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It has been a few days after Fakir was successful in writing a story that made Duck human again. After years of trying or in some cases not trying. Although she had been content, enough, at least that’s how it seemed to Fakir. However as a duck she did miss being a girl. Oh how she missed being human. Being able to eat yummy food, being able to talk especially with Fakir, and most of all she missed dancing. The first thing she did after she became human again was asking Fakir to dance with her.
Fakir missed her more than she missed being human. And she missed being human so much. He wouldn’t leave her alone and would accompany her anywhere. Even right here at a pub with Pique and Lillie who she was trying to reconnect with. And who were encouraging her to drink as much as she could. She was already drunk as a skunk. And her friends were still egging her into drinking more.
It got to a point where she could barely stand on her own and she went to leaning on Fakir for support. Fakir tried to look around for Pique and Lillie but they were nowhere to be found. He looks down at his right shoulder and the girl who had her face buried in it, “Fakir!!!!! Why aren’t ya drinkin’?! Yer makin me real lonely over here!” She says as she nuzzles her face into his shoulder further. He slightly pushes her away from his body, but because of how drunk she was and because he underestimated his own strength he ended up accidentally pushing her over. She starts crying.
Stupid girl, if only she hadn’t drunk so much. He thinks to himself, “Idiot! If I had known you’d start acting like this after I made you human again I’d have left you on that pond as a duck. Hell, maybe I should just turn you back as a punishment for getting so drunk,” he was half joking and half serious. He was so glad she was human again and would never actually turn her back. But he also wished she hadn’t drunk so much. He was also just trying to scare her a little out of drinking so much next time with a little empty threat.
She starts crying even harder, “NO!!! Please don’t turn me back into a duck! I won’t be able to dance again, or eat bread, or go out with Pique and Lillie, or be able to talk to you! I DON’T WANNA BE A STUPID DUCK!!!”
Fakir was shocked. He hadn’t realized just how much her time after the story as a duck had affected her. Clearly he was a fool to think otherwise since it obviously had affected her very deeply. Of course it had he thinks to himself. She was left all alone when he didn’t come to visit her and no one even remembered her or her sacrifice that wasn’t him or who still lived in town in the case of Rue and Mytho. Right now here she was trying to rebuild lost friendships with her two previous best friends. And he had ruined that for her by threatening to send her back to the worst time in her life.
Fakir felt like such a huge jerk, which he guessed he was after what he just threatened to do to the love of his life. Duck is still on the floor of the pub crying. The worst part of him lingering in the far back of his heart indulges turning her into a duck just to make her shut up for a second. He throws that idea out the second he has it. He doesn’t want to be that person anymore. Another part of him is telling him to comfort her, to pick her up and explain to her that he would never turn her back into a duck and it was just a terrible and unfunny “joke” on his part. But that doesn’t take away the fact he still made the joke.
He gets down on his knees to join Duck on the floor of the pub, “Hey Duck?… I was just joking…” he reaches out a hand to touch her. She flinches away from him. His heart breaks, she’s scared of him. Actually scared of him. He understands now why the bookmen were so scared of Drosselmeyer and his power that they cut off his hands and killed him.
Not sure what else to do he kinda just takes a seat on the floor next to her in shame. She’s gone from full crocodile tears to small whimpers.
“Hey we’re back from the toilets,” Pique looks at the red haired girl on the floor and the young man next to her “Ah man looks like our plan didn’t work out.”
“Oh she’s so pathetic whimpering there on the floor! How cute!”
“I… what? What plan?” Fakir says genuinely confused.
While Lillie was going on and on about how miserable and this by her standards cute Duck was Pique actually explained what was meant by “plan.” “Well although we haven’t known Duck for too long it’s clear she’s in love with you, for some reason? Didn’t you push someone out a window when we were in school? I literally think that’s what killed my crush on you. I can’t remember who but I do remember you did it. But we still wanted to help isn’t that right Lillie? Lillie was too busy cooing over Duck’s miserable form on the pub floor to respond “So we decided to give her some good old liquid courage.”
Lillie is “comforting” Duck by putting her into a bridal carry and telling her how she will make it “all better.” Fakir is slightly shocked by how strong Lillie apparently is. “Here you go! Make her miserable for me! She’ll be so cute!” Fakir was slightly scared of and very mad at this deranged blonde girl that used to be Duck’s friend. Even Pique seemed surprisingly unfazed by the fact he made a girl cry so hard. But still he took the girl into his arms when Lillie offered her up to him.
