The Toy Princess Part 2
Haru's eyes were immediately drawn to the pine tree that was standing tall and proud in the drawing room when she entered it again, still cradling her box like a child. She arched an eyebrow at her bodyguard, who raised his huge hands in protest.
"Baron did that while I was feeding the pets. As well as that," he added while pointing at a very old box sitting next to the tree that looked like it'd had the worst of the cobwebs and dust brushed off it recently.
"I wonder if Toto made any of the ornaments," she mused with a wide grin, but then shook herself back to her senses. "We can worry about that tomorrow. Tonight's going to be an emotional roller coaster."
"Who's Toto?" Tohru asked, noticing from the edge of his sight that the cat and crow had both flinched at the name and looked at each other.
Haru was beyond careful as she set the box down on the same table as before, and then began fishing around her neck for the key as she looked out into the swirling snowstorm outside, barely seen through the darkness but clearly heard. "I'm literally about to go into that." Then before unlocking the box, she paused and looked at her large friend. "Tohru? One of the reasons I didn't tell you why the manor means so much to me is because you would think I'm either crazy or gullible, maybe both. What I do from here is going to be honoring Ichigo's wishes, and even though you're not that likely to believe much of it at first, I'm going to ask that you stay silent until I'm done."
Tohru quirked an eyebrow at her.
Haru bit her lip, worrying about what might happen if he didn't heed her warning. "It would make more sense to do this tomorrow night since that's Christmas Eve, but since it's confirmed that at least Baron's still here, he's going to get real upset if I don't talk about this as soon as possible. There's even a chance that he'll turn violent if I'm interrupted."
Tohru started at that. "Then is it a good idea to talk about it? Even for Ichigo?"
She offered him a weak smile before turning to unlock her precious box. "It's more reason to talk about it, I promise. If you're roughly silenced, I promise I'm helping by spilling every bean I've got."
Tohru was too busy staring at her for either of them to notice just how intently the cat and crow were doing the same.
"Take a seat, my friend. I'll be talking for a while," she urged him gently, gesturing at the couch while keeping one hand on the box's lid as if to make sure that the ghost didn't open it before she was ready.
Still looking at her worriedly, the bodyguard slowly did as he was bid, only breaking eye contact long enough to make sure he didn't sit on Muta.
She smiled encouragingly, although she felt sick to her stomach for the task she was about to take on. To think that she had once thought a hospital's worth of sick kids was intimidating! "We are gathered here tonight to honor the passing of Nachima Ichigo. More than just my nanny, she was a devoted wife, a loyal friend, and a gifted teacher whose patience knew no bounds. She had been a hard worker her entire life, which was long and challenging in ways that she would never have wished on anyone else."
Haru swallowed hard as her vision began to blur from tears that were returning once more. "I bought this manor with the intent of it being her final home after finding out how desperately Ichigo wanted to come here. Since I was fourteen at the time of purchase and I couldn't leave Japan without my father's permission, I used the time since then to make sure that this place ready for habitation while skipping another grade in hopes that I would be permitted to go to college as soon as possible at least close to England so that we could come here together, even if it meant a bit of deception on my part."
Something nudged her wrist, making her look down at a floating box of tissues that had been recently opened.
"Thank you, Baron," she tried not to sniff, taking a tissue and a small break to dry her face and blow her nose. Then she took in a deep breath before continuing. "Maybe it was the fact that Ichigo had tripped at the finishing line many times, or perhaps her inner sense that told her that she wasn't going to… make it here. Whatever it was, she forced me to make her a set of promises if she happened to… part from this world before we managed to get here."
Haru threw the tissue into the roaring fireplace behind her before opening the box at last, and lovingly pulling a purple velvet covering away from the contents. "The first was that her ashes would be used inside the glass figurine of a swan." With all the tender care that she possessed, the teenager gently lifted a glass swan from its specially designed holding place within the box.
It was a glorious work of art. Ichigo's ashes had been tinted blue and swirled around in the suggestion of water as the wings spread out in the suggestion of taking flight and freedom.
