Part 1
A/N: I'm not really sure if this counts as a fan fiction or not. It's more of a re-adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen's "The Little Mermaid." However, since it contains nods and references to Disney's adaptation and the Broadway musical based on said film, I guess it's close enough. At any rate, "The Little Mermaid" is my favorite fairy tale and it really means a lot to me, so I really want to share this with you. It's an older story of mine; I wrote it a few years ago. But I treasure it and sincerely hope you enjoy it!
Miles away from land and deep beneath the waves, a ball was underway. The underwater palace was teeming with life, filled with talking and laughing guests all swimming and floating contentedly about. In the great ballroom, a cavernous space made up of stone walls and a beautiful vaulted ceiling supported by elegantly carved pillars of rock, over a hundred merpeople were dancing in tune to the lovely and haunting melodies provided by a choir of mermaids in the corner.
On a raised platform sat the Sea King, Poseidon, atop his golden throne and clasping his silver magic trident in one hand. He was a tall, rather imposing figure with a swirling brown beard that was liberally streaked with gray. His head was adorned with a great golden crown laden with many precious stones and jewels, and he wore a large sword, tied with a long purple sash at his waist. His shoulders were covered by violet seashell shoulder pads, and a long red cape drifted and floated behind him. Just below his navel, his human torso melted seamlessly into the silvery tail of a fish, complete with a pair of fins at the end. His kind, slightly lined face was wearing a joyous smile, and his eyes were dancing with delight.
When the mermaids finished their song, he clapped the loudest and called, "That was beautiful! Absolutely beautiful!"
As the choir started their next song, Poseidon looked around at the three smaller thrones that sat beside his own. In the one closest to him was another merman, about twenty-one years old, with a wavy mass of black hair floating above his head and a blue tail. Like the king, he was dressed in royal attire: purple seashell pads, a jeweled crown, a sword, and a long violet sash that was tied at his chest. Beside him sat his young wife, a red-haired mermaid with a beautiful smile. Though she wore none of the fancy accessories her husband did, she had a lovely seashell necklace around her throat. Her trim waistline morphed into a long, slender tail covered in green scales.
The third throne was empty.
The king frowned. "Azure?" he asked, and the young merman seated beside the king looked around. "Where is Adam?"
Poseidon's eldest son looked over at the chair at the end. "I don't know, Dad," he replied, shrugging. "He's probably lost track of time. Punctuality isn't his strength."
Poseidon sighed in frustration. "No, it isn't." He snorted and added, "You were never late as often as he is. I told him the ball was tonight! How could he have forgotten?!"
"Calm down, Dad," Azure said sharply, for the trident in the king's hand had suddenly taken on a faint blue glow as his temper increased.
Poseidon looked at it and grunted, settling down. The glow faded and vanished as quickly as it had come. He glanced swiftly around the ballroom and was relieved to find that none of the guests had noticed his brief temper flare-up. "Thank you, Azure," he sighed. "But that boy had better get here soon. If I have to go out there and find him…"
He didn't finish the thought. He didn't have to.
"I'm sure he'll be here soon," said the mermaid seated beside Azure in a soothing voice. "He may very well be on his way now."
Poseidon snorted. "I hope you're right, Ariel," he said. "I hope you're right."
…
A fair distance away from the palace in a place known as Shipwreck Cove, eighteen-year-old Prince Adam was exploring a desolate and decaying hulk of rotted wood that had once been a sailing ship. He was tall and trim, with a handsome face and brown hair that floated and waved above his head. His tail was coated in green scales that flashed brilliantly when sunlight touched them. But now it was dark; the sun had set an hour before, and the darkness allowed the young prince to swim undetected.
"Adam, wait for me!"
The young merman looked around to see a tiny seahorse, only a few inches long, frantically swimming toward him. "You know I can't swim as fast as you can!" he squeaked.
Adam chuckled. "Sorry, Star." Then he turned his attention to the shipwreck in front of them. "What do you think happened to it to make it sink?" he asked.
"How should I know?" Star retorted, panting from his exhausting swim. "Could have been anything. A storm, maybe?"
"Hmm…" was Adam's only reply. He swam toward the towering hulk, tail fins flipping rapidly. Star groaned and followed. There was a large tear in the ship's hull, though it was impossible to tell if this is what had sunk the vessel or if it had happened upon impact with the seafloor. Either way, it provided a way for Adam to slip inside the dark interior.
