Princess Tutu Fan Fiction ❯ L'auteur et le canard ❯ Chapter 1 ( Chapter 1 )

Once upon a time a man died. The story he wrote pinned a monster raven and a prince in a eternal battle and tragedy. When the story ceased to progress he brought in a little duck, a duck who cared for the prince above her own interest. Yet, the prince chose another girl for his princess and rode away into the horizon. But this isn't their story, it's the story of the ones the left behind - the knight who abandoned his sword for a pen, and duck turned girl turned princess who gave that up and returned to a duck to save her prince.

 

Fakir sat in his chair on the dock beside Ahiru's lake as the sun beamed down from above. Months had passed since the monster raven was destroyed and months since Mythos and Rue disappeared from their lives forever. Fakir had long since finished the story of the town, a happy ending giving each of its citizens the freedom to determine their own fates.

 

A light “quack quack quack” from his left drew his gaze as he watched his Ahiru splash and swim in the lake. Happy as a duck could be.

 

All of the stories I can write and all of the things I can make come true, but all I want is to bring you back to me, Ahiru.

 

Frustrated once again he threw down his paper and quill onto the deck. The noise startled Ahiru and drew her attention up.

 

“Quack?” Fakir? “Qua-quack?” Is something wrong?

 

Standing he walked to the end of the dock and sat down, staring down at Ahiru, who swam to the edge of the dock to be near to him.

 

“If only I could understand you. To know what you want, so I can write your story. I've given this whole town their happy ending, everyone but you.”

 

Staring up into his gaze, Ahiru saw sadness and longing in the eyes that bore into her soul.

 

“QUACK!!” I want to be Ahiru again! “Quack quack quack quack” I want to be able to dance with everyone again! To be a human girl again.

 

Ahiru began to choke on the sobs that wracked her little body, as tears swam down her face. He wanted to write her story and she wanted only that so badly, but she couldn't tell him and she couldn't be reborn as Princess Tutu or as Ahiru because that jewel was returned. She gave it up because she had to and she knew it wasn't coming back.

 

The sobs stopped as Ahiru looked up, Fakir had reached down and pulled her from the water and held her to him. Hugging her and calming her, making the tears stop.

 

“I know. I promise you, you will get your happy ending.”

 

Placing her back in the water, he stood. “I'm going for a walk and then back to Charon's. Come home whenever you're ready, okay?” Gazing down at her he smiled, a sad but truly genuine smile.

 

Nodding, Ahiru watched him walk away towards town. As he walked further away a sense of longing seeped into her heart, a feeling she couldn't explain and couldn't describe. It was just there. Shrugging it off as only Ahiru can, she turned and swam around the lake again, enjoying the feeling of being a duck once more.

 

I've written her story a thousand times. It's the only story I can write, and yet it won't come true.

 

Fakir lost himself in thought as he walked through the streets of the town. Familiar faces waved at him as he walked by and he acknowledged each one as he walked.

 

“Why can't I bring her back to me?” whispering to himself a question he hoped someone would answer.

 

Snapping out of his thoughts, a familiar banging sound could be heard in the distance. Uzura?

 

Breaking into a sprint, Fakir rushed towards the sound of his old friend. As the sound grew louder he began to see her in the distance, the small little puppet stood before a tree in the park, hitting her little drum as always.

 

“FAKIR-zura!”

 

Stopping before her, he knelt and hugged the little puppet as she smiled and hugged him back. Pulling away he stared and looked down at her.

 

“What are you doing here? You disappeared months ago, when the story ended.”

 

“Drosselmeyer and I left-zura. We went looking for a new story.”

 

“A new story to meddle with?!”

 

Uzura's voice changed, as she spoke again. Not the voice of the young, curious little puppet, but the older and wiser Edel-san. “No, to watch. You destroyed his machine, he cannot spin tales anymore”

 

“Edel-san?”

 

“Uzura and I are one being, she found my spirit when she entered Drosselmeyer's world and I remained with her.”

 

“So why are you back? Does that mean Drosselmeyer is back as well?!”

 

“No, he continued moving on. He doesn't like the happy ending you wrote here, he wants drama and tragedy. We came back to help you write your finest story yet.”

 

“My finest story?” Confusion riddled Fakir's features as he stared down at the wise words coming from the small confused puppet.

 

“Ahiru's story”

 

“What?! B-but I can't write that story. I've tried before. I, I can't bring her back!”

 

“That's because it's not just her story Fakir, it's yours too.”

 

The happy chipper voice returned as Edel-san's faded. “Your love-love story!”

 

Falling backwards as the little puppet blatantly spewed forth those words, his face turned beet red.

 

“Fakir needs help-zura! Help to write his own story!”

 

“Help? From who? You?”

 

“No, no. Not from Uzura or Edel-san -zura. From the Princey and Princessy -zura!” Bouncing up, Uzura began to pound on her little snare drum once again.

 

“What do you mean? From Mythos and Rue? But they left so long ago. We haven't seen or heard from them in ages. We don't even know where they went.”

 

“Then write them back” Edel-san's voice whispered in the air as Uzura walked on, back towards Charon's house.

 

Write them back. But I set them free. How do I write them back?

 

Questions swam in his head as he walked home, blindly following the sound of Uzura's drum. His walk was meant to clear his mind, to answer his questions, not to create more.

 

Now what do I do?

 

So our story ends for today. What awaits us tomorrow? A happy ending? A sad ending? Or maybe...?