Chapter VI: Lullaby
Owh...Sorry for long updates *bowing*. Same story or same plot is out of my control. Hope you enjoy it, too
Disclaimer : I do not own Princess Tutu and other related characters. They just inspire me.
(Bold = flashback, Italic=certain characther's mind)
000~~000
Dragon, fairy, centaur and other myth's creature sculptures, "man-facing-his-death" picture plus dark corridor spout strange aura. Black suited ninja runs passing them, no one can stop his aim. Find Dorselmeyyer.
Durp...Durp...
The silver bang ninja feels that stressed atmosphere again, now from the left of split corridor. He knows where to go. Seems Dorselmeyyer have started The Project...
Mytho faster his steps. A couple of candle light shines a huge blue-Goblin carved- door a few meters ahead. It's a long distance from Plasma, he even didn't hope to find this room. Mytho uncovers his mask and pulls out a golden flute from his waistband.
He plays the .. and .. note, then the flute covered by white musical note, changing into large silver blade with golden wing in his right palm. His finger ready to push the door and enters it full of courage.
Durp...Durp...
Lighter but more depressed atmosphere stops all his movement. Now, the pressure more like broken harp and piano tuts mix with crying lady. It doesn't come from the room ahead. It's far away behind him. Mytho turn his head to the dark corridor, anxiety fills his eyes. Rue...
000~~000
Running on old-almost broken- stairs without making any sound is difficult, but not if you has Lullaby. Just run a few meters up and you'll find it. Another black ninja with blood red eyes knew it well. The depressed atmosphere and soft lady's voice show her the way to Room of Masamoto High School's Great Clock clearly. She pull off her mask, showing white clear diamond face wrapped by thick black hair. A little sweatdrop wet the side of her forehead.
Sexy dead woman singing on black chair with broken voice...
Huge broken clock turned into round bionic-tentacled -creature...
Or...a skeleton playing ALL music instrument at once...!
Somehow...that's making Rue shivers. But, she must ready for everything. She pushes the door, it makes a squeak and opens slowly not as she expects. Her eyes synchronizes the dark condition.
There is nothing except common inner parts of a giant clock ticking. An old lute leans near the biggest gear.
"Hmm...it's easier than we thought..." she mutters to herself, walking to the giant clock's gear. A clot of shadow appears from behind.
Rue observes the machine slowly and suspect the string box. It somehow connect to the clock by dark purple liquid. She knees and touches it. The liquid that seems harden like ice melts on her fingers and turns light red.
It must be the Lullaby. But how does it work? she thinks. Rue pulls out her mechanical tools, taking the knife and trying to separate it.
She doesn't know the shadow is stiched slowly to her feet. Growing, growing and growing, sorrounding her from the back.
Close your eyes,
Hold on tight...
Let me lead you to the beauty light...
She finally realizes the lute sing a lullaby,then she turns back...
000~~000
Debating all the way to the Great Clock, the knight and troublemaker freeze hearing a lullaby from upside the stairs, advanced by a girl's scream.
"It's Rue!" Ahiru exclaims, faster her run to the edge of the tower.
"Damn, it's Lullaby! How's it even worse?" Fakir curses, following the orange haired ninja.
Pushing the door harshly, the source of strings, broken piano and girl's scream and singing lullaby becomes louder, taken back us like a hard wind. I widen my eyes looking at the scenes in Great Clock.
In the center is a lute stuck to the gear, it beats as the song sang. Dark purple gasses filling the air, a teens body lying, stitched to the floor by black red liquid tentacles. Her eyes if filled of fears and tears, forced to open while her mouth gasp for air.
"Rue!" I calls, trying to enter the room but blocked by Fakir. His uniform has changed into that previous battle armor,
"You'll take the same impact if you enter, let me finish this mess!"
I look him unsheats the black sword and slice his own left hand.
"What are you...?!"
Protest caught in my throat as that bloody sword twisted by black fire, changed into shining black metal guitar and the wound healed by black ashes from the fire.
Fakir checks the string, play it and sing.
And - Am...B...E...F...and chord G...
Seems I've ever heard this song. So, he...likes rocks? My astonishing to the new rocker disturbed when I glance back to Rue. Lullaby stops interfering the poor raven haired girl, the lute's beats difficulty. Somehow, The "Time is Running Out" Fakir version works to it! But, those dark red tentacles shift slowly to us...
Fakir! I yell to myself, the tentacle almost reach him! Too afraid for the worst condition, I shut my eyes.
The room trembles because of its loud sound and sharp beat. I encourage myself to open my blue eyes. As the guitarist stops hie performance, Lullaby freezes exactly in front of his forehead. A little bit gore which scoped the room before disappears, like the time has stop.
"So...a knight, a director, a writer and a guitarist, hnn?" I asks suspiciously, get out of my hiding place behind him.
He gives me a "Is that a problem?" looks.