"Adam!" Star squealed, hurrying to catch up.
"Come on, Star, hurry up!" Adam said a little impatiently. He was swimming slowly around a large room, strewn with a great deal of debris. A barrel lay on its side, resting against a fallen table. A globe was sitting on the floor, miraculously upright, right beside a chair that was missing two of its legs. There were quite a few shoes scattered around, and a fancy-looking hat had settled in a corner. "Look at all this stuff!" Adam whispered in awe and delight.
"Yeah…it's great," Star muttered, glancing warily around. The dark shadows in the corners provided great hiding places for bigger fish, possibly a bigger fish with an appetite for a tiny seahorse.
Adam swam over to the globe and picked it up. "I wonder what this is?" he mused. "Is it a toy of some kind?" He tossed it up experimentally and caught it, frowning in confusion. "Hmm…I don't think that could be much fun." He examined it for a moment longer before setting it down with a shrug. His attention turned to one of the shoes. "And this thing?"
"Maybe it's a hat?" Star suggested, swimming up to take a closer look.
Adam placed the shoe on his head. "How does it look?"
Star tilted his head, frowning. "Weird," he answered.
Adam sighed and took the shoe down, gazing at it. "Well, I've never understood why humans wear hats anyway." He tossed the shoe aside and looked around the room again.
"Hey, what's that?" Star asked suddenly.
Adam looked around and followed the seahorse's gaze. He blinked in surprise. On the floor was a black coat with golden buttons, but there was something else underneath it, for a long, thin chain snaked out from beneath its folds. He swam closer and carefully lifted the fabric to see a small, rounded object attached to the chain. It was a golden locket.
"What is it?" Star asked as his merman friend took the locket in his hand and raised it to eye-level.
"I'm not sure," Adam replied, frowning. "It's pretty, though…. I think it's a piece of jewelry or something." He noticed the clasp on the side and, curiosity overcoming him, carefully pried the locket open. He gasped. There was a picture inside, protected by a thin glass barrier. The black-and-white photo was of a beautiful young woman, probably around Adam's own age. She was smiling as though she hadn't a care in the world, her lovely oval-shaped face framed by a veil of long, soft-looking dark hair, and her eyes were deep and soulful. Adam sighed in awe, gazing down at the image, enraptured. "She's beautiful," he breathed.
He stared at the picture for a moment longer before snapping the locket shut. "I'm taking this back with me."
"Really?" Star seemed surprised. "But your father—"
"What Dad doesn't know won't hurt him," Adam said firmly. "Come on, let's see what else is here."
They swam into another room, which was bigger and more spacious. There were fewer objects littering the floor here, but a large banner of some kind was hanging from the ceiling, one torn edge flapping gently in the soft current. "They must have had some kind of party here or something," Star remarked.
Adam froze in mid-stroke, his eyes widening. "Party?" he said, and then he smacked his forehead with his palm. "The ball! Oh God, I completely forgot that was tonight! Dad's gonna fillet me!"
Star's eyes widened. "Uh-oh. You'd better be getting back!"
Adam nodded and swam off. "I'll catch up with you later, okay?" he called back over his shoulder. Then he swished his fins and sped off, still clutching the golden locket in one hand.
In a few minutes, he had reached the palace. Instead of entering through the front archway that served as the main entrance, though, he swam up the side of the stone structure, hoping no one was looking out from inside. He reached his bedroom and slipped in through the window. The first thing he did was shove the locket under his pillow, and just in the nick of time. The instant his hand was free, a servant swam through the woven seaweed curtain that hung over the doorway. "Your Highness!" he said, sounding relieved. "We've been looking all over for you! The ball—"
"I know, I know!" Adam moaned, darting over to the closet and seizing his sword, crown, seashell pads, and sash. "I forgot all about it! Is Dad angry?"
"Well, he doesn't seem too happy, but he hasn't raised a fuss yet," the servant replied, helping Adam fasten the sword around his waist. "Although that may just be because he doesn't want to alarm his guests."
Adam groaned. "He's going to kill me! He told me not to forget about this ball, and I promised I wouldn't! I can't believe it slipped my mind!"
He crammed the crown on his head and hastily tied the sash at his chest, fastening it with a small medallion with a trident symbol emblazoned on its surface while the servant put the shoulder pads in place. Finally finished, Adam hastily thanked the servant and then swam as fast as his fins could go down the hall toward the ballroom.
