Chapter 3: The Village of Bonbon

As she approached the old wooden building, she heard the familiar welcoming sounds of progress. The sound of many gears ticking and turning, powering the machinery woven within.

Upon the door hung a simple sign – "Drosselmeyer, Toymaker and Inventor."

She pressed open the door and at once an exuberant singing voice reached her ears.

"I've come from the distant past to deliver a smile to this age. Come, become heady with this magical singing voice!"

That voice had played in her mind a thousand times as she walked the stars and scried at the heavens. It was not normally the place of one of her kind to descend so frequently, let alone for a single mortal. She'd been warned of the risks. But this particular mortal possessed some unusual quality that tempted her to continually depart her astral home for one short meeting after another.

"Everyone gets hurt at one point, although they wish for happiness… Today you are living again in search of a true smile!"

To her left stood a wall of clockwork dolls, starting from the simplest of toys and scaling up in size and complexity. He was never happy when he finished one toy – he was already thinking of his next creation. A thirst for knowledge and craft that she'd never seen, certainly not in any of the others from The World Beyond. Was it that which compelled her interest? The idea of someone making an impact with such machinery and workmanship?

"There are nights when tears overflow, there are days when you lose sight of yourself… At those times, come here, I'll sing for you!"

But she'd seen such machinery, turned for evil. She'd seen it in The World Beyond. Those were men who sought to control the world with their clockwork marvels. A mere work ethic never captured her attention before.

Yet this man wore a smile on his face as he strove for ever greater and more joyful creations, every part of his being animated by his endless quest. A clockwork cat marched across the workshop, chasing a toy mouse. A train track weaved its way along the walls above their heads, and even the train cars were filled with smiling clockwork people.

"I've come from the distant past to deliver a smile to this world. Come, we'll hold hands and become one!"

Finally she found the toymaker himself, the man who fashioned himself "Drosselmeyer." A false name, but to him it was a sign of his new persona after she plucked him from the snow and brought him here. His purple hair, tied in a luxurious ponytail, hung down his back over his long purple coat as he tightened the screws on a gigantic toy soldier, dressed in a white shirt, blue sash, and black pants.

"Now, I thought you only built machines for peace, toymaker."

He turned to face her with a radiant smile upon his face. "Ah, Sugar Plum! I was hoping you'd come calling today."

Of course he'd gone and given her a name as well. From any other mortal, such an informal name might have sounded condescending. Yet in his soft tones, it only seemed to convey the joy he felt every time he saw her.

He patted his new invention's shoulder with a white gloved hand. "This fellow here is harmless. I'm not building him to fight… I received a request from the Marzipan Court themselves! They were looking for something to spice up their Christmas Parade."

Hence the soldier's uniform – an infantryman. "Once I know he can march in the formations I want, I'm looking to see if he can play some instruments! I'd like to have enough ready to build a nice little marching band!"

The soldier's face remained yet unformed, a mess of gears and a cage-like casing.

"But this dear fellow isn't why I hoped you'd come calling…"

She quirked an eyebrow as the toymaker walked across his shop to his workbench. He pried open the drawer, then turned to her with a sly look. "Close your eyes and hold out your hands."

"You're giving a fairy commands?" she asked sternly.

He laughed. "It's just… it's a surprise."

Against her better judgement, she closed her eyes. She heard his footsteps approach and the familiar sound of a key being wound. She felt him press a small metal object into her gloved hands, hearing the constant tick-tock of a small clockwork mechanism.

"Take a look."

She opened her eyes. There sat the strangest thing she'd seen him make yet – a small, heart-shaped toy. The casing was crafted of from a golden color, light decorative patterns etched into its surface. A small window in the center providing a glimpse at its ever-turning clockwork gears.

"What a curious offering you give me."

He seemed a little disappointed. "That makes it sound so impersonal…" he coughed, "I… ah, well, I still want you to have it. So when you're up in those lonely heavens, with only the stars to keep you company, you can still remember there's someone down here thinking of you. I even modified it using the stardust you brought so… it won't stop ticking now that its wound."

She placed the clockwork heart within her white coat. Her own heart was beating peculiarly fast. Was she getting sick?

"Thank you… 'Drosselmeyer.' I shall keep it close."

Miku felt the aching in her arm return – it hadn't been so difficult when she and Kaito were simply walking around, but once she'd used it in a fight, the bruised skin seemed to burn like fire. Unlike her mother, Miku knew little of medical treatment, so she refused to take the bandage off and check lest she not be able to wrap it a second time.

This she concealed from Kaito – though his happy mood had returned, she'd already learned that he felt himself responsible for all her current woes. But Miku couldn't help but feel sorry for him – he seemed so kind and innocent, she couldn't imagine someone so brave and selfless having committed some horrible act against the mice to deserve such unrelenting and cruel vengeance.

And given her current predicament, unable to return to her friends and family… she already knew what these creatures were capable of when upset for even a moment.

'I never would have thought of mice being so cruel…' she thought to herself, 'I knew I should have had a real cat.'

