31_days: The Soldiers
Title: The Soldiers
Day/Theme: December 12th / Collecting memories in a rainbow pot
Series: Princess Tutu
Character/Pairing: Fakir, Charon, Reitzel, Mytho
Rating: G
The Soldiers
A prince, Fakir decided long ago, needs an army. So he went to Charon and he said, "I need to buy Mytho an army."
Charon had looked surprised, but Charon only replied, "Where will you get the coin to pay them with?"
"I don't know," Fakir admitted. "I hoped you might." And he smiled up at Charon with a large and innocent smile.
Charon sighed and mopped at his brow. "All right, Fakir." And he smiled back. "When I need errands run, I will call you, and I will pay you one silver coin every time. Is that all right?"
Fakir grinned happily. "Yes!"
And so it was that when Fakir was not talking to Mytho or reading his books, he would run to the smithy and ask Charon if he needed any errands run, and Charon would always have a job for him. It could be as small as pouring a glass of water for Charon, or it could be as important a job as carrying a letter to a customer, telling them that their chair or sword or whatever marvellous thing Charon had created for them was ready. Fakir liked running around the streets of Gold Crown Town with those letters, because he felt important. He also liked Gold Crown Town. Fakir thought it was a very pretty town, with its clever little shops and its pretty streets. He liked to lean over the side of the bridge and watch the water trickle past him all the way to the sea, which Charon told him was wide and huge and blue, but he never hung there for very long. He had to buy an army, so he ran on and on.
One night, on the day of the Fire Festival, he had to run a letter for Charon, and he had almost slowed his steps so he could watch the festival decorations go up in dazzling russets and golds and greens, but he had a Duty, and so he only slowed a very little bit.
Duty was very important to a knight, Charon had told him, and Fakir always kept it in mind. Fakir had found Mytho in rags, which meant that he was a prince who had fallen on hard times and had to rely on others' goodwill to survive, like Charon's. That was why Fakir had to look for an army and earn money to pay for it. A prince had princelier things to do than look for an army on his own, so the prince's knight had to do it for him!
When Charon gave Fakir his first silver coin, Fakir beamed. "With one silver coin," he said to himself, "I can buy one soldier." So Fakir knew he had to keep his silver coin very carefully, away from the prying eyes of goblins and magpies who would steal the coin given the first chance. At first he hid the coin in one of his socks, and when he got a second silver coin from Charon, he put it with the first coin, and whenever he shook the sock, they clinked together like music. He did not know what to do with his other sock, so he left it in his drawer until one day he was almost out of socks.
That day, Reitzel had said she would give Fakir a silver coin if Fakir would run to the flower shop and get Reitzel a bouquet of lilies. She gave Fakir three silver coins and five copper coins to buy the flowers. Fakir closed his hand carefully over the money so that they could not be seen by the goblin and magpie thieves, and he kept his fist tightly closed until he reached the shop. "Fakir," said Reitzel as she dropped a silver coin into his eager palm. "Where do you keep your silver coins?"
"I can't tell you," Fakir said. "Or thieves might hear where they are and steal them."
"Oh!" Reitzel laughed. "Maybe you can whisper it in my ear."
Fakir trusted Reitzel, so he knew the silver coins would be all right if he whispered it in her ear. Reitzel looked thoughtful. "What will happen when you run out of socks?" she asked. Fakir admitted sheepishly that he was almost out of socks. Reitzel clucked her tongue. "That won't do," she said. "I'll tell you what: I'll give you a glass jar to keep the money in. That way you won't run out of socks."
"But glass jars are see-through," Fakir protested. He liked the idea, though. Coins in glass jars were a lot more musical than coins in socks. "The goblins would see my coins and steal them away for their own evil use!"
"We can't have that!" Reitzel exclaimed. It was a problem, and they both sat down to think hard about it. "I know," Reitzel said suddenly. "I shall paint the jar for you, in rainbow stripes so that the thieving goblins will be confused about which way to turn the lid, and then you would have a jar and all your socks."