"The second was that her final resting place would be on this very mantelpiece," she continued in a soft whisper as she picked what she felt was the most pleasing place, a little to the right of under the large portrait of the Baron and his mother. Haru rubbed the head of the swan with one finger before forcing herself to turn back to her small but silent audience. "The third is that I tell a story that she told me the same day she told me about this manor. Her dream was to come here and tell this story for so many years. She couldn't bear the thought of it dying with her and had been all too happy to meet someone who loved her enough to complete the task if she couldn't. … This is for you, Ichigo," Haru whispered to the glass swan when it took her a few seconds longer than she had anticipated to swallow.
She had been expecting the cat and crow to make at least a little ruckus after staying next to each other for several minutes and who knew how long while she and Tohru were napping. But they seemed just as on the edge of their seats as her beloved bodyguard.
"Tohru, you've been watching over me since I was eleven. You've seen me narrate the Nutcracker more times than you'd care to count."
"I enjoy it every time," he protested, but she smiled to make it clear it wasn't an accusation.
"So that leaves me with only a few things you didn't know about the Nutcracker. One, I didn't invent my version of it."
"Oh?" Tohru asked while raising his eyebrow again.
"That version was told to Ichigo by a genuine Drosselmeyer. They're a real family, and the Nutcracker plot had actually happened, but more or less the way I've been telling it."
He choked on that before swiftly standing up, not noticing how the animals next to him jerked violently at the news. "You honestly-" he tried to demand, but then an invisible blow threw him back on the couch, which groaned with the violent weight. Even stranger was that his arms suddenly changed positions like an invisible grip was holding him still.
"Tried to tell you," Haru informed him briefly before squaring her shoulders determinedly. "Back in the beginning of the twentieth century, this very manor was the home of the von Gikkingen family, with the title of 'baron' being passed down from father to son for the two centuries at the time our story takes place. The current one was named Baron Humbert von Gikkingen III, and he was an exceptional fellow that preferred to just be called 'Baron'. He was intelligent, compassionate, and very daring. Almost no one knew of it thanks to the disbelief and prejudice at the time, but he was also gifted with magic. He did everything he could to make sure that others benefited from his attributes. Unfortunately for him, he was a popular target for gold-diggers and social climbers, but he knew how to extract himself from unsavory positions since he had his heart set on a genuine companion over anyone that would drop him if he happened to lose his title or had a disfiguring accident."
She smiled warmly and closed her eyes at the lovely mental picture. "But he was blessed with two true friends that he very much had a Three Musketeers kind of bond with. One was a composer by the name of Renaldo Moon. He wasn't as well known as Beethoven, but he was definitely doing what he could to correct the injustice when he wasn't too busy picking fights with the other friend. The one that incidentally married Renaldo's sister, though who knows how the two kept civil long enough for the sister to be wooed."
Haru's eyes opened with terrible longing. "The third friend was Thomas Theodore Drosselmeyer, but he preferred to be called 'Toto' since his personality was too mischievous to allow a formal name to stick. He was every bit the genius as his ancestor of Nutcracker fame when it came to making toys or clocks, and he also possessed the magic needed to bring toys to life, even if briefly."
The teenager turned to the box again and lifted the velvet cushioning so that she could remove a golden frame.
Within it was the very old picture of a tall, lanky man with a pointed nose and sparkling dark eyes that spoke of fun and trouble. In his arms, he possessively gripped a beautiful little girl with hair as light as the man's was dark. She was beaming happily and clinging to the man's neck the way a koala would cling to a tree.
The crow cawed once, but it was a low, despairing sound.
"But few things gave Toto more pleasure than making his daughter happy," Haru continued, though her voice was shaky as she placed the frame on the mantelpiece as well, next to the swan. "Elizabeth Louise Drosselmeyer unfortunately died not long after giving birth to Louise Marie Drosselmeyer due to complications from the birth. Although she never got the opportunity to meet or talk with her mother, Louise knew that her mother's favorite color was red, she smelled of spring, and she was so, so happy when she found out Louise was on her way."
Haru fiercely bit back her jealousy before stealing another tissue from the handy box. "Although she did not have a mother to raise her, Toto had plenty of help both in the form of friendly neighbors and in his two best friends to make sure that Louise lacked for nothing. Toto could have easily had his work sitting in palaces and have a manor of his own, but thanks to his family magic, and the Nutcracker story that had become badly misinterpreted over the years, it was better and safer for him and his daughter to settle in Baron's home where he could happily spend the bulk of his time creating works of art for the fellow men of the area that he felt would give them the proper appreciation. Baron was delighted to sponsor his dear friend, and Renaldo Moon made frequent trips here so he could spoil and corrupt his niece into liking music more than toys. That was only one of the many arguments the brothers-in-law had with each other, though there was always love present."