It wasn't long before the most peculiar town Miku had ever laid eyes on was within walking distance. It was as though someone had built an entire village out of toys – wild colors, rounded pillars, and thick blocks. She couldn't help but be charmed by it as she approached and saw some of the people out and about. Every one of them appeared as artificial as Kaito, though some of varying shapes and types – yarn hair and button eyes, visible and colorful stitching, ball joints articulating with their steps. Every material she could think of – wood, metal, fabric, porcelain it was all there.

"I guess I can see why it's 'The Land of Dolls and Sweets…" Miku observed as she studied the patterns on the buildings mirrored those of candy, "Kaito, those houses aren't REALLY made of candy, are they?"

Kaito laughed at the idea. "Of course not! It's just normal paint! The candy would fall apart in the first snow. But there ARE plenty of places where you can get candy for decorating your house…"

She saw a sign hanging over a wooden gate that read "Bonbon Village", the font bubbled out like every letter was a piece of chocolate. Being surrounded by the image of food made Miku's stomach growl – she'd lost track of how long she'd been wandering with Kaito. 'Ah… by now my mother must be frantic… she would have woken me for breakfast by now.'

She tried to banish the negative thought. She'd get this problem solved and then head straight home. Though she was certain not a soul would believe her when she returned.

But as Miku walked along the powdered streets (which she was fairly certain was just powdered with snow), she began to notice the dolls behaving oddly around her… and shooting Kaito some very strange looks.

Not that he noticed, his smile broader than ever. "There's so many nice places here… you said to stop shivering you just need a jacket, right? Maybe someone will give us one!"

"Ah… Kaito, that's not how that normally works…" Miku said with a blush. Sure this was a strange world, but many of the buildings were clearly shops… and Miku realized she had no money to use in this odd world.

"Oh yea… I don't have any Chokodil coins on me right now… well, I'm sure we'll come up with something!" He shouted optimistically, "Maybe I can do some odd jobs or something…"

Miku tugged her nightgown tighter around her. It was a wonder she hadn't frozen to death in this garment yet – thank goodness it was so thick. And to think she'd insisted her mother was over worried to purchase such a thick and multi-layered piece of sleepwear.

Finally the strange looks began to get to Miku just enough that she leaned in closer to Kaito. "Kaito, is it just me or are there no other humans here?"

Kaito started to laugh again, enough to make Miku self-conscious over knowing so little. "Of course not, this is a doll village! Humans live much closer to the city!"

That didn't sound pleasant. "Are you telling me that… humans and dolls don't like each other?"

Kaito started to knock one of his wooden fingers on his head. "W…well, I just remember that dolls are supposed to live apart from the humans unless they're working for them. Like, as hard labor or for soldiers. The kingdom takes care of them though, they're always compensated!"

'He's awfully charitable to a group of people that would have him nowhere near them!' Miku thought to herself.

That's when she started to realize a problem with their current plan of action. "Wait, does that mean we might not be able to get into the castle together!?"

Kaito ran a hand along his chin. "Ummm… maybe? Oh! We could send word to Drosselmeyer and he'd help us out! Ah, or because I might have been a soldier, there's probably barracks or something I'd be using! S-so I'm sure it will still work!"

As Kaito kept trying to devise a new plan on the spot, Miku watched a toy bird fly through the air – the clockwork mechanism visible. Yet she was impressed the toy could still become airborne – surely all those parts would make it too heavy? It's flight pattern made her recall a goldfinch. 'So even the animals can be toys too… that makes sense…'

Around that moment, Miku's stomach let out another low empty growl. "AH! Miku, why are you growling like that?!"

The girl's face turned beet red with embarrassment. "I'm just… hungry… Kaito…."

She began to look around for any sign of food. Did dolls even need to eat, magic or not?

That's when she saw it – a little blonde boy running through the streets in hot pursuit of the clockwork bird.

A human boy, in a navy blue sailor's coat, long black pants, and a little white cap bouncing around with his every frantic movement.

"James, come back! James!"

He began to hop as he stared up at a tall, snow covered tree. "Ah… not again…" he muttered, "And Papa's not going to be back for an hour."

Before Miku could say anything, Kaito was at the boys' side in a flash. "What happened?" he asked with a helpful smile.

The boy crossed his arms and puffed out his cheeks. "James hasn't been working right since the toymaker left… he keeps flying up the trees where I can't get to him. Only Papa's tall enough to reach him!"

Kaito stood up to his full height – as a nutcracker, he was a rather tall toy himself. "How about I climb up there and grab him? Will he fly away?"

The boy shook his head. "I don't think so…"

"Then I'll get him in a jiffy!" Kaito volunteered. He clambered up the trunk, looking quite ridiculous all splayed out amongst the branches. Miku couldn't imagine this was easy – even though she knew his limbs had ball joints instead of being perfectly rigid, he still clearly had trouble being as nimble as a human with his body made out of such an inflexible material as wood. Yet in a few moments, Kaito was able to grasp the toy bird with his wooden fingers, though it appeared to take him several tries to properly close his hands around it.

He hopped out of the tree looking almost as happy to be helpful as the child was to get his friend back. "Thank you sir!" he said, "Are you one of the king's men!?"