When he reached his destination, his heart sank. The party was breaking up, and only a few stragglers remained in the hall. They looked around at his entrance and bowed to him with murmurs of, "Your Highness." Adam bowed back to them, as was customary, but his attention was focused on the imposing merman that was swimming toward him, his arms crossed and trident faintly glowing threateningly.
Adam grinned nervously and said, "Uh…hi, Dad."
King Poseidon came to a stop a few feet away from his son and glared down at him. "Hello, Adam," he said coolly. "Do you recall what night it is?"
Adam nodded. "The night of the ball," he mumbled. "I'm sorry, Dad, I just…"
"Do you remember me telling you that the ball was tonight, and that it was imperative that you attend?" Poseidon asked, cutting Adam off.
"Yes," Adam said with a sigh. "I forgot, Dad! I'm sorry, really I am!"
Poseidon frowned, but at that moment, Azure and his wife Ariel approached them. "Ah! There you are, Adam!" the older prince said, smiling amusedly. "Let me guess, you lost track of the time again, right?"
Adam chuckled nervously. "Yeah."
Azure laughed jovially. "Figured," he said. Then he caught sight of his father's expression, and his grin slipped. "Well, I'm exhausted. I think I'm gonna call it a day. Good night, Dad."
And he swam away, his wife right behind him, leaving Adam alone with the king (the last guests had departed as well). There was a long, tense silence.
"So," Poseidon eventually said, sounding as though he was struggling to retain patience, "where were you tonight?"
Adam blinked. "Huh?"
"Where were you?" the Sea King repeated. "What were you doing that made you forget about the ball?"
"Ah…" Adam hesitated. He had never been good at lying, and he knew it. "I…was just swimming around," he said, refusing to meet his father's eyes.
"Really?" Poseidon said, and by his tone of voice, Adam knew he didn't believe him. "And can anyone back up your claim?"
"Star can," Adam replied, silently praying that he would be able to tip his seahorse friend off before his father found him.
"Oh, I'm sure he can," Poseidon said sarcastically. He knew the little seahorse was his son's best friend and would back him up no matter what. "Son, tell me the truth. I know you're not being honest with me. Where were you tonight?" He paused. "Did you go back up to the surface again?"
Adam allowed himself to look into his father's eyes. He could actually be truthful this time. "No, I didn't," he said, using his best indignant voice.
Poseidon raised his eyebrows. "Well then, if you weren't exploring the surface, where did you go?"
"I…" Adam struggled to find a suitable excuse, and then hung his head, knowing the game was up. "I went to Shipwreck Cove," he mumbled.
Poseidon growled. "Adam, we have been through this time and time again," he said angrily. "How many times do I have to tell you to stay away from anything and everything human before you get it into your head?! They are dangerous, Adam! I've told you I don't know how many times—!"
"But Dad," Adam interrupted imploringly, "surely not all humans are bad, or all human things! Maybe if we learned more about them then we could use their artifacts to our advantage—"
"I will hear none of it!" Poseidon shouted, and his trident glowed brightly as his anger mounted. "Adam, I have told you before that you are forbidden from exploring the surface and from going to Shipwreck Cove! They are dangerous places! Why do you think contact between our two worlds has been prohibited?! I don't want to see you get hurt or killed like your mother, Adam. I do these things to protect you, and still you continue to disobey me!"
"But Dad—" Adam began.
"Enough!" Poseidon snapped. "This discussion is over. You are dismissed."
Adam opened his mouth to argue, but Poseidon turned away. The prince huffed angrily and whirled around, swimming away with enough force to leave a stream of bubbles behind him. He returned to his room, where Star was waiting for him. "How'd it go?" he asked.
Adam snorted and tore the crown from his head, tossing it carelessly aside.
"That bad, huh?" the little seahorse said sympathetically.
"He is so…so…" Adam struggled to find the right word as he ripped the sash and seashells from him and threw them haphazardly into the closet. "So…urgh!" He chucked the sword away and sat down on the edge of his bed, head in his hands. "He doesn't listen to a word I say! I tell him that I want to learn about the human world, and he goes off on a tangent about how they're all dangerous and killers and monsters and blah blah blah." He reached under his pillow and pulled out the golden locket, looking down at it with a wistful, longing expression. "Surely they can't be all bad, humans. I mean, I know some of them are cruel, and I know Mom was killed by one. But there are evil merpeople too. Our prison is proof of that. So what makes the human world so much worse than this one?" He opened the locket and gazed down at the girl's picture. "Look at her, Star. How could she possibly be cruel? Isn't it remotely possible that there are good humans? I just don't see how an entire world could be so bad, Star."
