It was a few days after Ariel had been turned back into a human, and she was exhausted. There was so much to do, to get ready for the wedding. For the rest of the palace, this was the second time preparing for a wedding, but the first had been rushed, and the prince had been bewitched. This time, they were taking the time to do it right. There was so much planning to do, so many decisions to make. She threw Erik a look as yet another servant came in with something for them to look over, as if to say, "What now?" He responded with a weary, but encouraging, smile.
"I think invitations are next." Ariel, having hid in her room the entire day before his first almost-wedding, looked up to see what he meant. The servant set down a stack of white sheets of something thin on the table before them, and began motioning and talking about what was on them, asking for approval and then motioning for them to sign them.
Erik just picked up the quill he was handed with a muffled sigh, but Ariel was frozen, her mouth hanging open. Erik was about to ask if she was alright when she abruptly put her head in her hands and cried, "Slimy seashells, I'm an idiot!"
"What are you talking about?" Erik asked, puzzled.
"Writing!" She gestured at the invitations wildly. "I should have known you'd have writing. I could have communicated with you easily, even without my voice. Why didn't I think of it? Why didn't you think of it?"
"I, um, well. I just sort of assumed you weren't literate."
"Oh. I guess I shouldn't take offense to that, considering you had no idea who I was or where I was from, and I just sort of looked like a vagrant. And I just assumed that writing was a merpeople thing, since I'd never seen you do it. What a wasted opportunity; we could have avoided all this confusion."
"Well, it turned out alright, didn't it? Ursula's gone, you have your voice back, and your father even gave his permission for you to be with me this time."
Seeing the love and happiness in his warm gaze, Ariel sighed. "I suppose you're right. It did turn out for the best, didn't it?"
Erik leaned over to kiss her cheek, murmuring, "Mhm," into her hair. He stayed there for a moment, then straightened to face the servant who was still standing there, hovering awkwardly. "Alright then, are you ready to get to work on these invitations?"
Ariel nodded, and they happily bent their heads together over the table, signing invitation after invitation. They would have to figure out a way to make waterproof invitations for her friends and family back in the sea, but that shouldn't be too hard, she thought. After all, they were together, and together they could do anything.