"Ahhh… well…"

"Yes!" Miku lied, "He's my escort back to the Marzipan Court. But those wretched mice took our coin purse. You wouldn't happen to know someone who could help us out would you?"

The boy kept a tight hand around his toy bird. "I could ask Mama… she's the sweet shop owner, Sweet Ann. She knows everyone here."

He nodded his head with a polite smile. "I'm Oliver! It's nice to meet another nice human!"

As the three of them walked the few blocks to Oliver's home, Miku again noticed the eyes of the town's residents darting around Kaito. More and more she was beginning to notice something else – they seemed rather apprehensive around him.

Something he seemed to be finally comprehending as more than a few polite greetings and broad smiles were met only with a cold stare. Eventually he gave up entirely, just staying close to Oliver and not even speaking until they made it to their destination.

Above the door hung a wooden sign, reading "Sweet Ann's Fine Candies," with every letter painted to appear as if it had stitching on it. Sure enough, when they entered Miku spied a fancy blonde rag doll wearing a fluffy white dress, the distinctive marks of tight stitching running along her neck and arms. "Mama, I'm home! This kind nutcracker helped me find James!"

"Oh Ollie! Sir, I'll thank you for the help, I…"

At that the doll's sewn-one eyes seemed to widen, like a changing patch of fabric. "You're… you…"

The woman seemed to motion for Oliver to get closer to her. Obediently the boy did as he was told, but the confusion was plain on his face. "How many people saw you come here?" she asked flatly.

"Um… we didn't hide…" Kaito said with confusion of his own.

Finally it was Miku who broke through the wall of division. "Miss, everyone in this village has been staring at me and Kaito like criminals. Something happened to Kaito to make him lose his memories, so we don't know what's going on. Is it because he's wanted by the Mouse King and Queen?"

"The Mice?!" the woman exclaimed, "No, no, it's because the Marzipan army has been running all over the kingdom searching for a blue-haired nutcracker, though they've refused to say why! Everyone in Bonbon's been gossiping over what a doll could have done to have so many people after him!"

That seemed to set Kaito off. "But I thought I lived there! I was built by Drosselmeyer, wasn't I? And then I became a soldier?"

At that, Sweet Ann's face grew sympathetic. "Oh, you poor dear… we haven't heard from Drosselmeyer in a very long time. You're certain you don't recall anything?"

Kaito shook his wooden head quickly. At that the doll seemed to change her opinion of the situation entirely. "All right… you two go in the cellar for a few minutes… no doubt by now the crown has been informed, but… I know how to cover for you. Oliver, can you show them the way?"

Oliver smiled and bounced as he led Kaito and Miku through the lovely shop racks filled with candy treats. Soon they were led downstairs where massive vats of melted sugary syrup and chocolate bubbled. The lovely scent only further tantalized Miku's empty stomach.

"I'll shut the cellar door… I'm sure Mama will take care of all the scary people… and if she can't, Papa should be able to handle them!"

The little boy laughed, patting his toy bird resting lightly on his shoulder. "You must be kind, James wouldn't have let a bad person play with him."

And soon Oliver was crawling back up the ladder to the shop upstairs, leaving Kaito and Miku to nothing but the sound of candy vats. "I hope we didn't walk into a trap…" she murmured.

"What?!" Kaito said, "Impossible! She told us she would help us!"

So he was apparently rather naïve as well. "Kaito, we don't know anyone here. There's a good chance they locked us down here to give us up to the crown… we really shouldn't…"

The nutcracker shook his head. "Impossible! Dolls don't lie, we're not able to! Not like humans can! We ALWAYS tell the truth!"

"Oh… I'm… I'm sorry…"

Now Miku thought she'd offended him, but that smile spread back on his face. Apparently any slight she'd made was instantly forgiven. "Don't worry, if Sweet Ann said she'd help us out, she's going to! And she's a very nice doll!"

Miku tried to calm her gears… perhaps Kaito was right, she knew nothing about how these doll people really behaved. He did. Even if there was still so much he seemed completely oblivious to. She took a seat at a small table. Kaito ended up following her, scooting a chair out and sitting at his full height right near her.

"Kaito, you're certain you don't know why even the Crown is after you?"

"Ahhhh… nope. I can't think of anything I did… oh, I hope that poor Drosselmeyer is okay."

He leaned his head on his hand. "The more we talk about him, the more I'm certain he was someone important to me."

Miku folded her own hands close. "Well, if he's been missing… there's one of two options… the Kingdom took him prisoner and we'll have to try and get in there to free him… or he escaped and went on the run himself…"

Kaito tapped his wooden fingers along the table, sounding more like a woodblock instrument than a person. "Then we have to figure out where he went, while still avoiding the mice…"

The tapping on the table began to resemble a simple rhythm. "You sure like music, Kaito," Miku said.

He looked at her happily. "I love it! No matter what I do, I love to sing all the way! Marching or working, or even just reading… it always make me feel so alive to have a melody flowing through me…"

His painted blue eyes looked straight into hers. "You like to do that too, right? Your voice was so pretty!"