He sighed, closing the locket and slipping the chain over his neck. "I just want to know!" he burst out, rising and swimming over to his window. "What is it really like up there? I want to understand the human world, Star! I have so many questions, and there's no one I can ask, no one for me to turn to for answers…!"
He trailed off, staring up at the surface far above him. Then he frowned. "Star, look up there," he said suddenly. "What is it?"
Star swam forward and followed the merman's gaze. Up above, barely visible in the dim light, was a dark shape, barely a blot due to the distance. "I don't know," Star replied. "Whatever it is, it's on the surface."
The moment the words were out of his mouth, he regretted them. Adam's face lit up and he began swimming up toward the shape. "Adam, wait!" the seahorse squeaked.
Adam ignored him, swimming quickly up to the surface and poking his head from the water. He gasped in shock and awe. The shape was a great wooden ship, its windows all lit up festively. A series of strange sounds were coming from its upper deck, where a number of humans were talking, laughing, and playing music on instruments that the merman prince had never seen before. There was a great deal of activity on board. Adam assumed it must have been a party of some kind.
Star caught up to him and squealed, "Adam, we shouldn't be up here!"
"Quiet, Star," Adam hissed, not tearing his eyes from the ship. "I've never seen humans this close before. I'm going to take a closer look, see what I can learn."
And he swam closer to the ship. Star moaned and followed reluctantly. The prince sank down so that only his head emerged from the water and went still, watching the hubbub with intense interest.
Suddenly, a streak of light shot upward from the ship with a high-pitched whistling sound. Adam jumped in surprise and yelped when it was immediately followed by a tremendous bang, an explosion of colored lights bursting in the air above him. It was, of course, a firework, but the merman knew nothing of it. Another went off shortly after, followed by another and another. Adam soon realized that they weren't causing any harm and stopped flinching when they exploded. In fact, once he took a closer look at them, he began to marvel at their beauty.
How long he stayed in the ship's shadow, he didn't know. But after a while, a middle-aged man walked onto the deck, hands raised and shouting for quiet. Silence fell, every head turned in the direction of the newcomer. "I present to you all, Princess Erica!" the man called, holding a hand out and bowing as another person stepped out from the ship's depths. It was a young woman, dressed in a regal gown that trailed down to her feet. Her hair was soft and brown, and her face was absolutely stunning. She seemed vaguely familiar to Adam, who watched Princess Erica smile and nod her head to the people around her. She turned her head in his direction, and though she couldn't see him, this new angle brought him to a realization.
"Star!" Adam breathed. "It's the girl from the picture!" He lifted the locket and opened it, staring down at the photograph in awe. Sure enough, the girl forever frozen in the tiny picture was the same young woman standing on the ship a few feet away. She didn't look much older in real life; the picture must not have been taken long ago. Adam returned his gaze to the princess on the deck, who was now speaking to the man who'd announced her arrival with a large smile spread across her face. "She is so beautiful," the prince sighed.
"Happy birthday, Your Highness," the middle-aged man was saying. "Eighteen years old, my goodness. It seems only yesterday you were a child running and playing all over the castle! And now…" He gestured toward her. "…what a fine young woman you have become, my dear."
Erica laughed pleasantly. "Oh Marcus, thank you. I couldn't have asked for a better advisor or friend through those years, especially after my father's death."
Marcus bowed to her, and she returned it. "And now," the advisor said, straightening and clapping his hands together, "it gives me great pleasure to present you with a gift, Your Highness."
At his words, two sailors brought out a large, square something concealed in a white sheet. "Oh, Marcus!" Erica gasped. "You shouldn't have!"
Marcus chuckled and motioned for the sailors to remove the sheet. The covering was swept off, revealing a fine painting done in rich colors and soft lines. Adam wasn't the only one who gasped in surprise. The painting was a perfect replication of the princess.
"Oh my gosh!" Erica said faintly, her hands at her mouth. Then she started to laugh. "Oh Marcus, you sneak! You told me the painting was going to some family friends!"
Marcus laughed with her. "I'm sorry, Your Highness, the deception was necessary."
