Once upon a time there was a young man who started to write a story. This writer had, in another man's story, been a knight whose fate was to die without aiding his prince. But by combining his power with a duck, the writer gave the prince, his princess and the town they lived in a happy ending. The writer and the duck ended the prince's tale happily, and then proceeded to finish the tales of others happily as well. Could they finish any and every tale happily…even their own?


Act 44: Aftermath

(((Transformation)))

Back in the castle at Musouka Lake, Demi, Rue and the other observers were forced to shield their eyes as the limp body of Vulture suddenly was engulfed in a hot, brilliant light. Mytho tried squinting to see through the dazzling magic, desperate for some sign of hope that his knight and sister were safe.

When the white light at last faded, two bodies lay on top of each other beside Vulture's: a dark-green-haired writer with his arms wrapped protectively around a yellow-winged, red-haired princess.

"Fakir-san!"

"Hime!"

Fakir's eyes blinked open slowly, taking in the sight of Ahiru under him. With Mytho's help, he struggled to sit up.

"Ahiru," he whispered, touching her face gently. "Ahiru?"

Slowly Ahiru opened her eyes as well, blinking up at him in confusion and weariness. "F-Fakir…?"

She glanced past him to see Mytho and the others. "Ni-chan…Rue-chan…"

"Thank goodness you're safe," breathed Krishna in immense relief. "We thought that Vulture-"

Ahiru's eyes suddenly widened. "Geier-san…"

She and Fakir shot their heads around in unison to look at the body of the wizard behind them. Ahiru immediately started gently shaking him.

"Geier-san? Geier-san?"

Her only response was the wizard's body glowing with purple light, before the light flowed out of the body to rest above it in the form of a see-through man with long dirty blond hair, hazel eyes and light brown vulture wings.

"Vulture's soul," Li realized.

"Geier-san," Ahiru murmured. "I-I don't understand…why are you…?"

Geier gave a small smile. "Little princess…my heart is much too rotted by the raven's influence for it to stand any longer. Fortunately I destroyed the raven, and that guaranteed our escape before my heart collapsed."

Ahiru's eyes widened, filling up with horrified tears. "But…doesn't that mean-?"

"I'll die?" Geier finished for her. "Yes…and I'm glad. Within that heart so destroyed by the raven, I was not living, in this life or the next. I was lingering between the two…helpless and worthless…and I would've been forever were it not for you, Odette-chan. So please don't cry."

For Ahiru had indeed begun to cry, even though she knew full well that Baltazar had told her and her companions that this would happen.

"I-I know I shouldn't be crying!" Ahiru cried weakly. "N-n-now that you can…rest in peace, but…I just can't stop!"

Mytho gave her a comforting hug. Fakir held onto her hand in tight reassurance.

Geier's face grew sad. "You have such a large heart…you would even cry for the one who ruined your life and destroyed your home. I don't think I shall ever be able to make amends for the wrongs I've handed you and your brother."

Mytho's eyes lay on Geier for a very long time, before he stated reassuringly, "Do not blame yourself. I know how a raven can poison one's heart…you didn't know what you were doing."

Geier gave the prince a grateful smile.

"I…I can see her in you," he murmured vaguely, glancing at each of the royal children. "Both of you…it's as if your kindness is coming from Tutu herself…though I know she could never forgive me after what I did to Cygnus…to Lohengrin…"

Ahiru suddenly felt the presence of a hand on her shoulder, and she turned to see Tutu had also moved from her host and was hovering behind her in a transparent form.

"Tutu," Geier breathed in disbelief, as if wondering if she was a hallucination.

Mytho, Prometheus and Rue also looked amazed. Tutu gave Geier a smile, before she moved forward past Ahiru and gently placed a transparent hand on top of one of his.

"I have already forgiven you, my friend," she told the wizard gently.

Geier's hazel eyes were overflowing with tears. "Tutu…"

The two friends shared a regretful, warm embrace. Then Tutu turned to Ahiru.

"You did it, Odette," she stated, her blue eyes full of both pride and seriousness, "even without my help…now I must leave as well."