Miku's face flushed – so he had heard her impromptu "performance." "Well, I do… my godfather always sings when he's in his toyshop, so I sort of picked up the habit… eventually my mother paid for vocal lessons, but she had to stop when the money became too tight. Which is fine, honestly…"

Her expression grew gruffer. "I know she just wanted me to get better to make it easier to find a husband…"

Kaito seemed utterly oblivious to how uncomfortable he was making her, but before he could ask any more embarrassing questions, they heard the sounds of new voices upstairs and fell silent. Miku prepared to hide at a moment's notice, or at least to hide Kaito – nobody seemed to be looking for her, after all.

But after a few tense moments, they heard the sound of the shop door closing. After a few more minutes, the cellar door opened and down climbed Sweet Ann herself, carrying an armful of fresh breads, cookies, and pastries. "Well, that was quick! I thought I saw a soldier come in looking for you, but she was all by herself… she did ask if I'd seen a nutcracker, but Oliver told her you'd already left town. He's such a good boy."

Ann laid the food down along the table Miku and Kaito were sitting at. "So, you two… you're not running away from home are you?"

One of her patched eyes formed a stitched wink. "Parents that don't approve?"

Though Miku coughed, Kaito seemed utterly oblivious to any innuendo from the rag doll. "We're just trying to find Drosselmeyer…" Kaito said, "My friend Miku here has been cursed by the Mouse King and Queen and we think he might be able to help her."

Sweet Ann looked alarmed. "You two are running around making such powerful enemies?! And to think you're in MY little candy shop. Oh, my husband is going to find this all so hilarious…"

She made a gesture to Miku. "Come now, eat that food I brought you. I saw that hungry look in your eyes, and I know what kind of foods humans can eat. I'll have you know even the highest houses in Marzipan have dined on my sweets!"

Miku's stomach felt so empty that even a meal made entirely of sugary confections was appetizing. She tried to eat as politely as possible no matter how badly she just wanted to wolf it all down right then and there. As she ate, Kaito started to fill in the gaps on their journey to this point for the benefit of their hostess.

As for the hostess herself, Miku rapidly lost her distrust of her – unlike the other dolls that seemed scared of Kaito (or at least of the crown), she was treating him like an equal and trying to give him some friendly advice. Once Miku had finished her meal, the topic of fresh clothes came up. "AH! You mean that's not a normal human dress?!" Sweet Ann exclaimed.

"Ah… well, no… it's just… my nightgown…" Miku mumbled. She realized she shouldn't be surprised a doll wouldn't know much of that – their clothing was more ornamental than practical.

Much like the candy, apparently. She'd made a fool of herself offering some to Kaito, but he'd started laughing like she was joking again. When he realized he was serious, he apologized profusely and told her that dolls had no need for food.

Sweet Ann's shop instead provided candy that would be shipped to the humans of Marzipan. Thus it wasn't entirely impossible for a human to come to Bonbon, but only on business. As for the dolls themselves, in spite of not being able to eat candy, they often loved to decorate their homes with it, and thus a truly creative candy crafter could make quite a living selling candy to both races alike. Now Miku understood why Ann's treats were so colorful and eye-catching.

"Well, I don't know whether or not you still want to try and get into the kingdom to find Drosselmeyer…" Sweet Ann said, "But whatever you choose, I'll try to make sure to send you off with some warm clothes and some food for Miss Miku here!"

Oliver came crawling down the ladder a second time, looking panicked. "Mama, Mama! There's more soldiers here this time! You need to talk to them!"

At that her stitched face registered panic. "Ah! Okay, I'll talk to them but… Oliver, can you handle getting the two of them to safety?!"

Oliver gave a small salute. "I'm ready!"

Ann bowed her head in penance. "Please, come back when they're gone and I'll give the supplies I promised!"

Sweet Ann climbed up the cellar ladder one last time, shutting the door tight behind her. "If they ask her where we are… she'll have to answer honestly, won't she?" Miku said.

"Yea, but she can answer honestly as long as she doesn't know where you are!" Oliver said, grabbing Miku's hand eagerly, "Come on, I'll take you through the basement exit…

Oliver began to wind the two through rows upon rows of candy vats. Miku kept checking Kaito but his face revealed little of his mood. Frankly, his silence seemed to speak more loudly for him – was he already feeling guilty for them having to flee another safe place? She would have to find some way to let him know he was still helping…

Just feeling the little boy's warm hand in hers gave Miku a small amount of comfort – she'd been worried this entire journey would be nothing but mice and dolls.

They approached what appeared to be a blank wall with a large lollipop hanging off of it. Oliver leapt up and tugged the stick. Slowly the wall began to retract, revealing a stone storage room. "Why would you have something like this in your house?!" Miku exclaimed.

"Papa came up with it," Oliver explained, "We kept having trouble with the mice getting in here and stealing the candy… they were really good at picking locks and stuff. So Papa came up with this idea to hide the candy shipments in here… with a secret exit too!"

He gestured excitedly to Miku and Kaito, like he was sharing his own private clubhouse with them. The panel quietly slid shut, just as Miku heard multiple people descending the cellar ladder, led by Sweet Ann. "Don't worry, Mama's really smart!" Oliver continued, "It'll be okay!"

