It's two months after the Wall comes down when Melody finally turns to her parents and asks, "How did you two meet, anyway?"
Before the Wall, she'd been told that they met on a beach and that it'd been love at first sight. It's only now, the thrill of knowing the truth about the Wall and the sea somewhat dulled, that she begins to question just how much of what her parents told her was a lie.
Her mother drops her fork in shock and her father throws his head back, laughing. Melody simply smiles, looking expectantly at them both.
"Well?"
Ariel, her mother, picks up her fork and tries desperately to compose herself as she says, "It's a long story, Melody."
Eric scoffs through his laughter. "You just don't want your daughter to know what a rebellious teenager you were."
"Mum? Rebellious?"
While Ariel covers her eyes, feigning mortification, Eric winks at his daughter in a conspiring manner before saying, "Of course. I'm the reason she's all legs and no tail."
Not surprising. Melody had guessed that long ago. As if her grandfather would've just changed her mother from mermaid to human without her wanting it. And for what other reason than love would she have to want to leave the sea?
"That's not rebellion," Melody replies, twirling spaghetti around her fork.
"It is when you know the whole story," Eric promises.
The rest of dinner is served with tales of Ursula, magic and romance. It's an elaborate story and Eric makes the most of it, drawing laughter from Melody every few minutes and shocking her into solemnity as he retells the more serious parts of the tale. Even Ariel contributes, chastising Eric when he exaggerates and pitching in a few of the finer details.
By the time story time is over, Melody is looking at her parents with wonder in her eyes and she can't help but to think that maybe she's never really known them at all. She'd never have guessed that her mum had been so...well, rebellious. And while she'd always known that her parents loved each other dearly, she hadn't realised just what lengths they'd gone to in order to be together.
"You gave up your voice?" Melody asks. "For a man you'd ever even spoken to? For a man who didn't even know you existed?"
Ariel shrugs, giving her husband a sideways smile and reaching out to hold his hand. "It made sense at the time. Besides, I got it back."
"After almost being killed by Morgana's sister!"
Her mother shrugs again. "It was worth it."
"Grandfather almost died!"
"But he didn't."
"And Dad! You kissed Morgana's sister!"
Eric blanches. "Almost. Besides, how was I supposed to know?"
The three fall into a comfortable silence, finishing off their meals in peace. Ariel stands when they're done, thanking the maid as she goes to leave the room. Eric follows her and after a moment of consideration, Melody gets up and does the same. Each collapse into separate chairs in the living room and Melody takes the opportunity to analyse her parents once more.
She opens her mouth to speak, when her mother cuts her off with a curious, "Why do you ask now, Melody? Why are you so interested?"
"I just wanted to know," Melody replies flippantly. Then she goes back to what she'd originally wanted to say. "How did you know he was the one, though? How come you were so willing to give up everything for him?"
Ariel shrugs again and repeats, "It made sense at the time."
Under her breath, Melody scoffs, "Love at first sight."
It's just so like her mother. It's so typical of her and it makes Melody want to do three things all at once: coo at the love story, roll her eyes at the cliché and throw something (preferably something dangerous, sharp and quite possibly explosive). Trust her mother to make falling in love easy, just as she does with everything else. And sure, actually getting her happy ending might've been a bit difficult, but at least she didn't go through the painful process of he loves me, he loves me not, I love him, I love him not that Melody knows every other person on the planet goes through.
Clearing her throat, Melody says, "It's a nice story."
"It's a true story," her father corrects.
Ariel eyes her daughter carefully before saying, "It'll happen to you. You'll fall in love and everything will make sense to you, just as it did to me."
Melody resists the urge to vomit. She also resists the urge to burst out crying. Because if there's anything she's learnt, it's that she's nothing like her mother. The chances of her being as lucky as her mother when it comes to something like love are remote—near impossible, in fact.
"Honey..." Ariel bites her lip. "I know it sounds...oh, I don't know. It sounds silly to think that love at first sight exists and I know I was silly to give up so much for a what was, at the time, simply a dream, despite how well it turned out for me."
She loves her mother, she really does. But everything comes so easily to her and even though she knows that this is her mother's version of comforting, Melody can't help but hate her and her too-good-to-be true life just a little bit.
How can her mother be so perfect... and she be so not? How come her life doesn't feel like a fairytale come to life?
It's just not fair.