Ahiru looked speechless. "But…Kaa-chan…"

"The connection was fragile to begin with," Tutu explained. "Death is meant for the dead, and life is meant for the living. Your grandpa's magic can only last so long…and as the magic's and my purpose was to help you, I can see both the magic and my mission is to be finished. You no longer need my help…so I must return to the next life."

Mytho and Ahiru both looked ready to say something, but a golden light suddenly shone above the two souls, making the group look up.

"Baltazar's calling us," Tutu commented lightly.

Geier gave her a wry smile. "He always was the one to thrust us back into reality when we least wanted it."

The wizard looked at the group once more. "He'll have to wait, though…there's one more thing I have to take care of…"

With those words, Geier spread his wings grandly and stretched out his arms, before his chest began to glow with purple magic that flowed through his limbs until he was completely bathed in purple light.

Then, abruptly, Ahiru began to shine a bright yellow that made Fakir and Mytho beside her shield their eyes. One by one, the other four under the Curse of Wings also began to glow: Prometheus was bathed in red, Krishna green, Carmen blue and Li orange.

The four men and Ahiru involuntarily floated into the air, closing their eyes and aligning themselves in a circle around Geier as if in a trance. The circle of teenagers then were rotated around the wizard, faster and faster, as the lights around them glowed brighter and brighter.

Transparent forms of birds were slowly pulled out of Ahiru, Prometheus, Krishna, Carmen and Li's backs, each glowing with their respective colored magic, until they were floating behind their hosts, wings outstretched.

Geier glanced at each victim of his curse in turn, he closed his eyes determinedly, and he raised a magic-shining hand in a sharp brandishing gesture in Carmen and Li's direction.

The instant he made that gesture toward them, the bluebird behind Carmen and the hawk behind Li shattered into blue and orange magic, taking the two's wings along with them as they gently dropped to the ground.

Another brandish of Geier's hand banished the wings, eagle and blackbird of Prometheus and Krishna, leaving them to also fall beside Carmen and Li amongst the red and green shards of their see-through bird forms.

Finally, with one more hot purple-blazing gesture, Geier propelled his hand toward Ahiru, thrusting her image of a duck and her yellow wings into oblivion, before the princess likewise drifted back down to earth. Fakir ran forward to catch Ahiru before she touched the ground.

Prometheus, Krishna, Carmen and Li each shifted, opening their eyes and sitting up. At first they didn't seem to notice anything had happened.

Then Krishna made a choking noise in the back of his throat. "Prometheus!"

The Arabian reached hesitantly to touch Prometheus's back where his eagle wings had once been and no longer were.

"Your…your wings…"

Carmen and Li noticed it as well, reacting in similar shock to Krishna.

Prometheus looked speechless; he also felt his back for his wings as if praying silently that he wasn't dreaming.

At the realization that he wasn't, the Russian looked at Krishna, who looked at Li, who looked at Carmen. All of their faces shone with disbelief.

Then, completely out of nowhere, Carmen practically pounced on Li, screaming and cheering in passionate excitement.

"WE'RE FREE! FREE! WE'RE FINALLY…FINALLY…!"

"Get off me, you idiot!" Li snapped, blushing very red and trying to shove the ecstatic Spaniard off of him.

Krishna laughed, before Prometheus surprised him by also wrapping his arms around him in a hug and twirling him around, crying out in enthusiasm.

They were finally free.

Ahiru's blue eyes blinked open, to see Fakir leaning over her. She gave the writer a smile, which Fakir easily returned out of relief.

"I suppose it's now the time for farewell."

The two looked up at Geier and Tutu who everyone but they and Mytho seemed to have forgotten were still there. Fakir thought, however, that perhaps the spirits had decided to block themselves from view to everyone but the ones they wanted to say final words to before departing.

"Thank you, Fakir, Odette," Geier murmured. "Thank you for saving me."

Tutu looked at Fakir seriously. "Fakir…I want you to promise that you'll protect Siegfried and Odette for me."

Fakir blinked in slight surprise. He glanced at both Mytho and Ahiru, and he smiled at the white-haired prima donna.

"I promise."

Tutu smiled. "I trust you…I know your word is as steadfast as Lohengrin's."

She then looked to Mytho and Ahiru. "Take care of yourselves…and know that I'm very proud of you."

