Once upon a time there was a princess. She had everything she ever wanted, until a malicious wizard kidnapped her. The wizard cursed the princess, transforming her into a swan until she received a kiss from her true love. Sadly, when the princess's wandering prince finally found her many years later, both the prince and the princess herself couldn't see any humanity left in her.


Act 38: The Princess and the Vulture (Part 2)

(((Prologue)))

Ahiru felt herself stop as the colorful action around her started once more.

The great hall was indeed great. Richly gowned figures danced around the huge chamber, their colorful images reflected on the polished floors. The intricately beautiful dome ceiling high above them held the image of a white swan with a gold crown on its head and its wings outstretched resting on a lake with pink water lilies floating on it. Tall windows were shining strips on the marble walls, creating moonlighted spotlights to illuminate some of the dancing nobles.

One of the moon-spotlights illuminated Siegfried dancing with a girl with bright blond hair in a bright green dress and a large dark red bow on the top of her head. From far away, it looked as though the girl was dancing any way she liked, totally ignoring that her movements didn't fit with Siegfried's at all, and fluttering her eyelashes flirtatiously at the uncomfortable prince.

"Ni-chan isn't having fun at all," Odette's voice came from behind Ahiru.

Turning to her left, Ahiru saw Odette and two boys sitting on the sidelines watching everyone else dance. The first of the boys had lightly tanned skin, curly cobalt hair and bright blue eyes, was dressed in Spanish flamenco attire and had a mandolin in his hand. The other, leaning on a pillar with his arms crossed, had darkly tanned skin and semi-long black hair and eyes and was dressed in black Arabian dancer attire.

It was very easy for Ahiru to see the blue-haired and black-haired young men from the lake in the two little boys beside the princess.

"How could he, chibi hime, when he has to dance with Inko?" snorted the blue-haired Spaniard. "I can't stand her! Maybe I should write a song…"

He strummed the strings on his mandolin, singing a sarcastically despondent tune, "Inko, Inko courts guys for money…Inko, Inko, you moron…poor ouji won't choose you, for who ever would? Inko, Inko, Inko…"

Odette bit back a laugh. The Arabian shook his head, but he was smiling too.

"Everyone's foolish when it come to emotions," he reproached quietly. "Don't scorn Inko-san for that, Carmen."

Carmen gave the Arabian a wry smile. "Oh? Are you speaking from experience, Krishna? Do you have a little crush we should know about?"

Krishna's tanned cheeks darkened with a flush, and he seemed to be trying to stop himself from looking in a certain direction. "Not one you should know about, if there is one!"

Ahiru glanced at the area where Krishna had sneaked a peek, to see no one but a boy about Siegfried's age with blond hair and brown eyes and dressed in Russian attire. It was the eagle-winged man from the lake, only younger and without wings.

A little ways away from the blond boy, Ahiru saw a younger version of the gray-haired, orange-eyed man from the lake entering the great hall. A small child's sword lay in its sheath at his side, so it was very probable that he was training to become a knight.

Carmen then chuckled; he'd just caught sight of the gray-haired boy as well.

"All right!" he breathed, smirking broadly as if he were a fox that had just found his prey. "He's finally shown his face!"

Krishna and Odette glanced over as well; Krishna covered his face with his hand in aggravation, and Odette at once spoke to Carmen pleadingly.

"Carmen-kun…not here! This is a royal ball…there are all these people!"

Carmen didn't seem to hear her. His smirk broadened, and he brushed past his friends to sneak around the crowd so that he could move behind the pillar the gray-haired boy had leaned up against.

"Shouldn't we stop him?" Odette asked hesitantly. "Carmen-kun shouldn't be so mean to Li-san…"

Krishna sighed. "I've tried before, and Li only saw me as Carmen's accomplice. One day Li will be so anger-driven, he'll get Carmen back enough so that he'll never do it again. Until then…we'll have to let Carmen be his immature self."

There was a loud shriek like a girl's. Ahiru, along with several of the other dancers, turned to see that Carmen had scared Li with a rubber mouse. Others, like Siegfried and Baltazar, didn't seem to need to turn around: likely this scene between the two preteen boys was very common in the palace.

"CARMEN!" shouted Li, his orange eyes flashing angrily.

Carmen roared with laughter, running away around the great hall to escape the wrath of the steel-haired boy, making Krishna and Odette sweatdrop.

"Man, I was stupid back then," said a voice suddenly besides Ahiru.

The scenery again froze, turning to sepias, and Ahiru looked to her right to find the older, blue-jay-winged Carmen beside her.