Fakir was cheered by this solution, and Reitzel painted the jar that night so Fakir could use it the next day. She told him she was happy to do it for free, but Fakir insisted on giving her back her silver coin. "A good knight always repays his debts," he declared stubbornly, so Reitzel had no choice but to take it back. Now Fakir had his socks and a jar for his silver coins. He needed an army.
He found the army one day when he was running home from delivering a letter. The wind was warm against his face, and he laughed as it tugged at his hair, twisting his head sideways so it would stop. A shop window caught his eye, and he stopped suddenly. It was a toyshop. Fakir decided to go in and see.
There were many marvellous toys in the shop, bears attired in fairy pinks and sailor blues, golliwogs in their tidy suits. There was a big rocking horse that Fakir immediately named Clipclop, and dolls for girls that he did not look at for very long. He saw a little train on railway tracks, and he imagined it chugging around and around, picking up tiny passengers and letting them off. He started towards it, but in the corner of his eye, he saw a neat red coat and blue trousers. He blinked and turned to look. There, in a corner of the shop, was a painted soldier on a box. Fakir picked his feet up to take a better look. It was a wooden box, and when Fakir carefully slid the lid off, rows of tin soldiers stared back at him. It wasn't enough for a true army, but it was big enough for a start! Fakir asked the shopkeeper how much the toy soldiers cost.
"Twenty-four silver coins," said the shopkeeper. "One for each soldier." That sounded exactly right to Fakir.
"I think I have four-and-twenty silver coins at home," he said to the shopkeeper. "Can I run home and get them?"
The shopkeeper nodded, and Fakir sped off. He had to run fast! In stories, people who wanted things very badly would find them in shops, and they would hurry to earn the money to buy them, but when they got back, someone else would have already beaten them to buying the thing. Fakir was determined that it would not happen to Mytho's army.
The cobbles pushed against the soles of his feet as he burst out of the smithy with barely a word to the bewildered Charon, carrying the rainbow jar of silver coins. The wind hurried him on too, puffing at his back and blowing hair into his face. When he reached the shop, he glanced to the toy soldiers on the shop's counter and was very happy to see them still there. Fakir snatched the lid of the rainbow jar open and poured his silver coins before the shopkeeper, who counted them carefully. He nodded and handed the box of tin soldiers to a grinning Fakir. As Fakir danced out of the shop, another boy entered. "I'm very sorry," he heard the shopkeeper say behind him, "but the box of soldiers has just been--" The door jangled shut behind Fakir.
"I found you an army," Fakir said to Mytho. "Look!" He scattered the box of tin soldiers in Mytho's lap.
"Oh," said Mytho. Fakir was used to it.
"We will protect you," Fakir promised. "Because I am your knight and this is your army."
"I see," said Mytho. Fakir's grin was still very very wide, which wasn't proper for a solemn moment, but Fakir didn't feel very solemn.
That night, Fakir dreamed of red-coated soldiers marching in neat rows behind him, and they laid waste to the enemy. Fakir's horse rocked forward and forward, trampling evil ravens with its ebony rockers as its straw coloured hair flew like a banner or a pennant in the wind. At his side rode the Prince in all his splendid finery, and Fakir knew he and his army would die before Mytho ever could.
But the very next day, there was a fire. Mytho almost died to save a little worthless bird.
Fakir was unhappy. He wanted to stay at Mytho's side, but the doctor spoke hushed words to Charon, and Charon ushered Fakir out. Fakir went to his room, where he had put the tin soldiers on the shelf the night before, and he looked at them, shiny and new in their bright, painted clothes and faces. He closed the lid and flung the box across the room, where it knocked against the wall. A corner splintered.
The rainbow jar had stood next to the soldiers, and it was empty now. Fakir had spent a silver coin on it. The rainbow jar was one of the useless army too. Fakir almost sent it hurling after the box, but Reitzel had made it and he did not want to make her sadder.
When Mytho woke up, Fakir was at his side. "From now on," he said. "You will listen to me, and you will do whatever I tell you." I will protect you.
Angst is delicious.
Allusions to The Brave Tin Soldier are deliberate.
A FIC WITHOUT FAKIR/AHIRU? IT'S MORE LIKELY THAN YOU THINK.