True to Oliver's promise, Miku and Kaito found themselves heading out of a stairwell similarly covered by wood, though this mechanism was simply controlled by a hollow rock. Walking back outside from the stairs, Miku realized they'd been led near the edge of town. "Okay, I need to get back in there quickly or they'll wonder why Mom's all alone… you two just need to head under the trees a little ways… there's an old trunk, you can't miss it… and past the old trunk you'll find… my favorite hiding spot! Mom doesn't know about it, so she can't lead them to you!"

"I hope it's sheltered…" Miku muttered, the sudden sting of cold air through her night clothes starting to get to her.

"Don't worry Miku, I'm sure Oliver isn't misleading us," Kaito said, his cheer seeming to finally return to him.

As the two of them wandered back into the forest, both Kaito and Miku had their eyes close to the ground looking for any signs of the mice. The second Oliver said they were known to steal supplies from the people of this village, Miku knew to suspect they could be anywhere. She kept her sword close, though she still didn't really know how to fight with it. She'd figure it out eventually, she was certain… or maybe just hopeful.

Kaito drew Miku close to his side, his expression having grown more serious. "I'll protect you from them," he said quietly, "You won't have to get hurt again."

She wanted to respond when he jumped up, dragging her forward with excitement. "The old trunk, right where Oliver said it would be!"

Their footsteps quickened as they forged ahead on the trail, and before they moved too deep into the trees, Miku spied a small wooden shack nestled between some old stumps. "Ha, I guess Oliver did lead us to his clubhouse," Miku said with a small laugh.

As Kaito approached the door, preparing to open it, he stopped moving entirely as he seemed to notice something amiss. He slowly pulled the door ajar and peeked inside, Miku trying to follow him and get a look for herself…

… and spied a young woman in a lovely red uniform coat and shirt, with white pants, glimmering yellow buttons and epaulets, white boots, and a long white cape with a red interior. Her bobbed brown hair swished around as she turned and glowered as she spied the intruders.

"Who goes there?!" she barked out.

"We should ask the same of you!" Miku said as she pushed her way inside, "This is a child's club house! There shouldn't be anyone in here!"

The girl scoffed at her, her brown eyes narrowing. "I should say the same of you… both of you! Come out, you, you… ruffians!"

The girl tugged out her sword and held it steady in front of her. "It's not proper to sneak up on a lady like this! The both of you should be ashamed of your rudeness and… and…"

As Kaito entered, holding his hands up in surrender, the girl's pomposity vanished entirely. "Oh my god… it's you… I finally found you…"

Miku rushed up in front of Kaito. "You must be that officer that was looking for Kaito!" she said, "I won't let you take him away and lock him up!"

With Kaito in the room, the girl's entire personality seemed changed. "You're unhurt… I'm so grateful…" she said, choking up.

Miku glanced up only to see Kaito appeared as confused as ever. "Ummm… did we know each other before?" he asked, "I don't believe we've met but… I have to admit, ever since I fell asleep and woke up again, I seem to be forgetting a lot of important things."

Miku tried to watch the girl's face – at once her expression fell. "You… you really don't remember? About the mice, and the castle… about Drosselmeyer and… and… the princess…"

"Ah! Drosselmeyer!" Finally Kaito seemed to lower his hands as he broke into a smile, "I was trying to find him, I think he knows how to help my friend Miku here!"

He bowed his head in apology. "If we knew each other before and I forgot… I must apologize. What was your name!? Maybe I'll remember that! I mean, I was in the military, so maybe we worked together!"

For a moment the woman looked away, clutching her sword ever more nervously. Finally she turned back to Kaito and the nervousness fled her body. "Hmph. Since you seem to have forgotten, my name is Meiko. Kaito, I was attempting to locate you, as a commanding officer."

"To arrest him!?" Miku said accusatorially.

Meiko faced flushed scarlet. "Of course not! How dare you accuse me of trying to arrest an innocent man!"

Kaito's face only brightened further. "Oh, that's such a relief, I was worried I'd committed a crime and forgotten about it! So now that you're here, you can clear things up for me in front of the Marzipan Court and we can get Drosselmeyer out too!"

Miku had never seen such an utterly unprofessional officer as Meiko seemed to sputter in front of Kaito's innocent conversation. "Kaito… that's not going to work. Your crime… well, you were not to blame, but you're being held responsible. Because of the mice, you see."

Kaito nodded his head. "I see, I see… so that sort of explains why the mice are after me too."

He stared straight at Meiko with those painted on eyes of his. "Now tell me, is Drosselmeyer in the Marzipan Kingdom?"

Another shake of her head. "The toymaker fled at the same time you did. The castle kept that a secret – he's not officially a wanted man because they're afraid the dolls might revolt if they know he's to be arrested on sight. He's always been well-respected by them, especially for a human."

Kaito appeared relieved. "That's good… then he's safe… Miku, I guess we won't get to see the Marzipan Castle after all."

She laughed lightly. "It's fine, I have a copy in my bedroom at home after all…"

Miku tried to press Meiko for more details. "Listen, since you apparently used to know Kaito, you should be able to tell him what happened, right? He really doesn't remember why he's being chased around by all these people!"

