart pound. He didn't realize he was anywhere near a town. If he had to guess, he would say that the town was a couple miles away, to the left of him. The forest carried sounds weirdly and things always sounded closer than they were. Even so that would explain why the knights were fast approaching. They must have stopped by the town to get more hunting dogs and horses. Nezumi swore to himself. Of course, they did. The knights had a fort in almost every town. It would be easy for them to restock.

In the distance the clock chimed again and Nezumi listened to it, counting each one. It was eleven thirty.

"Thirty minutes." Nezumi breathed panic rushing through his body. He wasn't going to make it. He had failed Sion. The pressure of the situation seemed to be closing in and Nezumi felt himself fall into despair. He had tried so hard to make things right. He had tried so hard, yet he kept failing. Why couldn't he just get Sion back? Why didn't he just make a chose instead of acting wish-washy in the first place?

Before his mind could chastises him any longer, he suddenly burst through the trees and found himself in a clearing. He slowed his horse into a gentle trot as a wave of relief hit him. He felt as if a weight had been slightly lifted off his shoulders. Nezumi found himself in a in a large green field of soft green grass that muffled the sound of his horse's hoofs. A gentle breeze blew by lifting up Nezumi's hair as his eyes traveled to the center of the clearing. There in the middle, was twelve jagged rocks that formed a circle. A few feet in front of the rocks the grass suddenly ended leaving only dirt. In the middle of the circle there was a small dark pound that reflexed the full moon perfectly. Each of the twelve stone had lines on it that looks like runes but could have easily been weather marks. The circle of gray rigid rocks loomed over them as Nezumi approached. He could see why people thought it was magical. There was something about the whole area that felt foreboding. When he had entered the clearing there was a sudden hush that filled him. The sound of night creatures were not present here. There wasn't any fireflies or bugs creeping through the grass nor birds in the nearby trees. It was as if everything was afraid of the circle.

Nezumi made his way towards it until he reached the area where the grass ended. There the horse stopped dead in his tracks and refused to get closer. Nezumi could feel it too. His animal instincts were tell him to back away. Nezumi took a deep breath and got off the horse. Fighting against his instincts he forced himself to take a step off the grass. As he did, he felt the weight in his pouch suddenly lighten. It took a second for Nezumi to realize that Sion had escaped. The dark-haired man spun around looking for him. A few feet away he saw the grass rustled as the small animal hopped away from the circle at top speed. Nezumi cursed quietly and gave chase. He had forgotten that Sion could also sense the foreboding feeling that the rocks gave off. As he chased the bunny to the forest, he saw something that made his heart stop. Sir William emerged into the clearing with his him men. Nezumi screeched to a halt and Sion tried to jump through their legs to escape. Sir William bent down and to scooped him up, but Sion skidded to a halt and darted back to Nezumi.

"Catch that rabbit!" Sir William hollered to his men. Nezumi charged forward and grabbed the struggling rabbit.

There was a strange buzzing sound. It ran through Nezumi like lightning and filled him with fear though he didn't know why.

The other knights thundered forward and Nezumi looped around to one side as he stuffed Sion back into his pouch. The knight closest to him started to turn to him. Nezumi kicked in the man's legs and the knight gave a grunt as he toppled over. The actor reached into his pouch and smack a small portion of sleeping powder into the fallen man's face. Then he turned to the other knights in the clearing.

The buzzing was getting louder. Now it wasn't much of a sound but the feeling of a buzzing sound. Even though Nezumi was concentrating on fighting his rat instincts were telling him that the buzzing was important. That part of him knew it was a way to save Sion though he didn't understand why or how yet.

Nezumi took out knight after knight. Every time one of the knights fell, two more would take their place. It was an endless battle. Nezumi bit and clawed his way through the men, fighting for his life. He was running low on sleeping powder and had to use less and less for each man.

It was a passageway. Nezumi suddenly understood that the buzzing sound was a passage made out of magic. It worked the same as a physical passage he would find in the castle. Now Nezumi knew why no human could get in the fairy circle. Humans couldn't feel the buzzing. Animals could but their instincts told them to stay away. Nezumi was a bit of both. He could feel the buzzing sensation but was also self-aware enough to fight against his instincts. He would find a way in.

Panting Nezumi slid around another knight, ducking a sword swing. The man swore and Nezumi jumped on his back and looped his legs around the man's chest. As the man struggle to break him free Nezumi smacked sleeping power on the man's face. The knight fell and Nezumi turned, ready to face another. To his surprise his found that it was only him and Sir William left.

As each second passed, the buzzing sound passageway got clearer and clearer. Nezumi knew that it would be fully opened by midnight.

