NOTES: This is a sequel to my previous Rozen Maiden fic, Märchen. Although not essential, it would probably help to read that first, as there are elements from it that influence how this fic plays out. It is set years after Märchen, and can be considered a Season 4 story, as it follows the continuity of the original anime series. Updates will be completely random, and I have no idea how many episodes it will consist of, though with the story I have in mind it will probably be shorter than Märchen was.

Rozen Maiden: Erdgeist

EPISODE 1

Rewind

Tick-tock went the clock. Each turn of the gears measuring a moment in time. Tick-tock. Once upon a time he had found the sound soothing, but now his time was running out. Tick-tock. He had made a deal with the devil, and now it was time to pay the proverbial piper.

Tick-tock.

Wagner stood silently in the old clock shop and waited, while all around him hundreds of timepieces murmured softly, counting the seconds as they went by. Counting down the remaining seconds of his life. Indeed, he had only scant seconds left. But oh, he had a plan...

"Good evening, Doctor Wagner."

He turned and found himself face to face with his own personal fate - the demon, Mephisto. It took the form of a slender, anthropomorphic rabbit, with black fur and red eyes, wearing a pristine suit of dark crimson. Its voice was soft, yet sinister, its very presence radiating menace. It raised a gold pocket watch and glanced at the time, even though there were no shortage of clocks to be found in the old shop in which they stood.

"Prompt as always," said Wagner, doing his level best to remain calm. Mephisto snapped the pocket watch shut, its nose twitching.

"Indeed. Our agreement is almost at an end. I expect to be paid in full."

"Actually, I was hoping to offer an alternative."

Mephisto narrowed its eyes. "My dear Doctor, the terms of our arrangement were quite clear. In exchange for making you a Maestro, your soul would be mine after a set time had elapsed. That time is almost upon us. Your soul belongs to me."

Wagner removed a handkerchief from his jacket pocket and used it to mop his brow, which was beginning to sweat. "Quite. And I fully intend to honour that bargain, should you turn down my new offer. All I ask is that you hear me out. If you are not interested, by all means, take what is rightfully yours..."

Mephisto made a strange gesture. "Very well, I am listening."

He let out a deep breath. Perhaps this would work after all. "I sold my soul to you," he said, "that I do not deny. The transaction was made on the understanding that my soul had a certain value. What if I was to offer you something of even greater value in place of my soul?"

"Such as?"

"The Erdgeist."

Its ears twitched at that. It blinked slowly and tilted its head ever so slightly. "You know where it is?"

"No, but I know how to find it. All I ask is for a temporary reprieve. Grant me an extension upon our deal, and I promise to deliver it to you. You cannot deny that the value of it far exceeds that of my meagre soul."

The demon was silent for a time, the silence filled with the sound of time itself. Tick-tock. Wagner's heart pounded in his chest. Not only was his life on the line here, his very soul was at stake. Finally-

"Agreed," Mephisto answered. It raised a single gloved finger. "You have one month. I will come for you on Walpurgis Night. Whether I take possession of your soul or the Erdgeist ... is entirely up to you."

Wagner turned to leave. For his sake, it had better be the latter. He stopped when the black rabbit called out to him.

"Just out of curiosity, Doctor; how do you intend to locate it?"

He turned back and grinned. "I happen to know the one man in all the world that found it."

"Who might that be?"

"An old acquaintance of mine ... named Rozen."

Celia Delacroix was not having the time of her life. It was bad enough that she was a homeless orphan, but being only nine years old didn't exactly make things any easier. She was so hungry. The hunger gnawed at her every moment, making it difficult to think of anything else. At least it helped distract her from how cold, dirty and smelly she was. She had been walking for over a week, with nothing but the clothes on her back. She couldn't remember the last time she'd had a bath, or something proper to eat. Only hope kept her going. The hope of her destination. When at long last she arrived, it was all she could do not to collapse.

Lebensbaum - a ghost town. She'd read about it. At one time it had been a thriving, vibrant place, but something had happened that drove everyone from it. What that was, no one could say. None of the materials she had read could explain why. It was simply an uninhabited, forgotten town. People avoided it. More to the point, it was a place full of intact, undamaged houses, where no one would ever think to look for her. From what she had read, people had left it in a hurry, so there was every chance that there might be some preserved food that she could scavenge as well.