Mytho's eyes filled up with tears that he resolutely kept from falling down his face. "Thank you, Kaa-san."

And with that, Geier took Tutu by the hand, and the two friends flew into the golden light in the sky. The light seemed to swell for a moment, before it disappeared without a trace.

It all became too much for Ahiru. She buried her face into Fakir's chest and began to cry.

The writer wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. "Ahiru…"

Ahiru choked, trying to speak through her crying. "W-why did they both have to go? Why couldn't they…?"

"They don't belong in this world," Fakir answered quietly, stroking his fingers through her hair, which seemed to have come out of her bun sometime during the battle inside Geier's heart. "If Tutu and Geier stayed, they'd be like the Ghost Knight if they stayed, without purpose and without any sort of peace." Ahiru looked up at him as he brushed away her tears. "So don't cry for them, baka. They're in a better place now."

Ahiru sniffed and gave him a sad but grateful smile. "Thanks, Fakir…"

Rue and Demi both moved to Ahiru and gave her a friendly two-way hug.

"So are you free now, Ahiru-san?" Helios inquired.

"Yeah…" Ahiru assented vaguely, "…we are all free, aren't we?"

Prometheus nodded amusedly. "Yes…and now we can finally leave this place."

"And go where?"

The group turned to Krishna, who seemed to have lost his enthusiasm at Prometheus's words.

"Cygnus is destroyed," the once-blackbird explicated sadly, "and our families are dead…where are we supposed to go?"

There was a silence. Then Mytho said,

"Rue and I went to Cygnus to scope out the damage in the hopes that we could rebuild it and expand our kingdom into it. You should know I would be more than happy to give you a home, as well as everything else you might need."

Li's eyes widened. "Ouji, you don't mean…"

Mytho nodded. "Come back with Rue and me…and be part of my royal court."

Rue nodded in agreement. "We would be honored to have you."

The once-cursed men looked amazed.

"Siegfried-kun…" Prometheus whispered in disbelief.

Then the four all practically tackled Mytho in unison, laughing and thanking him and mussing up his hair.


Helios and Demi's horse-drawn carriage rode off into the portal back to Theia and Rue and Mytho's swan carriage flew off into the portal to Cygnus with Prometheus, Krishna, Li and Carmen walking through after it.

Fakir then turned to Ahiru seriously. "Ahiru…are you sure you want to stay?"

Ahiru blinked at him in confusion. "Of course I do."

Fakir looked down, a bit guilty and worried. "I wouldn't want to separate you from Mytho…I understand if you want to go back with him and Rue to Cygnus…after all, it was your home-"

"It was," Ahiru assented quietly.

There was a pause in which Fakir wondered if Ahiru had changed her mind.

"But…" Ahiru continued after a moment, "it's not anymore. I have a life here…with you in Kinkan Town."

Fakir stared at her, and she took his silence as a cue to continue.

"You promised me, in the Lake of Despair…that you'd always be by my side…what kind of person would I be not to return the promise? After everything we've been through…Fakir, you've become so important…enough to make me-"

Ahiru broke off, scared to finish.

'Enough to make me love you…'

Fakir's eyes darkened. "What?"

Ahiru tried to cover her abrupt silence. "I-I just mean that you-"

"You're afraid to say it," Fakir interrupted her sharply.

"Huh?"

"You're afraid to say that you love me," Fakir repeated, his voice growing a dangerous tone that made Ahiru feel nervous.

"N-no!" Ahiru tried to dissent. "I-I just don't-"

"You think after all the crap we've been through that I would let you disappear?" Fakir demanded, his eyes flashing. "You think after losing you once I would ever let anything happen to you again?"

"That's not it!" Ahiru argued.

They held eye contact for a few moments. Finally Fakir spoke again, more calmly, but his eyes were still flaring passionately.

"Princess Tutu was fated to vanish…but didn't you just prove to everyone that you're not her? You did one thing she never could…save me and Geier from that raven."

He moved his face closer to hers, making it impossible for her to look away.

"I will never let you disappear. I will write myself a million different deaths before I let you disappear."