Sir William stared at him with a deep loathing as he slowly pulled out his sword. Nezumi got into a fighting stance.

"I will make you regret all of this." the knight hissed his hand trembling with rage. "I will make you pay for what you did to our prince." Nezumi watched him wearily. Sir Williams was dangerous man. He was a good fighter and Nezumi knew it would be hard to defeat him. The actor put his hand into the bag of sleeping powder and found to his horror he only had about a handful left. If he messed this up, he would be out. The knight gave a roar and jumped forward swords unsheathed. Nezumi dove out the way a it came an inch from his head. The dark-haired man rolled away and sprang to his feet. Sir William charged again. Nezumi waited until he was within swinging rang and then jumped towards him. He was an inch from the knight's face as he brought up his hand full of sleeping powder. Just before he reached the knight, the man ducked and elbowed Nezumi in the chest. The dark-haired man clenched his hand around the powder as he fell back. He rolled over as a foot wacked him in the back. Nezumi scrambled to his feet and turned to face the knight again.

The doorway was almost open and Nezumi could hear the sound of music on the other end. It was beautiful yet haunting. It drew him near yet repulsed him. His human side wanted to go towards it but his animal side wanted to run. Sion trembled against his chest at the sound.

The battle raged on. Nezumi's exhaustion was taking its tole and he was taking more damage. If he didn't end this soon, he would lose. He was already limping from a blow to the leg and he had a large gash on his forearm. The knight raised his sword to strike again. Nezumi knew he couldn't dodge it. He thought desperately of a way to distract the knight.

"Wait, what are you doing here?!" Nezumi yelled staring over the knight's shoulder. It was a weak attempt at a distraction. He hoped his acting was good enough to convince the knight that someone was there. To his delight Sir William paused confused and spun around to see who Nezumi was talking to. This was the opening the actor needed. Nezumi sprang forward as Sir William realized his mistake and smack his hand over the knight's mouth. The older man's eyes widened with shock and the powder took effect. Nezumi caught his breath as the older man keeled over. Once he could breathe normally Nezumi straightened up. He was lucky, he knew that. Sir William wasn't easy to fool but this place, even to humans felt hunting. Between the knight's own superstitions and Nezumi's acting he was able to win. Even so he hoped never to have to fight the man again. It was way to energy consuming.

Nezumi turned back to the Midnight Fairy Circle and approached it.

The magic buzzing turned into a stream and Nezumi saw cracks

As he got closer Sion started to fidget. Nezumi paused. There was no way to get Sion in without him trying to escape unless…

"Sorry about this." Nezumi muttered as he stuck his hand in the sleeping powder bag. There wasn't any left but a little dusting on the bottom of the bag. It was enough though. Sion was so tinny and the last thing he needed was to put the bunny in an eternal sleep. All Nezumi wanted was a way to get Sion through the passage without the bunny freaking out.

Nezumi put his hand inside the sling. Sion sniffed the finger that had the sleeping powder on it. The bunny gave a chattering protest and pulled his head away. He pawed his nose and sneezed twice. He shook his head then lay pressed his body against Nezumi's chest. A few seconds later Nezumi heard him snore. The actor peered into the sling. It wasn't a very deep sleep; Sion would probably be up in ten minutes or so.

In the distance the town bell starting tolling twelve.

The stream opened up and flowed wildly into the middle of the circle. Nezumi reached out with his being and dove in as he took a step a physical step inside the circle. He was drowning. He was flying. He wasn't anything. He was everything. Every fiber of his being was screaming at him to run.

.

.

The world dissolved. The night gave way to day light. The sound of the tolling bell disappeared leaving only the sound of birds happily chirping. The clearing was replace by a field of flowers, each of them a different vibrant color. They swayed in the soft in the warm breeze. In the distance Nezumi could see a floating castle. Its walls shimmered in the bright sunlight making it look like it was made out of light itself. Nezumi's senses were on overload. He numbly turned back around to see if the Midnight Fairy Circle was still there. It was stood behind him as tall and haunting as before. In the middle of the circle, the small pond still reflected the full moon that in the sky.

"What are you doing here?" A voice asked. Nezumi spun around to see a young-looking woman standing a few feet away. He knew he should have sensed her, but the magic of this place was overwhelming him. As he looked blankly at her it took a few seconds for him to register the wings on her back.

"You're a fairy?

"I am." She eyed his suspiciously. "Who are you?" Nezumi ignored the question and held out Sion.

"I need you to turn him back."

"We don't remove cures. We're fairy godmothers. We grand one wishes for good people we're assigned to. We can't do anything about this curse." She squinted at him. "You're also cursed as well? Aren't you supposed to be a rat?"