Day/Theme: December 12th / Collecting memories in a rainbow pot
Series: Princess Tutu
Character/Pairing: Fakir, Charon, Reitzel, Mytho
Rating: G
The Soldiers
A prince, Fakir decided long ago, needs an army. So he went to Charon and he said, "I need to buy Mytho an army."
Charon had looked surprised, but Charon only replied, "Where will you get the coin to pay them with?"
"I don't know," Fakir admitted. "I hoped you might." And he smiled up at Charon with a large and innocent smile.
Charon sighed and mopped at his brow. "All right, Fakir." And he smiled back. "When I need errands run, I will call you, and I will pay you one silver coin every time. Is that all right?"
Fakir grinned happily. "Yes!"
And so it was that when Fakir was not talking to Mytho or reading his books, he would run to the smithy and ask Charon if he needed any errands run, and Charon would always have a job for him. It could be as small as pouring a glass of water for Charon, or it could be as important a job as carrying a letter to a customer, telling them that their chair or sword or whatever marvellous thing Charon had created for them was ready. Fakir liked running around the streets of Gold Crown Town with those letters, because he felt important. He also liked Gold Crown Town. Fakir thought it was a very pretty town, with its clever little shops and its pretty streets. He liked to lean over the side of the bridge and watch the water trickle past him all the way to the sea, which Charon told him was wide and huge and blue, but he never hung there for very long. He had to buy an army, so he ran on and on.
One night, on the day of the Fire Festival, he had to run a letter for Charon, and he had almost slowed his steps so he could watch the festival decorations go up in dazzling russets and golds and greens, but he had a Duty, and so he only slowed a very little bit.
Duty was very important to a knight, Charon had told him, and Fakir always kept it in mind. Fakir had found Mytho in rags, which meant that he was a prince who had fallen on hard times and had to rely on others' goodwill to survive, like Charon's. That was why Fakir had to look for an army and earn money to pay for it. A prince had princelier things to do than look for an army on his own, so the prince's knight had to do it for him!
When Charon gave Fakir his first silver coin, Fakir beamed. "With one silver coin," he said to himself, "I can buy one soldier." So Fakir knew he had to keep his silver coin very carefully, away from the prying eyes of goblins and magpies who would steal the coin given the first chance. At first he hid the coin in one of his socks, and when he got a second silver coin from Charon, he put it with the first coin, and whenever he shook the sock, they clinked together like music. He did not know what to do with his other sock, so he left it in his drawer until one day he was almost out of socks.
That day, Reitzel had said she would give Fakir a silver coin if Fakir would run to the flower shop and get Reitzel a bouquet of lilies. She gave Fakir three silver coins and five copper coins to buy the flowers. Fakir closed his hand carefully over the money so that they could not be seen by the goblin and magpie thieves, and he kept his fist tightly closed until he reached the shop. "Fakir," said Reitzel as she dropped a silver coin into his eager palm. "Where do you keep your silver coins?"
"I can't tell you," Fakir said. "Or thieves might hear where they are and steal them."
"Oh!" Reitzel laughed. "Maybe you can whisper it in my ear."
Fakir trusted Reitzel, so he knew the silver coins would be all right if he whispered it in her ear. Reitzel looked thoughtful. "What will happen when you run out of socks?" she asked. Fakir admitted sheepishly that he was almost out of socks. Reitzel clucked her tongue. "That won't do," she said. "I'll tell you what: I'll give you a glass jar to keep the money in. That way you won't run out of socks."
"But glass jars are see-through," Fakir protested. He liked the idea, though. Coins in glass jars were a lot more musical than coins in socks. "The goblins would see my coins and steal them away for their own evil use!"
"We can't have that!" Reitzel exclaimed. It was a problem, and they both sat down to think hard about it. "I know," Reitzel said suddenly. "I shall paint the jar for you, in rainbow stripes so that the thieving goblins will be confused about which way to turn the lid, and then you would have a jar and all your socks."