Erica hugged him. "It's lovely. Thank you."
"You're welcome, my dear," the advisor replied. He sighed and added, "It gives me great pleasure to have watched over you and to see you now, all grown up and almost ready to take the throne…."
Erica's smile slipped a little, and she drew back. "Yes," she said quietly. "Almost."
Thunder rumbled in the distance, and Adam looked around warily. There was a storm coming, he could feel it. But he simply shrugged it off and returned his attention to the ship. Marcus was saying, "My dear, I know how you feel about marriage. But it's not just me. The entire kingdom wants you to find a prince that sweeps you off your feet."
"That's just the problem, Marcus," Erica said patiently. "I haven't found one that has swept me off my feet. All these princes asking for my hand…they're so shallow and don't see me for who I really am. I can't marry a man who won't take me seriously or be willing to let me be myself. I want a husband who will love me and whom I can love in return. Someone I know personally, someone who appreciates me, quirks and all, someone who can look beyond my status and love me for who I am…."
Marcus sighed. "I know, Erica. And believe me, the only thing I want is your happiness. We shall keep looking for a prince who suits your fancy and see how things go, yes?"
Erica nodded, smiling. "Yes, I suppose so. Now, enough talk of marriage. Play on, dear musicians!"
Almost immediately, the music resumed, and the sailors began dancing, taking turns with twirling Erica across the wooden deck. Adam watched her movements, so lithe and graceful. Her hair whipped around her face, and she smiled and laughed with delight. The merman prince was quite sure he'd never seen anyone so lovely before in his life. Watching her, he could feel his heart beating twice as fast as usual, and his breathing seemed a little shallow.
Time passed, and Adam continued to watch as the party wound down. Erica ended up leaning against the rail, gazing out at the sea. The waters were starting to get choppy; the ship bobbed up and down on the waves and rocked from side to side. Lightning flashed and thunder rumbled again, closer this time. And still Adam stared up at the human girl, standing literally feet from him and totally unaware of his existence. "If only she could see me," the merman said to himself. "If only she knew I was here and how much I long to speak to her…"
Lightning flashed again and the ship gave a rather frightening lurch to the side. Erica stumbled and gasped as rain began to pelt the deck. "Your Highness!" Marcus called. "Let's get inside! There's a storm on the way!"
He was wrong. The storm was already there. A huge wave slapped the side of the ship, making it list ominously to the side. Its sails flapped and billowed in the suddenly-violent winds, and the wooden superstructure creaked loudly in protest. Adam was submerged by a wave but returned to the surface at once, eyes glued to the ship. The craft rolled and pitched, and the main mast snapped with a deafening crack. There were screams and yells from the men as they tried in vain to save the ship. A few of them set to work lowering a small wooden lifeboat.
Then the ship gave a mighty heave, and it split in two. Water gushed over the doomed vessel, sweeping the men into the sea. Erica, who had been stumbling around the deck, trying to return inside, let out a scream of terror before she was submerged. "Erica!" Marcus yelled, spluttering as he swam for the lifeboat, looking wildly around for the princess. "ERICA!"
Adam dove beneath the surface, suddenly filled with a sense of panic. Erica was slowly sinking, her struggles weakening as she ran out of air. She closed her eyes and went limp. "No!" the merman cried, darting toward her and seizing her around the waist. He pulled her back up to the surface and hesitated. Marcus was still crying out her name, but Adam didn't dare reveal himself to the men that had managed to clamber into the lifeboat. How would they react to seeing a merman? So Adam, making sure the princess' head was above the water, began to swim away from the ship. On one of his prior trips to the surface, he had discovered land nearby, and so he struck out toward it.
Two hours of fighting the waves and currents later, Adam deposited Erica, still unconscious, on a sandy beach. A few yards away, a gigantic castle loomed in the darkness, but the shore was quite deserted. "Oh please," he moaned, pressing his head to her chest. "Please don't be dead! Please don't be dead!"
He breathed a sigh of relief as he felt the woman's heartbeat under his cheek and listened to the soft intake and outtake of air from her open mouth. He drew back, holding himself slightly over her to shield her from the rain. "It's okay," he whispered to her. "You're safe. I'll stay here with you. I won't let anything happen to you."