"I was until Cinderella's fairy godmother turned me into a human."

"Cinderella?" she frowned. "I've heard of her. Didn't she get her wish granted a while ago?" She bit her lip. "Alright hold on. I'll go find the Head Fairy Godmother. She should sort this out." The fairy turned to leave. "stay here!" she called over her shoulder. Nezumi watched the fairy rush off. Once she was out of sight Nezumi sunk to the ground, his energy gone. Now that the danger was over, his adrenaline rush was eb away. He closed his eyes trying to get his bearing.

"And he claims that the rabbit was cursed by Rosemary."

"That's impossible she helped Cinderella over a year ago. Why would she go back?"

"Also, wouldn't that mean Rosemary learned a way to curse people into animals?"

"I think he's lying!"

"How did he get through anyways?

"He's a rat, those are always troublesome creatures. They're as bad cats."

"Alright girls that enough. Let's wait until he wakes."

Nezumi groggily opened his eyes and sat up. He blinked up at the circle of women who were standing around him. These too were fairies, each with a different colored wing and silver gowns. As he surveyed them, he noticed one fairy was dressed fancier then the rest. She wore a gown of gold that matched the color of her wings. Nezumi guessed that she was the head fairy.

As Nezumi blinked off the last bit of sleep his senses returned and he realized Sion was nowhere in sight.

"So, you're awake rat." The head fairy said. Nezumi ignored her and continued to look around for the prince. It was unlikely that Sion just left. If he refused to leave when they were in prison, then he wasn't going to leave now. That left only one option, someone must have taken him.

"Can you understand me?" the fairy asked. Nezumi turned his attention back to her, his anger rising. The only people here were the fairies. That means they were probably responsible for Sion's disappearance. He got to his feet and got into a fighting position.

"Where's Sion." He demanded venom dripping from his voice. "What did you do to him!" The group of fairies backed away fearfully. A few of them got out their wands. The head fairy however didn't even bat an eye.

"We didn't do anything to him. He's over there with the younglings." The head fairy indicated to the left of them. Nezumi suspiciously looked over to where she was pointing. There was a group of fairy children fairies sitting in a circle with Sion. One had him on her lap. Another one was feeding him some cucumber. A third one was putting a flower crown on his head. A fourth was brushing his fur. Sion himself seemed perfectly content. Nezumi relaxed and turned back to the fairies.

"I need your help." He said.

"That's a way to ask for help!" one fairy said annoyance in her voice. "You threaten us then ask for our help?!" The other fairies grumbled in agreeance. The head fairy put out an arm to silence them.

"Enough." She said, "He's been through a lot. Let me deal with him." She turned back to Nezumi. "Before I help you, I first need to know what happened."

"What do you want to know?" Nezumi asked suspiciously. He still didn't like giving information about himself and the last time he did it was a waste of time.

"You don't need to worry rat. I only need to know what happened between you and Rosemary. " At her words the dark-haired bristled.

"Nezumi."

"Sorry?"

"My name is Nezumi." For some reason he didn't want to be called just rat. Although Nezumi meant rat it had become his name. He was a human named Nezumi not just a nezumi. The fairy frowned at him. Behind her the other fairies started grumbling again and shooting him dirty looks. The head fairy shushed them.

"You shouldn't get attached to names. Rats are nameless creatures."

"I'm not a rat anymore."

"How long have you been human?" the fairy asked.

"For over a year." Nezumi was surprised that it had been that long. Around him the fairies gasped. The head fairy surveyed him.

"Since you've been a human for a while, I'll do you the courtesy and ask permission to search your memories. I will cast a spell to see what happened between you and Rosemary. I will only see memories that involve her. This way I can confirm what happened without a shadow of a doubt. Will that be alright?"

"Is Rosemary Cinderella's fairy godmother?"

"That's correct."

"Fine" Nezumi wasn't happy about anyone invading his mind but he didn't have a choice. If showing his memories could save Sion he would do so. The head fairy waved her wand and Nezumi felt a chill run down his spine. She closed her eyes and muttered something under her breath. A sharp pain pricked at Nezumi's forehead and he fought the urge to rub the spot. Finally after a few seconds the sensation disappeared and the fairy opened her eyes again.

"I see." She looked him over, an expression of pity on her face. "He's not lying. The poor creature's life has been messed extremely messed up." She said turning to the others. "Go find Rosemary and tell her to meet me in my office." Some of the fairies flew off towards the floating castle. "The rest of you go back to the castle. I can handling the rest." The other fairies hesitated before reluctantly dispersing.