He smiled slightly at Ahiru. "Guess it's my turn, chibi hime."

Ahiru felt herself being pulled once more, but it was only a short way away from where she had been before the colors and action returned.

Younger Carmen panted slightly as his head poked out from behind the pillar Krishna and Odette were waiting at; he looked tired and sweaty, but was still smiling.

"I love it when he screams like that!" the Spanish trickster snickered.

"You're hopeless," muttered Krishna, his black eyes narrowed. "I would've thought your mother would've taught you not to pick on people, after all the Gypsy persecution you've been through."

"You want to start something about my mother?" Carmen demanded in a daring sort of voice, getting up in Krishna's face. "Maybe we should talk about yours, Mr. I'm-the-Son-of-a-Snobby-Advisor-Who-Married-Someone-Half-His-Age!"

"Stop it!" moaned Odette, looking very upset.

Carmen and Krishna's anger vanished at Odette's outburst, and guilt wound onto their faces. There was a short silence, before Carmen started to apologize.

"I'm sorry, chibi hime…I forgot that you don't have a…"

Odette shook her head, smiling slightly to tell him she wasn't mad. Almost involuntarily her hand went to her neck as if to fiddle with her locket…but then she realized it wasn't there.

The princess's eyes widened in horror, looking around frantically. "Kaa-chan's locket! I must've dropped it somewhere!"

Carmen and Krishna immediately scrambled to help their friend find it, around the pillars and on the floor around the dancer's feet.

"I can't believe it!" Odette thought out loud, her blue eyes filling up with tears. "Dou-chan gave it to me and everything…and now it's gone!"

"Excuse me," a man suddenly spoke.

Odette, Carmen, Krishna and Ahiru all looked to the source of the voice: a man dressed in a brown cloak. His hood was up so his face was partly in shadow, but his hazel eyes were kind.

"Is this what you are looking for, young one?" he asked Odette, holding up the golden locket dangling on the edge of its golden chain.

Odette's eyes brightened as she took it from him. "Yes! Oh thank you, sir…I thought I lost it! How can I ever repay you?"

The man looked around the great hall, before turning back to Odette with a gentle smile. "Well, it does seem to be a lack of female partners…so perhaps you may do me the honor?"

He raised his arms so they were arched above his head, circled his hands and then held out a hand to the young princess.

'"Will you dance with me?"…' Ahiru translated the gesture at once.

Odette blinked, before smiling innocently and taking the older man's hand.

The two danced an odd pas de deux, but it was quite lovely nonetheless. The music playing, once loud and grand, turned to a gentle lullaby-like tune…the same tune, Ahiru realized, of Odette's music box.

As the middle-aged man and the little princess danced, Ahiru suddenly caught a voice singing strange words to the band's music.

"On the wind, cross the sea…
Hear this song and remember
Soon you'll be home with me

Once upon a December…"

'It's the man,' Ahiru realized. 'He knows the words…'

As the dance stopped, the man gave Odette a smile.

"You remind me so of my dearest friend," he murmured to her. "Your kindness and innocence…do not let them fade, young one."

Odette stared at him, partly confused and partly in awe. "What's your name?"

The man hesitated, before answering very quietly, "My name is Geier."

Odette grinned in return. "I'm Odette! It was nice meeting you, Geier-san!"

And with those words, the little princess ran off into the crowd. Carmen, as well as Ahiru observing, looked at Geier in curiosity, just in time to see his hazel eyes turn red.

Ahiru gasped, but when she looked again, Geier's eyes were hazel again.

'Am I seeing things?' Carmen's voice abruptly rang in her head; his thoughts were playing in her mind since Ahiru was seeing the memory from his perspective.

'No…' Ahiru thought in response, seeing Geier's eyes flash red once more. 'He's being controlled by a raven!'

'I should follow him,' Carmen thought determinedly.

The Spaniard did just that as Geier receded into the corner of the great hall, and Ahiru felt herself glide along after him through the crowd of dancers. The duck-turned-girl quacked inwardly when she actually passed through one of the dancing couples as if she were a ghost, but calmed down a second later.

'Oh yeah, this is just a memory…they're shadows. That's why I can go through them.'

Geier, his eyes now a fierce raven red, looked around at the dancers, until finally his focus rested on Lohengrin as he moved toward Odette, talking to her in a paternal sort of way, and his jaw clenched.

The girl that had been dancing with Siegfried, Inko, had stopped to rest near where Geier was, and peered at him curiously.

"If you're interested in entering the royal family, I'd advise you not to be interested in her," she told him coldly.

"What?" Geier asked, obviously not realizing she had been there.