Another mood swing hit her as Meiko's fingers curled nervously around the hilt of her sword. "He… he stood up against the Mouse King and Queen… but he failed. I… well, I don't know what he did, but I guess because he failed, the King wants to punish him for it."

'Dolls may not lie…' Miku thought to herself, 'But humans most certainly do."

Meiko's story just wasn't adding up in so many ways. She didn't want to accuse the only person Kaito knew of having an ulterior motive, but it was hard not to when she had so many bizarre behaviors. Miku was about to interrogate her harder when the door to the shack exploded open.

"He's in here! The nutcracker is in here!"

Another giant scraggly mouse leapt into the room, swinging its spear and growling as it ran straight for Kaito. In a flash he had his sword out to cut the beast down, black smoke filling the room as his blade pierced its chest.

"AH! Let go of me, rodent!"

Miku watched as a mouse reached into the shack and dragged Meiko out through the window. "Meiko!" Kaito yelled, "We have to help her!"

But that was proving most difficult – the mice began to swarm inside through the windows and the door. Miku tried her best to fight as she'd seen Kaito do so, but her lack of experience showed as she found herself backed into a corner and waving her sword like a toy. "Such wonderful luck, we find the Nutcracker, we find Queen Rin's prize pet, we even find King Len's assassin!"

Miku didn't think she'd get away with her cat trick a second time.

She didn't have to.

A loud crack sounded as an entire wave of mice went flying into the air. A huge, broad shouldered man seemed to fill the entire frame of the doorway. "So! You rodents decided to trespass in my son's shack, did you?!"

As he grew further into view, Miku saw this man was no normal human either – he was himself a wooden doll, towering over even Kaito as he swung a long thick block of lumber at the mice trying to trap Miku. With his brown hair tinged with white streaks, shiny gold-painted eyes, and wild painted grin, he looked downright menacing as he surveyed the chaotic combat before he charged at the mice again.

Black smoke wafted through the room as the man tore through the mice with no sign of mercy. "Oh, I've been waiting to get a crack at you lot since you took my wife's entire sugar cookie stash! Do you know how much trouble she went to for those!?"

CRACK!

With their sudden savior holding off the majority of the mice, Miku gestured to Kaito and the two escaped out the door. "We have to find Meiko, she can't be far!" Kaito shouted.

Sure enough, they could hear her struggling and shouting at her captors. Miku tried to keep up with Kaito's pace, her lungs aching from breathing so hard as she pushed herself to run faster. She hadn't even gotten a proper night's sleep, and now she was running to try and rescue a rude stranger?!

Soon the snow grew thicker around their feet, making the tracks of the mice more obvious. "That way! We have to help her!"

Kaito pointed and Miku obediently followed. Finally they'd found them – three scraggly mice, two clutching Meiko's arms and trying with all their might to keep her restrained. "Such a loud mouth on this one! So noisy, no wonder Queen Rin hates her so much!"

Meiko kicked around in the snow. "You rodents better HOPE you don't take me to her or I'll… I'll make her pay for what she did to– "

"MEIKO!"

Miku tried to stop Kaito from giving away his position, but he charged blindly forward into the snow. "AH! Ugly nutcracker is back again! Get her away, quickly–"

Just the distraction of Kaito's appearance finally gave Meiko the opening she seemed to need. She stomped on the large clawed feet of her mouse captors. As their screams filled the air, she broke away from them, running behind Kaito as he engaged the leading mouse himself.

The nutcracker shouted as he engaged his blade against the mouse's spear. To Miku's surprise, the more experienced officer was crawling through the snow to get close to her. "Do you need my sword, ma'am?" Miku asked innocently.

Meiko looked to the fight and shuddered. "I… Kaito seems to be handling this okay."

'Is it normal for a soldier to just abandon a charge!?' Miku thought to herself.

With a large puff of smoke, Kaito had defeated the lead mouse solider… but the remaining soldiers had escaped, leaving nothing but footsteps behind. Kaito turned to Miku and Meiko and bowed. "I'm glad you're both okay," he said politely, as if he had not just spent the last several minutes killing sentient mice in front of them.

Meiko seemed to be… trembling? 'Maybe something about the mice really frightened her…' Miku thought.

"OY! You lot all right out there!?"

Miku saw a familiar clockwork bird flapping through the air. On instinct she held out her hands and it alighted on her finger, its metallic eyes blinking at her. "Well, it's good to see you again, James…" she said.

Not far behind James was Oliver and the giant of a man that had come stomping into the little shack and saved their lives. His glimmering gold eyes darted across the snow field. "Did you get the last of them?"

"Yes, sir!" Kaito said with a proper salute, "I'm sorry we left you behind, but the mice had kidnapped my friend Meiko here!"

Meiko took a deep breath and stood at her full height, banishing all of her nervous energy. "Yes, I owe Kaito my life," she said, "Whatever quarrel those beasts have with me, this doll made them suffer for it!"

The big man laughed loudly. "Well, from my experience, mice are obsessed with sweet and pretty things, and you definitely look like one!"