"Now." The head fairy turned back to Nezumi. "You will need to be turned back into a rat." Nezumi's heart sank. He was had though it might come to this, though a part of him had hoped that she was would be more reasonable then "Rosemary.

"And what if I refuse?" He asked getting into a crouch. The actor knew he had a less chance of winning against her then he had against "Rosemary", but he would still try. To his surprise the head fairy didn't seem at all concerned.

"Nezumi, if you don't allow me to turn you back then he has to stay as a rabbit." She pointing to Sion. "As a fairy godmother we need to keep the natural order. Since you're a human now and you've been a human for over a year, I cannot turn you back without your consent. It was wrong of Rosemary to attempt that." She nodded towards him. "For that I will apologize. However, before she casted her spell there was one less human and one more animal. We need to return to that. Either you stay human and he stays a bunny, or you turn into a rat and he returns to being human."

"Does it have to be that way?"

"For us it does." The fairy said softly. "Other magical creatures run by different rules, but these are ours." Nezumi looked back over at Sion. He wanted to stay a human, but he wouldn't be able to live with himself if he left Sion as a dumb animal. Sion deserved to be human. Sion deserved so much more out of life. He was a good person, an amazing one at that. He was going to be a great king some day and a great husband to some lucky soul. Nezumi's heart clenched. The lucky soul who would get to be at his side would not be him. He hoped it would at least be Cinderella. Nezumi closed his eyes. As much as he wanted to be human it felt unfair that a cold sarcastic creature like him, who lived off of lies and secrets should stay human if it meant sacrificing Sion. Nezumi let a slow breath out steeling his nerves. It didn't matter what he wanted anymore. He had to do it.

"I'll turn back so please save Sion."

"Very well." The fairy pulled out her wand. Nezumi braced himself. The head fairy raised it over her head then paused. She shot a thoughtful look over at the prince before lowering her arm. "Midnight is not over yet …" she trailed off still looking thoughtful. Nezumi was lost. He didn't know what midnight had to do with him being turned back into a rat. It was midnight when he had crossed over, but it couldn't still be midnight. He had been asleep long enough for that fairy to go get the head fairy. That had to be a few minutes at least. When it looked like the fairy wasn't going to continued Nezumi spoke,

"I don't understand what that has to do with anything. It was midnight when I crossed through so it can't still be midnight."

"Time works differently here than in the human realm." The fairy said smiling. "The clock has yet to stop striking midnight. Once it finishes the doorway closes and I will have to send you back as a rat. Before then however I could give you a couple of minutes to say goodbye."

"I see" Nezumi said gulping down his rising emotions. "I would like that." He paused for a moment. "Thank you." She nodded.

"I'm sorry it had to come to this." She looked at him gently. "You make such a good human."

"Not as good as Sion." Nezumi muttered. He turned walked over to where Sion and the younglings were playing. When the children saw him, they scampered away. Nezumi ignored them and bent down to pick up the prince. Sion sniffed his arm. The actor hugged him close.

"Goodbye Sion." The dark-haired man said. "Thank you for everything. You have no idea how you changed my world, how you changed me." He hugged him tightly. Sion wriggled a little in discomfort. Nezumi gave a little laugh and released him on the ground. Sion pressed himself against Nezumi's foot.

"You have no idea how much I'm going to miss you." The dark-haired man said as a lump grew in his throat. He felt the urge to cry; to hug Sion and let his emotions out. He fought the feelings. He was not going to cry in front of a fairy. He would never let them know how much this hurt. He scooted Sion away and purposely turned back to the fairy.

"Alright I'm ready." He said in an emotionless voice. He wasn't ready but it was now or never. To his surprised he found the fairy was watching him with an amused smile on her face.

"Nezumi." The fairy said, laugher laced in her voice. "When I said you could say your goodbyes, I meant I was going to turn him into a human again."

"I thought you couldn't do that because of natural order or something stupid like that?"

"Things must return to their natural order by midnight. The clock had yet to stop chiming." Nezumi's heart started pounding.

"Then turn him back." Nezumi knew he sounded desperate, but he didn't care. At that moment he was so close to seeing Sion again it hurt. The fairy nodded and waved her wand. Nezumi turned around. There sitting in the field of flowers were the bunny stood was the prince. At first Sion had a blank look in his eyes, then light returned.

"You have ten minutes." The fairy said. "I'll leave you alone." She turned and flew away. Nezumi barely acknowledge her. He was too busy looking at Sion. Sion was human again. . Everything was there. Every bit of Sion was back to normal. He never knew how wonderful it was to look at him. If this moment went on for eternity, then Nezumi would be happy.

Sion looked down at his arms confused. Then looked around at the field. Finally turned to look at Nezumi.

"Did I get turned into a rabbit?"