"Princess Odette," Inko explicated. "She's clumsy and stupid…if you wanted any of your children to court the royal heirs, you'd be better off courting her older brother like I am. Siegfried-sama loves everyone, and he's handsome, brave and smart…a much better catch."

"That girl…is a princess?" Geier inquired, his eyes widening at the sight of Lohengrin and Odette. "But…that would mean that Lohengrin…"

"Prince Lohengrin?" recurred Inko. "I guess if you had a sister or something, you could try and get him…he is a widower. But the baggage might be too much for him…Princess Tutu was quite a treasure…"

Carmen and observer Ahiru could see Geier's fists were clenched and shaking fervidly and his eyes were wide and dangerously red. Inko continued talking about Tutu and Lohengrin, unaware of Geier's pent-up emotions, until Geier finally snapped.

Geier's hand grew raven-like claws in a split second, before the strange man moved it in a single violent movement to slash the girl in half.

Both Ahiru and Carmen screamed.

The music stopped abruptly as the crowd turned in response to Carmen's scream. The guests all reacted similarly at the bloody mess on the floor that had been Inko. Odette's eyes were very wide. Siegfried had rushed over to make her look away. Baltazar and Lohengrin stepped in front of the crowd to face Geier.

"Who are you to bring murder here?" Baltazar demanded threateningly.

To the surprise of everyone, particularly Odette, Krishna and Carmen, Geier chuckled menacingly in response.

"What, you don't recognize me, Baltazar?" he inquired mockingly. "I would've thought I would be hard to forget."

And with a flourish of his cape, two large vulture-like wings were able to peek out on either side of his disguise.

The blond boy the eagle-winged man from the lake had been reacted in angry shock. Lohengrin stiffened, his amber eyes widening in unadulterated terror.

"Geier!" realized Lohengrin, his voice a carrying whisper.

Geier laughed darkly. "I'm glad you remember me, Lohengrin…you should, after almost dying at my hands…but Tutu had to jump in and protect you…well, she's not here now…I will finally have my revenge. Know me not as Geier, however…the only name I hold now is VULTURE!"

With a rapid flourish, he removed his cloak, and as soon as he did, a barrage of ravens shot out from underneath it. The observers went into total chaos, running every which way to escape the ravens' onslaught. Bodies fell, blood spurting everywhere, as the ravens searched for hearts to eat; those who died, Ahiru knew, didn't have a pure enough heart for them to feast on.

"I'll start my memories now," the hawk-winged Li spoke from beside Ahiru as the scene froze for a moment. "Hime…forgive me…for failing you."

Ahiru abruptly found herself beside the younger Li as he fought some ravens off with his small sword.

Suddenly Ahiru and he in unison caught sight of Siegfried and Odette running for the front entrance, only to be blocked by Vulture.

"Hime! Ouji!" he shouted, rushing to their side.

The young knight hadn't noticed a raven coming up behind him.

"Look out!" Ahiru screamed to the younger Li, forgetting he couldn't hear her.

Fortunately Carmen had jumped out of nowhere and had slammed the raven with his mandolin, making it burst into light particles.

Li turned to see Carmen and Krishna joining him to stand protectively in front of Siegfried and Odette.

"You okay, Li?" Carmen asked him, actually looking concerned.

"Uh…yeah," Li answered, taken aback. "Thanks."

"Hime, ouji," Krishna stated seriously, brandishing a tall candlestick holder that had been on the side of the great hall at Vulture and the ravens as a weapon, "run and find Prince Lohengrin! We'll fight this jerk off!"

"Krishna-kun-" Odette tried to argue, but Siegfried nodded and pulled her away.

"No!" Vulture hissed vehemently.

Krishna leapt at the wizard, waving the large candelabrum as if it were a baton. But with a single movement, Vulture's fist collided with his head, knocking him out. Carmen tried to hit him with his mandolin in retaliation, but he also was grabbed and knocked him unconscious.

"Carmen!" cried Li.

His thin orange eyes filled with anger, before he charged at Vulture with his sword unsheathed, crying an amateur battle cry. But he only met the same fate as the other two; Vulture broke his sword in two and then knocked him out as well.

The scenery turned to sepias as the eagle-winged man appeared beside Ahiru.

"It seems I'm last, then," he murmured solemnly.

Ahiru shifted so that she was beside the blond boy the eagle-winged man had once been running along the edge of the great hall, slashing at ravens with his own sword until he made it into the entrance hall.