His words, although still filled with some anger and a bit of desperation, nonetheless gave Ahiru courage. She took a deep, deep breath and prepared herself to choke out a whispered,

"I love you."

There was a long, long silence. At the end of it, nothing had happened.

"Was that so hard?" Fakir asked her quietly.

Ahiru relaxed, still a bit disbelieving. As if trying to make sure she wasn't dreaming, she repeated her statement, but a little louder.

"I love you."

Fakir tried to bite back a grin, but it proved difficult when Ahiru kept repeating her words louder and louder and with more excitement.

"I love you! I love you!"

"Baka," Fakir scorned amusedly.

"I LOVE YOU!"

The writer pulled the princess into his arms, twirling her around as she laughed out of pure relief and happiness, before he held her close.

"I love you too, baka," he laughed.

Ahiru gave him an odd look.

"What?" Fakir asked her, looking defensive.

"Nothing, it's just…I've never heard you laugh before," Ahiru pointed out, looking sheepish. "It's nice."

Fakir blinked, before he snorted in a mixture of amazement and scorn.

"Baka."


Drosslemeyer was not happy as he watched the romantic scene between Ahiru and Fakir in one of his gears.

"You must be joking…such a wonderful tragedy has be ruined like this? Oh, how dreadfully happy…"

Uzura, however, looked like it was her birthday. "Oh! Ahiru found her prince-zura! Fakir's Ahiru's lovey-dovey-zura!"

Suddenly a little boy with dark skin and yellow-green eyes peeked his head out from behind one of the gears in the gap of time, looking around curiously.

"Where am I?" Hato thought out loud, before calling, "Daddy? Where'd you go?"

With her interested little chirp of an "Ohhhh", Uzura leapt over a few of the gears to meet the stranger.

"Who are you-zura?"

"I'm Hato," the little boy introduced himself. "I was following Daddy around the prince's creepy old home, but somehow I got here. What is this place, anyway?"

"It's the inside of the story-zura," Uzura answered.

"Story? I like stories," Hato said cheerfully. "What's your name?"

"I'm Uzura-zura," the little puppet told him.

"Will you be my friend, Uzura Zura?" Hato asked, trying to be polite and obviously thinking "Zura" was part of Uzura's name.

"What's a friend-zura?" Uzura inquired curiously.

"It's, um…" Hato pondered how to explain the word for a moment, before at last responding with, "It's being friendly with."

"Oh," Uzura murmured.

She then grinned a very wide, happy grin and began beating her drum excitedly. "Hooray! I've got a friendly-zura!"

The two children began laughing and fooling around inside the story, which clearly irritated the old storyteller still sitting in his armchair.

"Oh no, now I've got two little brats running around inside my story and ruining things! If I really am in someone else's story, that person must really hate me…"

He stood up from his chair, his hands in his pockets, as he started to walk further into the gap in time.

"I'm getting sick of these happy endings…but I'm sure there must be some tragedy elsewhere to entertain me!"

Hato peered at the departing Drosslemeyer. "Who's he?"

"He's Drosslemeyer-zura," Uzura told him. "Let's follow him-zura!"

Hato laughed. "Sure!"

And so the children eagerly rushed after the storyteller. The three figures, one large and two small, moved further into the shadows of the gears amongst Uzura and Hato's cheerful laughter until they were finally out of sight.


A few days later, Fakir and Ahiru sat at their usual spots by the lake just as they had many times before. Ahiru had taken her shoes off at the dock and was wading her feet in the water, as Fakir bit the tip of his quill, which was hovering over a piece of paper as if poised to write.

"Damn it, I can't figure out how to end it!" Fakir snapped suddenly.

Ahiru looked at him curiously. "How to end what?"

"Our story," Fakir answered impatiently. "I can't just say 'the princess and knight lived happily together for the rest of their lives,' that's way too simple, and I wouldn't want to chain you to me were something bad to happen. We don't know where the story will go from here…what if I write something that I regret?"

Ahiru pulled her feet out of the water and got to her feet so that she could look over his shoulder at the page. It was headed with a fancy title of The Duck with the Heart of a Girl, and it broke off right after "the writer and princess returned to the town of Kinkan."

