Robin awoke with his head pounding. He felt like he'd been through the most strenuous workout imaginable, but when he stretched his arms he found that they weren't covered in the bruises he'd expected.

He stood up, feeling more alive than he ever had. Maybe it was just surprise, expecting his whole body to be sore and finding it as fresh and alive as ever. But he felt great. He just about had time to take that in before his attention was drawn to an ornate light fixture overhead, six tiny bulbs in a copper and glass arrangement like a tiny chandelier. It certainly wasn't one of the fixtures in his own house, which led him to wonder where he was.

It looked like a child's room, that was his first impression. Everything was brightly coloured, and there was a suffusion of pastel images that must have come from whatever cartoons were currently popular. If a child lived here then they must have more discipline than any he had met, to maintain this level of tidiness. There was a calendar neatly standing on the desk, and a photo frame, but no unfinished books, or homework, or whatever the brats might fill their time with. The DVDs arranged on the bookshelf were all in order. This was a room for a child, then, but not where one actually lived.

He pushed the door open, and stepped out into the hallway. He was still in his clothes, which he was glad of because it meant he wouldn't have to come out wearing the shockingly pink bathrobe hanging forlorn next to the door. It looked like it was made out of recycled petticoats, some leftover from a bygone era, and he thought he would probably have been happier searching for a bathroom in his birthday suit if that had been the only other option.

There was someone standing outside in the hallway. A tall guy, pretty effeminate looking. Robin might have taken him for a woman, if it wasn't for the loose robe revealing much more of his chest than any normal person would want to see.

"Is there a bathroom somewhere around here?" Robin asked, averting his eyes. "Wherever here is?"

"Sorry, this is my house. We figured we'd better bring you back here, wasn't sure if you'd be okay after that fight."

Robin nodded, and followed the pointing finger. He didn't want to think about last night just yet. The bathroom was clean, and the bottles in the shelves and the medicine cabinet were all neatly arranged in rows. This looked like the home of someone more than a little obsessed with order. But as quirks went, that could be pretty harmless. There was a kid's toothbrush on a shelf, as well, a bright pink thing with green bristles, but it looked to be brand new. The more he looked around, the more Robin was thinking of this as the home of someone who had a child visiting occasionally, and desperately wished it could be more often. More clues, more questions, but nothing that shed any light on the events of the previous night.

When he came back out into the hallway, the effeminate guy was still there. He seemed to have gained two mugs of coffee, though, and offered one without another word. He'd put a shirt on as well, which Robin was almost as thankful for.

"Name's Mel," he offered, as Robin quickly drained the mug. "You might know me as Belnichraithor, if you've seen her memories."

"Rainbow Council guy? The one with the stick up his ass about suppressing emotions?"

"Guess so. My own memories of that time aren't..." he took a swig of coffee, covering time while he tried to think how to finish that sentence. "Well, they just aren't. For the most part."

"You got a kid?" A change of topic might be easier. Straight in with the big questions and Mel wouldn't answer. Over the years, Robin had learned an awful lot about research, deduction, and even interview techniques. Only one of the world's greatest detectives could even have found the totem that should have given him the power of a previous generation's superhero.

"Ehh, kind of. Used to be my sister's place, long story. My niece visits occasionally, I keep her room like she... I'd have put you on the couch, but I've got a friend staying over at present. House hasn't been so busy in years."

"So, you brought me back here? Even after knowing I made a contract with your precious Princess, to help her do exactly what you were trying to stop her doing? You know what she wants to use my body for?"

"I don't think she has anything improper in mind," Mel shrugged, "Maybe we should ask her. But between her and Amber, I think they might be able to figure out if there's some loophole. If maybe you can say the contract is complete, and she'll find someone more willing to let her experience life as a human."

"I want what I was promised," Robin felt off balance again. Had these people worked out how to confuse him, to hide their true intentions? No; he realised soon enough that the problem was his own. He didn't know what he wanted any more, and he wasn't even sure what he was scared of.