Upon thinking about it he shouldn’t be too surprised. She was given these friends by Drosselmeyer and his power and he knew how the old coot could be. Come to think of it even more both Lillie and Drosselmeyer were obsessed with others’ suffering, huh. Fakir started to wonder if that was related at all. He was brought out of his thoughts by Duck looking up and him from her position in his arms and crying full force again.
“I’m sorry I was bad. I’ll never drink ever again, just please don’t turn me back into a duck…” she begs. His heart feels like it’s breaking all over again.
He sighs “Idiot,” she cries even harder, “Duck. I’m sorry, that was uncalled for. I’m not turning you back into a duck, ok?”
She huffs some snot back into her nose, “you promise?”
“I promise,” he starts the long road home from the pub to Charon’s smithy.
The next morning Duck wakes up with a pounding in her head. It hurts so much it takes her ten minutes to realize she is in Fakir’s bed and that he’s right next to her. Actually no, that’s not right, she is behind him with her hips squarely pressed against his and her face in his back. Because of how small she is and because of his dark green hair she can’t help but compare them snuggling like this to a koala latching onto a eucalyptus tree.
At this point she starts flailing around out of confusion and accidentally wakes up a very confused Fakir. “Hey id-,” he suddenly stops himself. Huh Duck can’t help but think. Since when does he not call her an idiot whenever she does something dumb? “Duck! It’s alright, what’s wrong?”
“M’head hurts real bad” she whines pathetically from her position sitting on his bed.
“You’re hungover, it’s what happens when you drink too much.”
“Oh…,” she looks around. “Hey wait a second. Why am I in your bed?” She goes bright red, thoughts running wild with the possibilities.
“Because you cried when I tried to put you on the couch,” she was also scared that’d he write a story to turn her back into a duck if he left her on the couch and he went to his room where his writing desk was. But he didn’t want to put that idea into her head so she left that out.
He had set up a small sleeping roll for her but at some point in the night she crawled into his bed and woke him up. He didn’t want to upset her any more than he already had that night so he accepted his fate and let her cuddle him. He saw it as one of the many ways he was going to make it up to her.
“Oh I do not remember that at all,” she scratches her head as if that would help her remember. “Or any of last night really. Let alone why I was crying. But I do remember I was really scared. I remember the feelings, but not what caused them,” she’s slightly embarrassed to admit this.
Fakir considered leaving it at that but he knew that Duck deserved better, “That was my fault. As a joke I threatened to use my powers to turn you back into a duck. I hadn’t realized how much of an effect your time as a duck after the story had affected you. I’m so sorry Duck.” His eyes start to water.
Duck’s face goes blank for a second. It’s like she’s not sure how to react. He’d understand if he can’t forgive him. “Oh… that’s ok Fakir you didn’t know.” She doesn’t know what else to say. Would Fakir ever actually turn her back if he was mad with her? She didn’t think he would. But a part of her was still rather hurt he’d even make a joke about it, but it was just that, a joke.
He’s full on crying now, “No Duck it’s not ok! That’d be like if you made a joke about my parents. I’d be devastated if someone I… cared for joked about my parents’ death,” he doesn’t feel worthy of her to say he loves her. Even if he truly does love her.
“Well it’s not like I remember most of it,” that’s just like her. Trying to absolve others of their guilt. Even when they don’t deserve it.
“But Duck, I still said it. Even if I never meant to hurt you I still said it, and you were still hurt by it,” he gently wraps his arms around her back, slowly enough for her to reject it if she wants, and draws her head to his chest. He does it partly to comfort her, partly so she can’t see him crying.
“Fakir… yes that really scared me and it still does. And I can barely even remember it. But you just made a mistake that’s all. I make mistakes all the time! …Just please never make a joke like that ever again,” now just like him she is crying, but she is crying at the thought of someone she was falling for hurting her in such a way.
“I’ll never threaten to use my powers on you ever again. I promise. I’m so so sorry Duck,” he starts gently rocking them back and forth in an attempt to comfort them both.
“Thank you for apologizing.”
“It’s not enough.”
Fakir would then spend the next month trying to make it up to Duck. She already forgave him when he promised to never joke about using his powers on her ever again. Because just like his promise to her at the bottom of the Lake of Despair, she knew he would keep it.