After an hour or so, the storm began to abate, and the night grew calm. Adam relaxed and lay beside the young woman, gazing at her with a longing expression on his face. He stayed beside her throughout the night, patiently waiting for her to wake up, occasionally singing softly to her but more often just studying her human form in fascination.
Hours later, as the sun began to peek above the horizon, Princess Erica finally began to stir feebly. Adam stiffened slightly, wondering what he should do. Every instinct within him was screaming for him to flee before he was seen, but he couldn't bring himself to leave the young woman's side. So after taking a deep, steadying breath, he started singing again, a soft melody of sweet, passionate longing, his voice strong and clear. Erica stirred again but Adam didn't waver in his song. The princess' eyes opened blearily, and she looked up groggily at the merman hovering over her. She blinked a couple of times, still disoriented. Adam stopped singing, reaching up with one hand to brush a stray hair from her face.
Then he heard voices, and his head jerked up. Several yards down the shoreline, the lifeboat was being pulled onto the beach. None of the men were looking his way, but he knew it was only a matter of time before he was discovered. He gazed down for a moment longer at Erica, his face drawn in desperate longing, and then he dove back into the sea, and not a moment too soon.
"Erica? Erica!"
Marcus, Erica's advisor, looked around and saw the princess lying prone on the sand. He was winded and battered by the storm but ran with the agility of a young man to where Erica slowly rose out of unconsciousness. She slowly sat up, one hand to her head. Marcus drew level with her and held out a hand to help her up. "Erica, dear! We thought you had been lost! Are you all right?"
"Yes, Marcus, I'm fine," Erica replied, standing shakily to her feet and looking around. "Where…where is he?"
"He?" Marcus repeated blankly. "He who?"
"That man!" Erica said, turning her head to look at him. "The man who rescued me! I heard him. He was singing to me." She paused, her gaze turning out to the sea. "He had…he had a lovely voice…"
"Oh, Erica," Marcus chuckled. "I think you might have swallowed a little too much seawater." He took her by the arm and began to lead her back up toward the castle. "Mystery men singing to you on the beach? Next you'll be seeing merpeople on the rocks!"
Unbeknownst to them, there was indeed a merman sitting on a large rock that jutted out from the sea a short distance from shore. Adam, hidden by the craggy stone, watched silently as the advisor led the princess up the beach to the towering structure beyond. Even once they were out of sight, he continued to gaze absently at the shore, a new, terrible ache growing in his chest, mingled with a peculiar sense of joy. The combination was bizarre and overwhelming. He subconsciously put a hand to his chest, where the golden locket still sat, and closed his fingers on it. "Oh Erica," he sighed. "If only you knew…"
He slowly slipped back into the water and swam back home. It was still too early for most of the merpeople to be out and about yet, which suited him just fine. He had to get back to the palace before his father realized he was missing. He once again darted into his room via the window, slid the locket back under his pillow, and lay down on his bed, staring absently at the stone ceiling. Despite the fact he hadn't gotten any sleep the previous night, he felt wide-awake and not the least bit tired. His heart was performing a rapid drum-roll against his ribs, and he couldn't banish the princess' image from his mind. This was an entirely new sensation to him, and he was unable to put a name to it for a few minutes.
Then he came to a sudden realization.
"I…I love her," he breathed.
The seaweed curtain over his door fluttered, and King Poseidon entered the room. "Good morning, Adam," he said, sounding as though he was putting an extra effort into being friendly. His mind was obviously still on their argument of the previous night, and he had come hoping to make amends.
Adam smiled happily. "Good morning, Dad," he said, sitting up and swimming over to greet his father. "Sleep well?"
Poseidon blinked, surprised by his son's warm tone. "Um…yes," he said, frowning slightly in confusion. "And you?"
"Very well, thanks," the prince replied, and humming to himself, he swam from the room, leaving his stunned father to stare silently after him.
Adam left the palace and began swimming aimlessly around, greeting other merpeople at random and singing under his breath. His mind was still filled with the image of Erica: her face, her hair, her captivating smile. He couldn't think of anything else. And with each passing moment, he became more and more certain that he had fallen in love with the human princess.
"Adam!"
The merman prince looked around and replied, "Hey, Star!" as the little seahorse swam up to him. He held out his index finger and allowed his friend to wrap his tail around it, rather like how a human might allow a butterfly to settle on their hand. "How are you this morning?"
"I'm all right," Star replied. "But that storm was pretty bad. It knocked me around a little and I had to return to the bottom."