"You had a chance to use her powers. Wasn't that it? I'm sure we'll do what we can to help you after you surrender the Totem Doll. I heard you say you want to be rich, and you thought the Princess's powers might help you to get there. Well, we don't have everything, but Amber and Violet are already trying to recover some more practical memories from the computer now Madir's not playing with it."

"He played you all."

"Yes. He used our powers against us. But now we know what to look for..." Mel shrugged, and took another drink, "Who knows? There won't be any more monsters, at least. So no more need to transform. And you can rest assured, if Ammadrine wants to spend any more time with her knight, they'll just be talking."

"It's still..." He didn't know what to say.

"Not sure if she's a macho dude or a little girl? Not sure if you're this janitor dude or an ancient Princess? There's a lot of roles here, and a lot of symbols. But the main part's been done, so far as I can tell."

"That kiss... But it was just a kiss on the cheek. How can–"

"I think it's more about the words," another voice joined the conversation, and a teen girl came up the stairs. "Actually admitting weakness, and admitting that she cares about someone. Did she say 'I love you'? I didn't hear, but maybe she did. Could that be enough? Her wish was to express human emotion, right? Amber remembered that, and guessed it meant a kiss because of all the fairytales. Maybe you thought something different. But maybe saying it is all you need. The Princess is content, and that's a massive thing. Alex, and Violet, they're both sure we got it right. The feelings between those two have replaced Madir's crystal. So we can still use each other's powers, just not so effectively, and the Enemy is out of the loop."

"Yeah, I remember something about that. He's inside a diamond statue?"

"Right. Without an echo of Jack's power he can't escape. We'll have to let him out sooner or later, we're not monsters. And maybe then there's a ton of pure blue-white diamond we don't have any use for. You know how to move something like that without people asking too many questions?"

"But what is this?" Robin muttered, shaking his head. "I mean, I was so worried she wanted to get together with that big guy again, and I'm really not into guys. And then it's a little girl. But you think she just wants to stay up late chatting in front of some movie. Like, high school dating?"

"She's never had the chance," Mel said simply. "She's still innocent, you know? I don't know what this is, really, I don't think anybody does. But if we all stick together – and that includes you if you want to keep the Princess in your body – maybe we can find a solution that doesn't end with brothers double crossing each other, anybody being imprisoned, having to hide our emotions, or demons rampaging across the countryside. There's a solution that works for everyone, because there was destined to be. It just isn't right now. Maybe it isn't for a hundred generations yet. But if we don't fight it, it'll come a lot easier."

"We're on the same side now?"

"I guess. Do you want to use the Princess's magic to take over the world?"

"That's what I was born for. My family's known there was magic hidden in the world. They've been grooming me to find it since I was born. They've been working towards one goal for six generations. At least."

"But is it what you want? Listen, you're a smart guy. But there's one thing you've got to know. If you're thinking about using the Rainbow ancestral powers to rule the world and create a perfect utopia."

"What's that? Some socialist BS about respecting the rights of the bourgeois?"

"No. Something about utopias. We've done it. We had a galaxy spanning empire, and it fell apart because it put too much burden on the Princess. Then we reincarnated as a group of not-quite-monkeys, used those powers, and created the human race. And when we fell out with each other, we trashed the planet and went back to cavemen. So, trust me when I tell you: A perfect world isn't worth the effort. One person holding the world in check is a pyramid balanced on its tip. It's never going to be stable, it's going to fall apart, and if you think you can take the pressure, you're wrong. Ask the Princess, and take that advice from someone who's been there."

"Then what was it all for? Why did I do this?"

"Because you were meant to. Because we needed you. And because... if you help to make the world a better place, everyone feels the benefits. That includes you. So you've won."

"I don't buy that hippie crap," Robin shook his head, and made to storm off. "But a statue made of diamonds, you say I can have it?"

"We wouldn't know what to do with it."

"Well, for that, maybe I can help you around. Until this Princess finds some other sap to make a contract."

"One day at a time. That's all we can hope for."