The night passed, and the darkness gave way to the light. The Metallurgists worked tirelessly to reforge the Bronze Statue and Mr. Gold. It was a procedure that had no precedent. No Statue had ever gotten this damaged, nor suffered this much stress in battle. Having collected the scraps they could from the room and adding new metals, they did their best to reforge the Statues. They did not have enough gold in stock to fully replenish Mr. Gold's arm. He refused to sully his body with any other metal, and thus chose to remain one armed upon the completion of his reforging.

Bronze was far more common, and it was easily gathered. The Bronze Statue was reforged, and at the King's request, it's appearance was given a luster and shape that put it's previous one to shame. At last, the procedure was done. "Don't get damaged again, alright?" The Metallurgist asked, clasping hands with the Bronze Statue and giving him a wry grin. "The King wants to see you. Let's go." The Bronze Statue and Mr. Gold both left to see the King in the Throne room. There, both the King and Princess stood. "Mr. Gold, First of Bronze, it pleases me to see you both alive and well. My daughter has informed me of your valiant efforts, especially yours." The King stared at the Bronze Statue, then stood up and bowed before it.

It was unprecedented. "You saved my daughter's life. I cannot thank you enough." His gaze turned towards Mr. Gold. "...your efforts were not in vain, Mr. Gold. I will allow you to remain in the Princess' retinue, but you will no longer be her personal servant. That award shall go our Bronze friend here, if he does not object?" The Bronze Statue gave its agreement, and then stepped forward. "Ask for one thing, and if it is within my power, I will grant it." The King told the Bronze Statue. The Bronze Statue looked back towards the Metallurgist, who gave him a thumbs up and a cheeky grin. Do it! Do it now! he mouthed.

The Bronze Statue returned Its attention to the King and place a hand on Its chest. "I wish to have the Princess' hand in marriage." The Bronze Statue proclaimed boldly. The Metallurgist froze. The King froze. The Princess let out a startled gasp. It was a request no one had expected. The King blinked once. "...do you comprehend what you are asking?" he asked the Statue, his eyes staring into the bronze gaze of the Statue. The Statue nodded firmly. "I love her. I have always loved her. Everything I do, will always be for her, and her alone."

"Not even me?" The King asked. The Statue hesitated briefly, then nodded. "Not even you." In this way, it too defied the rules. Because just as Mr. Gold valued Itself over the Royalty, the Bronze Statue valued the Princess above all else. The King started to laugh. "Never in a million years did I think this would happen. What do you think?" he turned towards the Princess, whose golden eyes wavered. "Uh, um, it's so sudden..."

"I approve. We'll make preparations immediately." The King said, deciding for her. "...wait, how is this going to work out?" he asked. The Metallurgist stepped forward, giving the King a grin. "We'll make history with this for sure. I'm sure they'll find a way, won't they?" He gave the Bronze Statue a wink. The Princess stared at the Bronze Statue, then towards Mr. Gold. "Mr. Gold...?" she asked. The Golden Statue stared at her, then looked away, miffed. "I am perfect. I would never have such a flaw like 'love' or anything like that."

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To love was abnormal, and a flaw in Mr. Gold's eyes. Too bad it was too blind to see that its greatest flaw was its absolute love for itself. The Princess turned to regard the Bronze Statue, cringing at Its ugly appearance. No matter how magnificent It looked, it was ultimately bronze, one of the ugliest metals out there. But then the grimace faded as she remembered everything it had done for her.

It had braved the worst environments to bring her things she wished on a whim. It had devoted Its entire life to her, despite her treating it like trash. It had defied and dared to challenge Mr. Gold to earn her acknowledgement. It had risked for and nearly gave Its life, all for her. What girl wouldn't want someone like that at their side? In that moment, for once the Princess fell in love with something other than Gold. "...I will leave the preparations to you, Father." She said stiffly, turning around and leaving, so as not to show her embarrassment.

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The proceedings were rough, but in the end the ceremony was set and the two were officially ordained by a priest of the church. The kiss was a bit awkward, but they made it work. The Statue could not enjoy physical sensations, but it was more than capable of feeling the warmth of the Princess' hands. Mr. Gold was best man (statue), by the way. A position he was not happy about. "I should be up there. Why can't I be the star?" It grumbled internally. No one was looking at Its opulent splendor. They were clearly enraptured at the novel sight of the Bronze Statue hand in hand with the Princess of Gold.

What was the big deal? Regardless, in Its heart, Mr. Gold acknowledged that if there was ever a being that came close to reaching Its level of perfection, it would probably be that one. No way it'd ever admit that, though. The two were officially wed, and the Bronze Statue was declared fixed in the eyes of the Metallurgists. the Princess of Gold maintained her adoration of all things golden, but no matter how shiny or pretty a metal might be, her eyes would always be inadvertently drawn to the ugly brown metal that was always beside her.

The Bronze Statue did not know what this warmth within it was. Was it happiness? Love? Content? It did not know, but the pain in it's chest was gone. The ache was replaced with a warm feeling.

Statues could not feel, or devote themselves to anything but their loyalty to serving the Royal Family.

And on that day, one Statue defied everything everyone had thought they knew about the Statues, and proved that not all that glitters is gold. For the first time ever, a weak, peasant metal outshone the most noble and brilliant of prestigious metals, and that was a feat no one would ever surpass.

A Statue cannot feel, but it can certainly love.