"Oh, then you missed all the excitement!" Adam said, and he proceeded to tell his friend all about what had happened, how he had saved Princess Erica from drowning and fallen in love with her. By the time he had finished, the seahorse's eyes were wide with shock.
"Wow, Adam…that's…that's…" He cast around for a word to describe the situation and finally settled for "…something. But what will your father say when he finds out?"
Adam's smile slipped. "Dad can't know," he said urgently. "He'd be absolutely furious if he ever found out!"
"I won't tell him, I swear!" Star said quickly. "But…how do you expect this to work?"
Adam sighed. "I don't know yet, Star," he answered. "It would be so much easier if I didn't have…" He glanced in disgust at his tail and reached back to touch his fins, but they slipped just out of his reach. Grunting, he reached further, and, like a dog chasing its own tail, he spun around in a circle, hands outstretched. He started to chuckle, which soon turned to full laughter. Star giggled and shook his head. "Wow, Adam. You are a strange merman, you know?"
But Adam didn't stop laughing. Instead, his mirth seemed to mount, and he sank to the seafloor, lying down on a flat rock and positively roaring with laughter. Tears leaked from his eyes and his face turned a little pink. He choked and gasped, struggling for breath and still unable to contain his humor. Star hovered over him uncertainly, his head tilted in confusion. "Um…Adam? You okay?"
Slowly, Adam calmed down until he was able to speak again. "I'm sorry," he gasped with a small chuckle. "I don't know what's come over me. I…I haven't laughed like that in a long time. Not since, well…I don't even know when!"
Star shook his head as Adam sat up, still grinning. "You're weird," the seahorse declared.
"Yeah, I know," Adam sighed. "I'm probably the only merman who has fallen in love with a human. Well…being normal is overrated, anyway." His smile faded and he lifted his tail slightly, watching the sunlight reflect off his scales. "I…I wish I was human," he murmured. "It would make everything so much easier…."
Star couldn't think of a reply.
A short distance away, King Poseidon watched his son spin around, chasing his own fins, and sink to the ocean floor in uncontrollable laughter. He shook his head in confusion. What had gotten into the boy?
That question continued to hound the king throughout the day. Adam spent the hours swimming aimlessly around the kingdom, singing to himself with a distracted expression on his face. Star eventually gave up trying to talk to the merman and said good-bye, though he wasn't sure the prince had heard him, he was so lost in his thoughts. Poseidon tried multiple times to talk to his son, hoping to discover why he was acting so strangely, but every time he approached, Adam would swim away distractedly or would be surrounded by other merpeople. This, Poseidon thought, was a matter best handled privately, but finding a private moment with his son proved to be impossible. He thought he'd be able to speak with him after dinner, but when he peeked into the prince's room, he was surprised and dismayed to find Adam had decided to turn in early and was fast asleep, his chest rising and falling steadily and a small smile curling his lips.
The next day, Poseidon headed up to his son's room to wake him, intending to ask him if he was feeling okay. But he was surprised to find that the bedroom was deserted. Adam was already awake and sitting on a nearby rock, gazing absently up toward the surface, humming a song quietly to himself.
When he finally located his son, Poseidon sighed with relief and made to approach him, but at that moment Azure swam by. "Good morning, Dad," he said cheerfully. "What are you doing?"
Poseidon turned to his eldest. "I'm going to speak with Adam," he replied. "I'm going to find out why he's gotten into such a state."
"What do you mean?" Azure asked, looking over at where his younger brother sat.
"Yesterday he was swimming around like he was in a trance," Poseidon said. "He was chasing his tail and laughing like he'd heard the funniest joke in the world. And now he's just sitting there, his head in the foam. Do you know anything about it?"
Azure slowly smiled. "Well, Dad," he answered with a faint chuckle, "I may be wrong, but I think Adam has fallen in love."
Poseidon blinked. "Really?"
"Yes," Azure replied, nodding. "If you recall, I showed similar symptoms when I fell in love with Ariel. Remember?"
Poseidon chuckled. "Yes, I do. It was all I could do to get you to pay attention to where you were going. How many walls did you swim into again?"
Azure laughed pleasantly.
"So Adam's in love?" Poseidon mused, pondering his son with a thoughtful expression on his face. "I wonder with whom?"
Azure shrugged. "I don't know. But I wouldn't press him, Dad. You know how Adam is. He will tell us when he is ready and not a moment before."