Ahiru frowned thoughtfully. "How about…"

She lay her hand on top of Fakir's still holding onto his quill, and Fakir looked at her in a mixture of surprise and confusion as she began to move his hand to write words on the page. His focus then moved to the page to read each new word they wrote together.


Together, the knight who became a writer and the duck who became a princess completed many more stories, both for themselves and others, and created many more happy endings. To the town they lived in, as well as everyone who met them, their life was a beautiful pas de deux that any normal person would dream of. They danced that pas de deux for the rest of their lives: a pas de deux of hope, happiness and love.


Fakir's face slowly broke out into a smile.

"Nice," he complimented lightly. "I should have you write with me more often."

When Ahiru turned to smile back at him, she suddenly felt Fakir's arm wrap around her waist and pull her to him. Ahiru lost balance and felt herself fall, before she found her lips rest on top of Fakir's.

Fakir smirked wryly into the kiss although his eyes were closed, and wrapped his other arm around her so that his hand could bury itself in her red hair.

His lips against hers were gentle, but they still held firmness and confidence that was very much like Fakir. The kiss itself seemed a simple gesture, but the emotions and warmth that invoked in Ahiru's heart made it the most special gesture she had ever known.

After a moment, Ahiru closed her eyes as well and kissed Fakir back.


Once upon a time there was a young man who started to write a story. The previous story he had written was one of himself and the princess that he loved, and it had a happy ending, even though as the tale unraveled that ending seemed impossible. The two lovers, true to the words the princess helped the young story spinner write, did indeed finish many more stories, always together, and gave many others happy endings. They fought alongside their allies, the swan prince, the raven princess and the rest, against common foes and helped retain peace in their kingdoms. The writer got the ending he desired for his and his princess's story…but that ending only just created a new beginning.
Music Notes:

"Transformation": starts when Ahiru's eyes blink open, with Geier's soul floating out of his body at 0:13. The music pauses at 0:15 for Ahiru and Geier's first exchange, and returns when Ahiru asks, "B-but…doesn't that mean…?" The music then pauses again at 0:46 before Geier starts his "You have such a kind heart," chain of speech, and returns after Tutu tells Geier she has forgiven him. Tutu and Geier's hug is at 0:52, Tutu starts speaking to Ahiru at 0:56, the gold light shines at 1:23 and Geier spreads his wings at 1:32. Ahiru glows yellow at 1:46, and Prometheus, Krishna, Carmen and Li glow after her at the four beats from 1:49 to 1:50. At 1:54, the four move into the circle around Geier and start spinning at 2:02. Geier brandishes his hand at Li and Carmen at 2:30, Krishna and Prometheus at 2:37 and finally Ahiru at 2:52. Krishna chokes at 3:03, Carmen jumps on Li at 3:29 and Prometheus grabs Krishna and twirls him around at 3:39. The music pauses at 3:51 as Fakir, Mytho and Ahiru turn to Tutu and Geier, and the music returns for Tutu's "I trust you" chain of speech to Fakir. Geier takes Tutu's hand at 3:59, and they fly into the light before it vanishes at 4:08. The music ends at 4:24 after Ahiru smiles gratefully at Fakir.

"Only the Beginning of the Adventure": starts right after "Transformation" ends, with Rue and Demi hugging Ahiru. Helios asks, "So are you free now, Ahiru-san?" at 0:06, and Krishna says, "And go where?" at 0:17. Mytho starts speaking at 0:22, and he finishes, "…and be part of my royal court," at 0:38. The music ends at 0:45 right before the four hug Mytho.

"Evacuating London": plays for Ahiru and Fakir's scene by the lake. Fakir first speaks at 0:10 and Ahiru takes hold of Fakir's hand at 0:39. They slowly create the ending together from 0:40 until 1:30. Ahiru starts to fall at 0:40, moving almost in slow motion, until she and Fakir kiss at 0:42. Ahiru kisses back and the narrator starts speaking as the vocalist first sings at 1:53, and the music fades out slowly until it finally ends in tandem with the narrator's tale at 2:37.

The piece "Transformation" is from the "Beauty and the Beast" original motion picture soundtrack.

The pieces "Only the Beginning of the Adventure" and "Evacuating London" arefrom "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" soundtrack.