Muta sniffed and meowed as if in agreement.
"Louise had learned from an early age not to get involved in the fights, or to take them seriously. With her father bringing her toys to life and watching him create more, her uncle teaching her piano and promising trips when she was older, and Baron using her as a shield when he needed to 'attend to his familial duties' but still didn't have the patience for insincere women, there were times when Louise felt like she had three fathers vying for her love and attention instead of just the one. But she was happy," Haru added wistfully. "She had enough to eat, a warm bed to sleep in, more toys to play with than she could count even if most of them were going to be sold later and a family that loved her to pieces. If Toto Drosselmeyer had been a little less doting, she would have felt bad about not inheriting the family magic since it doesn't show up in every family member. But Toto would never have allowed his little girl to think for an instant that he didn't adore her just the way she was." She took a break to blow her nose and curse herself for being so jealous.
If either of the humans had been paying attention, however, they would have seen Muta put a fat arm around the crow's shoulders as he hung his head low and allowed tears to fall down his beak and onto the carpet in sheer misery.
Tohru's eyes were wide and afraid as they stayed locked on his charge, but he didn't dare speak again.
Haru steadied herself with a few breaths before continuing. "When Louise was ten years old, the Second World War was breaking out in Europe. Baron was planning to enlist after enjoying one last Christmas Eve party at his beloved aunt's mansion. Renaldo, Toto, and Louise were all there since they were practically family by then. Renaldo loved the chance to show off his skill on the piano, especially when he got to drag his niece into it, and Toto had just finished a glorious castle with clockwork dancers for the occasion. Baron was too distracted by his worries to fully enjoy the party, though he did steal the chance to dance with Louise over any of the harpies that refused to leave the poor man alone."
She couldn't resist a smile at the thought, especially while remembering how little it took Tamaki to make nearly every girl in Ouran Academy swoon or squeal. The smile soon faded when she thought about the next part of the story.
"It was late when Baron, Renaldo, Toto and Louise all returned to this manor after the party. Louise in particular was very tired, but worried about Baron enlisting since she was old enough to know that when war breaks out, not everyone makes it back home. After a few minutes of 'be careful' and 'come back soon', there was a knock on the front door." Haru slowly knocked three times on the mantlepiece, feeling the weight of the sound as she thought about that distant night.
That time, Tohru noticed when both cat and crow flinched at each knock.
"Louise was a good little girl that loved to be helpful, and it was nearing midnight on Christmas Eve. She thought nothing about running out of this drawing room to go answer the door." Haru sighed heavily while shaking her head. "That poor child had a phobia about opening doors the rest of her life."
Tohru blinked and opened his mouth to say something, but not before a wad of tissues spewed out of the box and shoved themselves passed his lips to keep him silent.
"An unfamiliar man grabbed her and held a funny smelling cloth to her face until she passed out," Haru continued like she hadn't seen her bodyguard struggling to remove the gag. "Because she was already tired, it was Christmas morning by the time she woke up in the back of a covered truck with a bunch of Nazis. Their leader, Adrian…" Haru stopped, scowling at herself. "Why do I keep forgetting his last name?!"
Baron quickly wrote on his pad before offering 'Schwarz'.
"Right, Schwarz," the teenager agreed, feeling a lot of conflicting emotions that he had not corrected her on what happened before now.
Especially since the rest of the story was going to be new territory for him.
"Well, it appeared that Adrian had come out second best in a previous argument with Baron and decided that getting rid of Baron before Hitler had to worry about him was the way to go. Getting rid of Renaldo and Toto were just bonuses since most of his anger was directed at Baron, and I hope whatever Baron did to that creep stung!" Haru seethed angrily, since just the little she knew of the man made her want to resurrect him, just for the chance to kill him herself.
'It did,' was all Baron had to offer on that score before using the pen to tap her lips to encourage her to keep going.
Haru took in a deep breath again, since she knew Baron wasn't going to like the next part very much. "The reason he decided to keep Louise alive was so that he could marry her when she got older, and he could have access to the Drosselmeyer magic through any resulting children- but that didn't happen," she quickly assured to keep Baron from turning violent.