I snap to reality, running to Rue. His guitar backs to its origins, letting the knight break the tentacles from unconscious victim. I drop to my knee, shaking and calling her.
-meanwhile in Rue's mind-
Spinning around, the Great Clock room blurs into bricks path with falling leaves from maple trees every side of the path. I'm a colored character in that sepia scenes.
There's a shape of shadow coming towards me. The closer they come, I can see an old man with round hat holding a tiny bob haired girl, a bucket of lily flower in her tiny hand. My eyes widen, that red sad eyes is mine, only mine.
Then, They pass through me like I'm part of the air. I turn my back, facing a large descent gate with some letters I knew well. Graveyard.
The last thing I see was they bowed, giving the bucket to where I suspect my parents lied, and then the scenes disappears again. Now, I'm in the shadow of a building, moon lights a scene I've repeatedly wanted to forget. I frown, there my 10th self shaking the previous old man, but in unconscious state and bleeding on the quiet dark street.
The scenes twisted and missed to another shot of school's corridor.
It's not a school...it's orphanage.
It's as quite as the graveyard till I hear a sound of soething heavy falling down forcefully, and laughter behind me. Turn back, at the end of the corridor is a group of girl cornered raven haired pity girl. Kicking her, throwing garbage to her, then blaming her for her too kindness, then left her curlling and sobbing on the floor.
But then, in her Grandpa's only inheritance, all is reversed. The abused girl creates the terror for them, two times creepier. Let them bath in their pet's blood, throwing them tarantula and send them bloody letters, just write it and everything happens.
Next day, the group of nun punish for a crime she didn't do directly, separated her in isolated room, but she still can hear the girl's laughter upon her.
It's just illusions, just illusions... I grab my own head, closed my eyes. It's all my memories, my nightmare. Their sinful laughter, their screams, their blames and their cries still echoes in my head. I don't realize warm bloody tears running down my pale cheek.
I'm gonna explode!
Then, a beat of loud music crash it all, stop the storm.
"Hello,there! What are you doing?"
That's voice make me brave to open eyes slightly. It's all like an old movie, black and white.
My old self sit under maple tree, writing another curses in a black notebook.
"What are you writing at all?" a boy's voice makes her glare to her right side. There's a boy kneel beside the other me, his bright eyes look at my note.
"Ah...It's nothing" she closed the notebook, hiding it behind her long black coat.
"Those curses are beauty,Rue. And will be more beauty if you change it to blessing" He says comfortly.
Both of the red eyes look at him, one in wonder where he knows her name, one frowns realizing the meaning of the sentence years later.
The boy stands and walks, then turn back, stare at her.
"Wanna come? I know someone that likes writing and has many curse than you"
Rue knows she is lost in this unfair world. And then there's someone changes her back to its colourful states, burning the cursed book.
Her Prince's name is Mytho Kobayashi
She is here for Mytho, it's not a time for this nightmare.
She snapped open her her, Ahiru sighes as her friend finally wake up and Fakir still busy with the clock gear.
Rue is trying to sit, asks heavily "How's Lullaby?"
"Why are you worried about that? Look at your own self!" Ahiru says in annoyed tone.
"Mission completed, the time has stopped if Dorselmeyyer doesn't activate it again in two hours. It should be calm music from Mytho that tame gloomy music from the Lullaby. However, the soft melody of the kecapi reacted to my harsh rock music. My backup plan work at least from this ruin..." The knight answers, nodding as amazed to his clever self.
Creasing appears on orange hair's forehead "What you called RUIN, exactly?! Don't you start blame us for this..."
"Who says your name at all, hm?! And well, we must move fast. If he's not supposed be here, where is Mytho then?"
"He decided to face Dorselmeyyer himself..." the tired girl replies, trying to stand and helped by Ahiru.
The authors backs to his previous panic states,
"Wh...WHAT?! He already faced him? For the doomed Dorsellmeyyer, it must be me! Why...?!"
"Why you just can complained, huh? Then let's go there A-S-A-P. As you say, we have to move fast!" Ahiru replies his unfinished complain. Then, the girls walk to the outside.
Fakir snorts, following them "F-Y-I, the distance from here to Dorselmeyyer is like the sky to the earth, you moron..."
000~~000
That typical rock music slows the stressed atmosphere. Seems Fakir have joined them. Affirm his intention to fight the King of Raven, Mytho pushes the blue door, revealed a huge blue pale room with stacks of books and papers almost in every inch of it.
Behind the big desk, the waited person turns around his chair, facing the Prince at the other end of his chamber.
"Long time no see, Mytho. What makes you come so long?" he says sarcastically.
000~~000
And...there's the cliffhanger(if it can be said as cliffhanger,duh...) The story is getting serious...Where is my comedy theme anywhere? I even can't comment about it myself. It's not just physic, it's the mental and the his very soul fighting in Mytho! How can Fakir, Ahiru and Rue reach and help in this Beethoven battle ? Sorry for typo or other mistake :)