Fakir was cheered by this solution, and Reitzel painted the jar that night so Fakir could use it the next day. She told him she was happy to do it for free, but Fakir insisted on giving her back her silver coin. "A good knight always repays his debts," he declared stubbornly, so Reitzel had no choice but to take it back. Now Fakir had his socks and a jar for his silver coins. He needed an army.
He found the army one day when he was running home from delivering a letter. The wind was warm against his face, and he laughed as it tugged at his hair, twisting his head sideways so it would stop. A shop window caught his eye, and he stopped suddenly. It was a toyshop. Fakir decided to go in and see.
There were many marvellous toys in the shop, bears attired in fairy pinks and sailor blues, golliwogs in their tidy suits. There was a big rocking horse that Fakir immediately named Clipclop, and dolls for girls that he did not look at for very long. He saw a little train on railway tracks, and he imagined it chugging around and around, picking up tiny passengers and letting them off. He started towards it, but in the corner of his eye, he saw a neat red coat and blue trousers. He blinked and turned to look. There, in a corner of the shop, was a painted soldier on a box. Fakir picked his feet up to take a better look. It was a wooden box, and when Fakir carefully slid the lid off, rows of tin soldiers stared back at him. It wasn't enough for a true army, but it was big enough for a start! Fakir asked the shopkeeper how much the toy soldiers cost.
"Twenty-four silver coins," said the shopkeeper. "One for each soldier." That sounded exactly right to Fakir.
"I think I have four-and-twenty silver coins at home," he said to the shopkeeper. "Can I run home and get them?"
The shopkeeper nodded, and Fakir sped off. He had to run fast! In stories, people who wanted things very badly would find them in shops, and they would hurry to earn the money to buy them, but when they got back, someone else would have already beaten them to buying the thing. Fakir was determined that it would not happen to Mytho's army.
The cobbles pushed against the soles of his feet as he burst out of the smithy with barely a word to the bewildered Charon, carrying the rainbow jar of silver coins. The wind hurried him on too, puffing at his back and blowing hair into his face. When he reached the shop, he glanced to the toy soldiers on the shop's counter and was very happy to see them still there. Fakir snatched the lid of the rainbow jar open and poured his silver coins before the shopkeeper, who counted them carefully. He nodded and handed the box of tin soldiers to a grinning Fakir. As Fakir danced out of the shop, another boy entered. "I'm very sorry," he heard the shopkeeper say behind him, "but the box of soldiers has just been--" The door jangled shut behind Fakir.
"I found you an army," Fakir said to Mytho. "Look!" He scattered the box of tin soldiers in Mytho's lap.
"Oh," said Mytho. Fakir was used to it.
"We will protect you," Fakir promised. "Because I am your knight and this is your army."
"I see," said Mytho. Fakir's grin was still very very wide, which wasn't proper for a solemn moment, but Fakir didn't feel very solemn.
That night, Fakir dreamed of red-coated soldiers marching in neat rows behind him, and they laid waste to the enemy. Fakir's horse rocked forward and forward, trampling evil ravens with its ebony rockers as its straw coloured hair flew like a banner or a pennant in the wind. At his side rode the Prince in all his splendid finery, and Fakir knew he and his army would die before Mytho ever could.
But the very next day, there was a fire. Mytho almost died to save a little worthless bird.
Fakir was unhappy. He wanted to stay at Mytho's side, but the doctor spoke hushed words to Charon, and Charon ushered Fakir out. Fakir went to his room, where he had put the tin soldiers on the shelf the night before, and he looked at them, shiny and new in their bright, painted clothes and faces. He closed the lid and flung the box across the room, where it knocked against the wall. A corner splintered.
The rainbow jar had stood next to the soldiers, and it was empty now. Fakir had spent a silver coin on it. The rainbow jar was one of the useless army too. Fakir almost sent it hurling after the box, but Reitzel had made it and he did not want to make her sadder.
When Mytho woke up, Fakir was at his side. "From now on," he said. "You will listen to me, and you will do whatever I tell you." I will protect you.
Angst is delicious.
Allusions to The Brave Tin Soldier are deliberate.
A FIC WITHOUT FAKIR/AHIRU? IT'S MORE LIKELY THAN YOU THINK.