It wasn't quickly enough to avoid an angry caw and hiss from the cat on the couch or the crow on the back of the chair right next to it.
"Don't worry, he gets his," Haru assured them with an evil smirk. "Well, as you can imagine, Louise was extremely upset over losing not just her family and home, but her entire life that she had known up to this point. She cried all the way to Germany and didn't stop crying after she was dropped off in one of the Nazi camps. Adrian had a carefully prepared story that she was from a rich Jewish family and was being held for ransom, since he didn't want any competition for her, and left orders that she was to learn German and other things that a well-bred lady ought to know, but that he would personally execute anyone that tried to hurt her."
She shook her head angrily, even as a few more tears escaped her control. "Because it took her over a year to stop crying for her father, uncle and friend, her nickname in the camp was 'The Brat', because she wasn't happy about having a small building to herself instead of a tent that she only had to share with a stern keeper, never had to worry about going on short rations and didn't even see Adrian that much since he ranked high in the Third Reich thanks to what he had done to Baron and his friends. By necessity, he couldn't really visit her more than once or twice a year, but he made sure when he was around to point out that there was no escape for her, and she was going to be forced to marry him when she was sixteen since he prided himself on not being a pedophile." She couldn't resist rolling her eyes at the hypocrisy, since there was a bare minimum of a twenty-year age gap. "She tried to escape a few times, but in a camp of trained soldiers, one scared little girl wouldn't have gotten very far, even if she made it over the fence."
Haru leaned against the mantlepiece, too lost in the painful past to notice just how intensely the cat and crow were staring at her.
By now, however, Tohru had noticed, though he was still fighting with his gag but keeping the struggle quiet enough so that he could hear the sad story.
"Learning German wasn't the problem, and thanks to Baron, she already had a leg up on the education being forced down her throat. But after she gave up on escaping for a while, Adrian decided to gift her a piano to try to sway her opinion of him. It didn't work, but that piano was her only joy left. Her beloved uncle had promised to take her on his next tour if she could come up with lyrics to his latest piece, and although such was no longer possible, she did compose lyrics to his work. She centered the lyrics around her memories of the last Christmas party she had enjoyed with her family but had to keep it vague enough that Adrian wouldn't become enraged enough to take the piano away. I'll be happy to play and sing 'Once Upon a December' tomorrow if you'd like," Haru remembered to add, just in case Renaldo's spirit was also roaming these nearly forgotten halls.
Her large cat hopped off of his place on the couch to meow and purr while rubbing his large body over her ankles in an almost desperate plea for her to keep that promise, even as Baron quickly wrote 'please do' before tapping her lips with the pen again.
Tohru was making more sounds of exclamations as he began connecting the dots but could do nothing while still being held onto the couch and gagged as he was.
Haru beamed at him before reaching her hand into the box again. "When Louise was fourteen, and her keeper was out, she was alone with the piano and playing miserably while thinking of her family again. The door was kept locked whether or not the keeper was with her, but there was a door flap for a soldier to pass food through. There was a strange tapping on the door before someone slipped her this." She pulled out from the box a small wooden doll, all a solid piece with even the clothes. Instead of paint, someone had taken the trouble to carve the details before polishing it, as if there was no spare cloth at the time of its making.
"Obviously, it's not anything on what Toto Drosselmeyer could do," Haru admitted as Baron seemed to lose his patience and take everything out of the box himself.
There were only three more toys, and two more photo frames. Haru managed to snatch one of the photos out of the air before presenting it to Tohru and her pets.
It was a photo of a beautiful young woman in a kimono, with hair nearly as pale as starlight and happily holding onto the arm of a young Japanese man that was also in a kimono and grinning from ear to ear like he was the luckiest man on the planet.
"Funny thing was that Nachima Mori had no idea she was a young lady," Haru nearly laughed as she imagined the first time they laid eyes on each other. "Louise was normally only let out for exercise when the bulk of the soldiers were out on routine inspections, and her nickname of 'The Brat' still stuck, so Mori assumed that the camp he had just arrived in was still holding a little girl hostage. He wasn't happy about it but knew that he couldn't begin to help her escape when he was still struggling to learn the local language. Since he had been working on an apprenticeship as a toymaker before being drafted, he carved that little doll so that Louise at least had something to play with. Oh, how Louise adored that doll!" Haru couldn't resist adding as tears once again flowed.