At that Meiko's face turned almost as red as her jacket. Oliver approached Miku, holding his hand out for James. She returned the toy bird, still enamored of how lifelike it appeared for just being made of gears and bolts. "Miss, did you fight too!? How many mice did you kill?!"

Now she felt embarrassed herself. "W-well, I did manage to kill one or two of them, but…"

"The mice swarmed the cabin so fast we didn't have time to react," Kaito said, "Frankly, if this man hadn't shown up…"

At that Oliver let out a shout of disappointment. "I missed Papa fighting the mice?! Ahhh, why didn't I get out of the house faster?!"

The large man turned his head to Kaito, his painted mouth a wide, friendly smile… painted teeth and all. "Big Al, carpenter, lumberjack… and occasional mouse squasher."

Miku expected him to extend his wooden hand in greeting, but he remained rigid. At first it seemed rude when Miku remember the lack of feeling. 'Right… they probably don't shake hands or hug if they can't feel the other person… I guess dolls don't touch… except…'

She pressed her finger to her cheek, where Kaito had twice held his finger under her eyes to feel her crying… even though he couldn't feel anything…

"AH! Papa, Miku's shivering over here… we need to get her back to the house so she can warm up!"

Meiko glanced over at Miku and for the first time seemed to be aware of her odd choice of attire. "Miss, is it really appropriate for a lady of any stature to be outside in her nightgown?"

Now it was Miku's turn for her face to turn red as she watched Meiko smirk at her.

"And then I broke the door down, I was so angry… swinging the boards around like big clubs!"

Big Al swung his arms around as he mimed out the fight in front of the rapt attention of his wife and son. "They just started exploding in these clouds of smoke! Swing, POOF! Crack, POOF!"

"Oh, Al, it all sounds so exciting… I never envisioned you as a big tough fighter!" Sweet Ann laughed, "Maybe we should have you be a bodyguard!"

"What, and give up my carpentry!? And your sweet shop!?"

Kaito, and Miku meanwhile huddled together to try and plan their next move. Reluctantly, Miku had allowed Meiko to join them – for better or worse, they needed an extra hand. More cynically, Miku wasn't sure she'd be able to get rid of her given her stubborn insistence on sticking close to Kaito. "So, we probably still need Drosselmeyer's help to break my curse," Miku murmured.

"I can attest to his success in breaking one of their curses before," Meiko said firmly, "I had hoped Kaito might know more of his location though. You two were quite close."

"Well he did build me!" Kaito said, his bright smile already returning.

Meiko coughed. "Ah… yes, that he did."

"Now I'm convinced that whatever happened that made you 'fall asleep' is part of all this," Miku said, "Kaito, do you think you could be under a curse too?"

His astonished face suggested to Miku that the thought hadn't even crossed the nutcracker's mind. "Do you think they made me fall asleep and forget everything!? Those dastardly beasts!"

"The Mouse Twins… are very cruel to the people who upset them…" Meiko said, clutching her hands close.

"Ah, Meiko, they didn't hurt you too did they?!" Kaito said.

She shrank back, clutching her sides tighter. "I… well… such matters are trivial at this point in time."

Miku couldn't sort out what this strange woman's motives were. At one moment she'd be prim and proper as if she was better than everyone around her, but whenever the mice came up, she would lose her composure at once.

Kaito thumped his wooden chest, making a loud clacking sound. "Don't worry, I'll keep you and Miku safe from them!"

Miku could have laughed at the nutcracker's enthusiasm. Even Meiko cracked a small smile. "Such a bold promise from you! I like your style, Sir Nutcracker!"

Big Al hovered over Kaito's head, a wide painted grin reaching both sides of his face. "I like a doll that knows when to take action!"

At that moment, Oliver's "pet" bird flapped its way on top of Big Al's head. "Ah! James, come down, I can't reach that high!" he said, nervously jumping on his heels.

Big Al scooped the bird off his head with one hand. "Ah, too bad there isn't really another toymaker to show him to…" Sweet Ann lamented, "With Drosselmeyer gone, we may have to keep James in a cage until he works properly again."

Oliver looked utterly stunned. "No! James can't go in a cage, he's supposed to be FREE!"

As the boy took his bird back, he held it close and hopped up the stairs. "So, have you lot decided your next great adventure?" Sweet Ann asked. With a wink, she added "Don't worry, the soldiers should be well off your trail now!"

All eyes turned to Kaito. He seemed to be struggling to come up with an answer. "All my memories of Drosselmeyer are foggy… I don't even recall what he looked like but…"

He looked up with an embarrassed look. "Maybe since you all knew him before, you could tell me more about him and I'll start to remember him… then we'll have an idea of how to find him!"

"Kaito, Drosselmeyer had long purple hair that he kept tied back with a black ribbon… and he always wore that old purple overcoat."

Meiko tilted her head as her held a hand to her chin in thought. "Frankly, given what the king was paying him, I never understood why he couldn't replace it with something more befitting his high station!"

On just hearing the description alone, Miku nearly choked. 'No! That can't be!'

"Ah, we always knew he was in town when we'd hear him singing… he had the loveliest voice!" Sweet Ann said with a whimsical sigh.