That's what she told herself, at any rate. Whether it was true or just a pipe dream, she would soon find out. She had entered through the East Gate - the ruins of an old wall still circled parts of the town, a leftover from an earlier time. As she wandered down one of the empty streets, she shivered, and not from the cold. The place was downright spooky. It was sunset, and everything had a red glow to it, but the complete absence of people in a place that would normally be teeming created a deeply unsettling air of abandonment. Celia had a sudden urge to find somewhere to stay, and fast. She did not want to be wandering around when it was dark.

"Well then," she whispered, her voice hoarse, "I might as well pick the biggest, fanciest house there is. If I'm going to stay, I may as well stay in style."

As it happened, there was a grand house on a hill at the edge of town, clearly visible from where she was. The thing was practically a mansion, with it's own grounds and everything. Probably the mayor's house or somesuch. Either way, it was an easy choice, so Celia set off on aching feet towards it. The path leading to it went uphill, and she was already exhausted, but she was determined as well. She'd come all this way, she was hardly going to give up right at the end of her journey.

"Wow."

Standing on the paved garden path, Celia gaped at the grand house. In contrast to the run down, abandoned look of all the other buildings in town, this place seemed brand new. Not a weed in sight, grass neatly trimmed, windows gleaming. It wouldn't be out of place in a major bustling city, but in a ghost town where everything else was old and dirty, it stuck out like a sore thumb. Was someone living here? Perhaps she wasn't the first person to hit on the idea of hiding out in Lebensbaum. Whether that was a good or bad thing depended entirely on who, if anyone, was inside.

She knocked, got no answer, knocked again, then opened the front door and stepped inside. The interior was just as clean and pristine as the exterior, and it was clear the house was not abandoned. Somebody was living here, and doing a damn good job of keeping it tidy and spotless. Celia tried to call out, but her throat was so dry that all she could manage was a weak croak. As if on cue her stomach made a rumbling noise, reminding her that she was probably only minutes away from fainting due to a combination of hunger and exhaustion.

Well then, in that case she would raid the kitchen. That way, if the inhabitants of the house wanted her to leave, she could at least do so on a full stomach. It wouldn't be the first time she stole food to survive.

Finding the kitchen was easier said than done. The house was huge, and contained rooms that Celia couldn't even see the point to. In the course of her search, she discovered a peculiar room that she hazarded a guess to be a gallery of some description, though it had some odd features to be sure. It was a long, rectangular chamber, with three display cases along one wall, and three along the opposite wall. Inside each glass display case was a wooden ... suitcase? Each of which had gold highlights and a small rose design upon the lid.

Celia approached one of them and peered close at a gold plaque on the front. Engraved upon it were the words Mercury Lamp. The next one contained the word Kanarienvogel. The suitcase inside that one was open, and apparently empty as far as she could see. Every other case was closed, though, and she itched to open one of them and see what was inside, but hunger compelled her to move on.

At long last she found the kitchen, but was too shocked to begin rummaging around for food. Seated at the kitchen table was what at first glance she believed to be a small child, with curly grey hair and a bright yellow jacket. On closer inspection, it proved to be an astonishingly lifelike doll, larger and more detailed than any she had ever seen before. Its skin was even soft to touch. It sat slumped in the chair with its eyes closed, as if sleeping. On the table in front of it was a small metal key, like the sort used to wind clocks, and a scrap of paper. Celia picked it up and read the message written on it aloud.

"Please wind me." She lowered the paper and stared at the doll. "Huh. Weird."

As tired, cold and incredibly hungry as she was, Celia's curiosity compelled her to do what the note suggested. She lifted the doll from its seat and looked it over. Sure enough, there was a small hole in the back to insert the key. She did so, and began to wind the doll, faint mechanical clicking noises sounding from each turn of the key. Finally it wouldn't turn any further, so Celia set the key down and held the doll at arms length.

Nothing happened.

"Lame," she said, and dropped it on the table. She made straight for the fridge, a modern looking thing that could only be a few years old at most. When she opened it, the interior light came on, handily informing her that the house had power. How that was so she couldn't imagine, but she wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth. It was also well stocked, and she almost cried with joy at the sight of so much food.

There was a noise behind her. Celia froze. The noise continued. Slowly, she turned around, dreading what she might see. The doll was standing on the table, glowing. The bright aura of light gradually faded, and the doll opened its eyes ... and looked straight at her.

Celia fainted.