Siegfried and Odette had found Lohengrin, but Lohengrin seemed to be unarmed as the three rushed up the grand staircase, likely so Lohengrin could grab his own weapon. Vulture had defeated Krishna, Carmen and Li and was now flying at the prince and his children, his hands' claws outstretched.

"You can't run from me, Lohengrin!" he taunted.

Brown eyes narrowing dangerously, the blond boy jumped onto the stair banister and shot up it so fast that he was able to run up it to the top. He leapt in front of Lohengrin, Odette and Siegfried and swung his sword in a slashing movement at Vulture. Vulture cried out in pain as the metal collided with skin.

"Prometheus!" Siegfried breathed in relief.

Prometheus glanced back at Siegfried. "Siegfried-kun…I'm glad you and Odette are safe."

He then eyed Lohengrin seriously. "Lohengrin-sama…hurry and get out of here! I'll get Vulture…I swear on my mother's grave, I will!"

With a vengeful cry, Prometheus again slashed at Vulture, but Vulture was ready this time, and dodged him with ease. Lohengrin and the two royal children again ran, as Prometheus tried protecting their escape.

"Your mother, hmm?" Vulture scorned. "Ah yes, the lady Dachou…I can see her in you…a naïve fool!

Prometheus's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Ki-sama!"

He shot his sword toward Vulture once more, but this time Vulture caught the sword in its movement, before he kicked Prometheus in the stomach and slammed the sword's hilt into the back of his head.

The scenery began to blur as Prometheus's vision faded, until the blond finally fell unconscious.

Yet the scenery didn't fade.

Ahiru stood in the darkness, her blue eyes wide and her mouth slightly open.

'This memory isn't over…I remember what happened next.'

At last Lohengrin seized his sword: the straight-hilted sword that Charon would later acquire for his shop and then pass onto Fakir to fight with in The Prince and the Raven.

"Siegfried! Odette!" he shouted as Vulture once again approached them. "Get behind me!"

Siegfried did so, as he had been closer to Lohengrin: Odette ran to move behind him as well, but before she could, Vulture snatched her up in one of his claws.

"Dou-chan!" Odette screamed. "Ni-chan!"

"Odette!" both Lohengrin and Siegfried shouted.

His amber eyes flaring furiously, Lohengrin charged at Vulture, lashing at him with his sword. No matter what move he made, however, the knight-turned-prince couldn't seem to hit Vulture.

"You pitiful knight!" roared Vulture. "You can't fight without words…no wonder Tutu died! You couldn't have protected her if you tried! Hell…you can't even protect yourself!"

A raven flew out of nowhere, claws outstretched…there was a flash of deadly red light, a life-ending cry of pain, a terrified scream of a little girl…and the scenery finally blacked out.

Ahiru stared at the blackness, her eyes wet with tears of resurfacing grief.

'Dou-chan…ni-chan…'


I'm afraid that is all for today. Is a fun story awaiting us? A sad story? Or maybe…?


Translation Notes:

Kaa-chan - Japanese for "mommy"

Ki-sama - a very disrespectful Japanese version of "you": generally translated into English as "you bastard"

Name Notes:

Inko - Japanese for "parakeet"

Carmen - Latin for "song"; common Spanish name

Krishna - Sanskrit for "black" or "dark"; name of a Hindu god who was an incarnation of Vishnu and killed the king who had murdered his six older siblings

Li - Chinese for "strength" or "sharp"

Geier - German for "vulture"

Prometheus - Greek for "foresight"; name of a Greek Titan who gave men fire and was chained to a rock by Zeus so an eagle could feast on his liver

Dachou - Japanese for "ostrich"

Music Notes:

"Prologue": starts as the chapter begins where it left off last chapter (the crescendo at 0:55), and then stops for the movement to Odette, Carmen and Krishna's actions at 1:20. The music starts again at 1:27 when Odette realizes her locket is missing, with Geier appearing at 1:33 and their dance beginning at 1:47. Geier sings "Once Upon a December" just when the Grand Duchess Marie and Anastasia do on the track. Odette says goodbye to Geier at 2:34, and Geier's eyes flash red at 2:38 and again at 2:43. Geier slashes Inko in half at 3:36. Geier reveals his wings at 3:55, and the ravens are released at the choral crescendo at 4:20. Carmen whacks the raven with his mandolin at 4:38, and Krishna and Carmen are captured at 4:47 and 4:48. Li is captured at 4:57, and pauses before coming back when Vulture and Prometheus start fighting. Odette is captured at 5:38, the scenery blacks out at 5:50 and Ahiru thinks her last sad thoughts as the music ends.

The piece "Prologue" and the song "Once Upon a December" is from the "Anastasia" soundtrack.