"Her father probably could have made something better while blindfolded, but being a Drosselmeyer, any toy reminded her of her dear father. Louise had a high voice even when she got older and was very sheltered, so it wasn't until after they had been in contact for a few weeks that Mori finally got a glimpse of her, and she of him. He was pretty embarrassed about giving a young lady not that much younger than him a child's toy, but she was able to assure him through their shared German that she desperately needed the comfort he was offering her. They bonded over how much they both hated the war and being forced to learn German during their stolen moments together. Louise did her best to teach him English, but her Japanese lessons were a lot more successful since she already had practice learning French and Italian long before being taken to Germany. Mori gifted her a few more toys but had to restrain himself since the keeper was bound to notice if the hiding place for them ever overflowed. Two years passed while their cautious friendship continued to grow, and before they were ready to accept it… well. Do I really need to come out and say it?" Haru asked with a sly smile as she place that photo and wooden doll on the mantel next to the first one.
"But they couldn't keep their secret forever. After Louise turned sixteen and Adrian had returned to the camp with a priest, the keeper found the hiding place while getting everything ready for her charge to finally leave the camp. Adrian was absolutely furious with her for 'cheating' on him and had even dared to slap her and almost break her arm to try to get the name of her 'lover' so that he could kill him, too. But Louise had no intention of giving him any such information," Haru informed them with a fierce pride. "He had killed enough of her loved ones, and she had no intention of letting him kill the only person giving her the strength to keep living instead of existing." Haru closed her eyes as she sunk to the floor, Muta automatically taking sole possession of her lap.
She gripped him tightly as if he were a toy himself. "Fortunately, Mori had suspected that this was the visit that Adrian had been planning to make since bringing Louise to the camp. She did not tell him about her true name, but he did know that Adrian was planning on forcing her into marriage. Because the others of his group were from the same hometown as himself, they had grown up together and had only grown closer thanks to their time in the war. So it wasn't hard for Mori to talk them into helping him save Louise with a quick but risky coup. Louise was too stubborn to give Adrian the pleasure of crying out when he hurt her, but Mori knew what a slap sounded like, and was not happy that creep was inflicting even more pain on the sweetest soul he had ever known."
Haru couldn't help the evil smirk that crossed her lips at how the brave soldier had handled the unworthy behavior. "Mori called out just loud enough to ensure that Adrian knew where he was and that he was the one that had given Louise her treasures. Adrian stormed out of the little house while pulling out a pistol to shoot him, but Mori's friends were already in position. Since there were plenty of German soldiers loyal to Adrian, they didn't dare open fire on the man and alert everyone in camp that there was a mutiny and rush to their leader's aide. Two rushed into the house to threaten the keeper long enough to gag her, knock her out and tie her up while the others used the blunt ends of their guns to beat Adrian to death. They needed to stuff a dirty sock down his throat to keep the creep from crying out for help. Louise insisted on running out of the house to watch. She had to explain to Mori's friends that Adrian had killed her family to make sure they didn't stop just because a lady was watching. Apparently near the end, that horrible Nazi looked like a pumpkin someone had filled with blood and threw out a third-story window," she purred wickedly as the cat on her lap did the same.
The crow flew off the chair he had been sitting on and landed on Haru's left shoulder before cawing happily and wrapping his large wing around Haru's head in a tight embrace as he lovingly preened her soft brown hair.
Haru was confused by how much the pair seemed to understand what she was saying and unused to that much weight on just one shoulder, but it didn't hamper her mood enough to hold back from using one hand to hug the cat and the other to gently rub those glossy black feathers. "For a demon crow, you sure have a deep appreciation for street justice."
His next caw was also on the wicked side, but Haru couldn't stop the story there.
