Ahiru (literally 'Duck' in Japanese), is a petite young girl in a junior high school's beginner ballet
program. She's prone to stammering and clutziness. She has a huge crush
on her sempai, Mute, a sad-seeming young man who doesn't speak much. Ahiru discovers that Mute is actually the prince out of a story
written by the mysterious writer Drosselmeyer. When Drosselmeyer died,
the prince and the evil crow he was battling in the story escaped. The
prince defeated the crow, but only at the expense of shattering his own
heart. Mute is a boy without feeling or understanding. Drosselmeyer,
however, has somehow returned, and has offered Ahiru a chance to help
Mute. She must become Princess Tutu, a magical ballerina, and help
reclaim the pieces of her prince's heart. There is a catch, of
course--Mute is being controlled by his roommate Fakia, also a dancer
, who seems to want to keep the boy soulless and heartless. Drosselmeyer also told Ahiru that a certain dream she's been having is
real. She really is just a little duck, and has been transformed into a
girl only so that she can become Princess Tutu. If she starts
stammering-- quacking like a duck-- she'll turn back into one.