"He always told ridiculous jokes too!" Big Al added, "He'd be so convincing that sometimes you wouldn't even realize if he was pranking you until he started laughing! He was clever."

Oliver bounced on his heels. "He loved bringing new toys for the children too! That's how I got James – he knew I loved birds, so he built me my very own!"

Miku froze up. 'If I didn't know better… they're talking about Gakupo!' she thought, 'But… that's impossible!'

She clutched her hands close to her chest as she tried to grapple with what she knew. When would Gakupo have been able to come to a magical world like this one? He was a toymaker of course, but for humans.

But he always took those long trips in which he'd spin the most fantastical yarns about his travels…

"Did he… did he tell stories a lot? Utterly ridiculous fantasy stories?"

Miku felt silly even saying it…

Meiko's laughter filled the room. "Oh, all the time! Whenever he'd take off for a while, he'd always say he went somewhere wild! Oh, one time he tried to get me to believe he'd gone to a city of fog and smoke! Where everything was grey and brown and the only candy was in the shops!"

Miku gulped. "Did he ever talk about… his time as a soldier?" she added.

Now even Kaito seemed shocked. "Miku, you're talking as if you know him too!" he said in surprise.

'No! If Gakupo IS this Drosselmeyer person then… then he doesn't know where I am! He'll still be in town and I can't get back there now to tell him!'

All of a sudden Miku felt trapped in her current state… never going home… and never seeing anyone she loved again.

'Oh godfather, why didn't you tell me anything? Why didn't you say anything?'

Kaito jumped to his feet, grabbing at his head. "AHHHHH! I think I remember something now! Something he was trying to tell me!"

Miku tried to hold back her tears. "Yes, Kaito?" she said hopefully.

Kaito's "closed eyes" looked like two tightly wound lines from how much effort he was trying to put into this memory. "He said… he said if we were ever to get separated… to go… to go… back… back to the old workshop! So he could find me! And it was right near… this huge pink lake!"

Meiko gasped. "My goodness, I think I know where that is!" she said, "He's talking about the Rose Lake! Oh, that's out in Sugarloaf Valley… that must be where Drosselmeyer used to live before he came to the Marzipan Court!"

Kaito's eyes opened, shining with pride at having pulled out such an important memory. "Thanks to all of you talking about him, it just felt so normal remembering him talking to me…" the nutcracker said, "I guess I was very important to him, even though I'm just a toy."

Sweet Ann let out a whistle. "That's at least a few days from here on foot…" she said, "Still… my husband and I can see what we can do to get you some faster transport when you leave tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" Miku said in surprise.

"Oh yes!" Sweet Ann said with a laugh, "It's dark out and freezing cold! Even a doll would lock up in a block of ice in such wretched temperatures! Especially… a young lady in her nightgown!"

Miku found herself laughing instead of crying. Maybe this toymaker wasn't her godfather… maybe it was a coincidence but…

Maybe they had somewhere safe to go after all.

Maybe she wasn't trapped.

And maybe… "Drosselmeyer" would have a lot to answer for when she finally met him.

A/N:

Meiko has joined the party! *trumpet fanfare*

So speaking of our rather forceful brunette, I actually kept waffling on her personality. At first I was obsessed with trying not to portray her too harshly, out of concern that I might scratch at the ever present KaiMiku vs KaiMei shipping wars. In the end though, I realized I'd ended up writing a Meiko that had no personality at all, and Meiko is a character that I feel ALWAYS has a lot of it. So I stopped chaining myself to worries about other's expectations and gave her the personality her character needs. I'd think that by now you guys know me well enough that she's got a little more depth than "rude woman antagonizing Miku."

I never actually expected to give "Big Sweet" and Oliver a return appearance, but frankly when I got to writing about a village full of dolls, it seemed insane for me not to include two people known for being stitched together like toys anyway and then toss in Oliver for good measure. They're obviously far tamer than they were in Broken Wings as well and Oliver gets to be a normal boy now.

The original novel does in fact feature a "Bonbonville". I've tried to reuse location names from the novel as well – the Land of Dolls and Sweets is well detailed in the book. But I wanted to be a little more creative as to how sweets appeared and what a doll would actually do with, say, a lollipop. Sure I can handwave things away as "MAGIIIIIC" but I do prefer to have some logical reasoning process.

I feel the need to elaborate a little more on the setting. While I chucked out the date 1816, that was based on the publishing date of the original novel. I've been deliberately vague about the exact location of the events in Miku's world – a lot of the social attitudes and certain institutions are derived from Victorian England, while I have tried to get some of the influences of the original German setting in there in things like naming. I was still stuck on the Industrial Revolution, but it turns out Germany didn't industrialize until the 1870s at least! So I guess "industrialized 19th century European fantasy AU" is the best description for it. None of this really matters all that much in the grand scheme of things, but if you read Broken Wings, you know I like to dig deep into these settings anyway.

Song Credits: You know, Gakupo really does make it hard to search for happy songs. He does a lot of covers, but most of his originals are hard rock and depressing. But gosh darnit, I did turn one up, "Magic of Happiness" by Naoki-P!