"Louise went ahead and added that incident to the list of reasons she absolutely adored Mori. Because of the coup, all of them had to leave immediately if they wanted a shot at escaping retribution. Louise desperately wanted to return here to the manor to find out what exactly happened that night and to pay her final respects for the family she was stolen from. But thanks to the raging prejudices of the day, and the fact that Japanese soldiers would be very easy to spot, Mori and his friends had to escape, and at least find a safe place to hide until the search parties gave up on them. He understood why she needed the closure but suspected that at least one of Adrian's people would think to look where she had grown up for her, and a world war wasn't exactly the safest time for a beautiful young lady who'd never even held a gun in her life to be wandering around alone. Louise didn't want to be separated from Mori, and she felt so torn between her love for her family and the love she had found with Mori."
Haru closed her eyes to better imagine the bittersweet moment. "Since Mori worshipped everything about her, he got down on one knee right next to the beaten carcass of her worst enemy and swore to her that if she returned with him to Japan, he would not rest until he had earned enough money to take her back to the home she loved once it was safe to do so. He really did mean that, by the way," she added earnestly. "It took longer than expected to get back to Japan to keep anyone from finding out about his and his friends' war crime, if you want to call it that. Along the way they had gotten married, and Louise changed her name to Nachima Ichigo so that no one else would find out about the Drosselmeyer blood in her veins and try to hurt her or her beloved husband for it."
The crow and cat jerked in surprise before sharply looking up at the glass swan with a certain horror, fully understanding whose remains were held within.
Tohru must have guessed how Haru had gotten such details as soon as he heard the soldier's name, because he had actually managed to quiet down enough for Baron to loosen his hold and grudgingly let the wad of soggy tissues finally come loose, though it still dangled close to his face as a warning to stay silent.
Haru couldn't resist the urge to slump against the wall, though she was at least able to do it gently enough not to dislodge the large crow still gripping her shoulder. "I really want to end the story with 'and they all lived happily ever after'. Ichigo and Mori were plenty happy together, but I'm afraid their life was anything but easy. Mori never once forgot about his promise to bring his wife back to her childhood home, but the war had brought Japan to an economic collapse, and he had to work three jobs just to be able to feed both of them. Ichigo helped where she could by making and selling quilts as well as teaching piano to any children that had the money for lessons, though there weren't many takers for longer than she wished to remember. But she didn't teach any of them 'Once Upon a December'," Haru remembered to add while feeling a bit smug over the favoritism she had received from the woman. "She practiced it in empty churches when she was permitted in exchange for playing for choirs and religious services. She'd have loved to pass on the song, but never seemed to have a student that felt the same sacred respect for the last gift she was able to keep from her beloved uncle."
Muta rubbed his head underneath her still hand to remind her that he could do with a lot of affection right now.
She rubbed his head and ears while continuing to speak. "Unfortunately, no children blessed their marriage. Both of them desperately wanted at least one child of their own, but they couldn't so much as afford to visit a doctor to see if it was stress or a deeper medical reason why Ichigo could never conceive. What was even worse was that every time they managed to save up a decent amount of money intended for the trip back to England, it would always cue an emergency. Mori breaking a limb and not being able to work, their house getting robbed when out enjoying a rare evening with friends, just one thing after another. Mori had broken down crying more than once apologizing that he really did want to keep his word, but it was like the universe itself was putting up stumbling blocks for kicks and giggles. Ichigo understood since she struggled with him and was a part of saving up over the years, but it was hard not to be crushed every time her dream was snatched away from her. The worst of them all was many, many years later when Mori died of old age and stress. A majority of their funds went to his funeral, and Ichigo couldn't afford to stay in their apartment by herself for very long. The friends they'd had over the years had grown too old, too dependent on their children to help her much if they weren't already deceased."
Haru cuddled both the cat and crow tightly since she hated this next part almost as much as Louise's time in the Nazi camp. "By then the country had recovered from the war, but she was a lot older than the other people that wanted jobs, plus the people that could have written her recommendations were too busy with their own lives to offer help now. She soon lost her apartment she had shared with her husband and was forced to stay in homeless shelters as she relentlessly fought to find a way to provide for herself. She came close to losing hope many times, but she's always been a stubborn soul that never surrendered without a fight. When the time came for her to be reunited with her loved ones after her death, she wanted to tell them that she gave everything she could."
She finally smiled, though it was tired and wistful as the remaining toys and frame finally settled themselves on the mantel as well. The teenager gazed lovingly at the picture that depicted an old but dignified lady sitting next to a beaming little girl with soft brown hair. "She loved to tell me that I was her reward for surviving those terrible, lonely years."