"Hmm…" Poseidon continued to gaze thoughtfully at Adam as Azure excused himself and swam away. The king looked around to see Star swimming toward the prince. "Star!" he called out, and the little seahorse froze, his eyes wide with a combination of surprise and nervousness. "Would you come here for a moment please?"
Star swam over to the king and bowed his head. "Yes, Your Majesty?"
"Tell me," Poseidon nodded in Adam's direction. "You are my son's closest friend, so you must know who he's fallen for."
"F-fallen for?" Star repeated, blinking.
"Yes," the Sea King said, nodding. "Adam is showing telltale signs of being in love. Surely you've noticed?"
"Well," the seahorse said anxiously, "yes, I-I have noticed he's been acting a little, um, strange. But I really don't know who she is. He hasn't told me."
"Oh, I see," Poseidon sighed, obviously disappointed. "Very well, then. Thank you."
The seahorse bowed his head again and swam away. "I suppose I will just have to wait until Adam is ready to tell me," he muttered to himself.
But as the days passed, Adam showed no signs of wanting to discuss his feelings with his father. He continued to behave strangely: he was silent at mealtimes, swam in distracted circles throughout the palace, and sang melodies of such passionate yearning and desire that none who heard him were unaffected by it. Poseidon told himself over and over again to be patient, that Adam would talk only when he was ready, but as time went by, his curiosity turned into concern. He couldn't quite shake the suspicion that something was wrong.
One day, about a week after Adam's trip to the surface, Poseidon could bear the suspense no longer and swam out to the rock his son had been frequently seen sitting upon. To his relief, he found Adam there, gazing up at the surface far above, apparently lost in thought. "Adam?" he asked, and the young merman looked around, startled.
"Oh. Hi, Dad," he said, rising and facing his father.
"Adam, I was wondering if you could tell me something," the king said conversationally, smiling in a way he hoped wasn't condescending. "I can't help but notice that you've been acting strangely over the past several days. Is everything all right, son? You know you can talk to me about anything that might be on your mind."
Adam hesitated for a moment before he replied, "I'm okay, Dad. Really, everything's just fine."
"That's good," Poseidon said, nodding. "I'm glad nothing is wrong. But still, I cannot help but wonder why your behavior has changed so much." When Adam didn't offer an answer, the king added cautiously, "Is there, ah…a special someone who has brought about this change in you, Adam?"
Adam blinked once in surprise but said nothing, though a small, slightly guilty smile crossed his face. Poseidon took this as a confirmation.
"I was wondering who this special someone might be," the Sea King continued. "Could you perhaps fill me in, son?"
"Ah…" Adam broke eye contact, running a hand nervously through his hair. "Well…I, uh…I can't say."
Poseidon blinked, his smile slipping. "You can't say?" he repeated, confused. "But why not?"
With a slightly uncomfortable expression on his face, Adam shrugged. "Sorry, Dad, but I can't tell you. Besides, I don't think you'd believe me if I did."
And with that, he swam away, singing softly as he went, leaving his father to stare after him, mystified. His concern, rather than being relieved, had been intensified.
"Dad?"
Poseidon looked around to see Azure approaching. "Did Adam finally tell you who he's in love with?"
Poseidon shook his head. "No, he didn't…" He told his eldest what Adam had said, and Azure frowned.
"Hmm…" the younger merman said, gazing after his brother. "Let me talk to him, okay?"
"Be my guest," Poseidon replied, swimming away to see to his duties.
Azure found Adam drifting aimlessly among a small reef. The younger merman looked up at his brother's approach and grinned. "Hi Azure. How have you been?"
"Not bad," Azure answered, sitting down on a nearby rock and motioning for Adam to sit beside him, which he did. "And you? Wait, no need to answer, I already know." He chuckled. "You are head over fins in love, Adam."
Adam laughed nervously, his cheeks going slightly pink. "Does it show that much?"
"Oh yes," Azure replied, giving his brother a playful shove. "So tell me, who's the lucky mermaid?"
Adam's smile faded a little and he looked away. "I…I can't tell you," he said quietly.
"Oh come on," Azure pressed. "We've never held secrets from each other, little bro. If you don't want me to tell anyone else, I'll understand, but you can tell me. Come on, who is it? Someone I know?"
Adam smiled wryly. "No, you don't know her," he muttered. "Sorry, Azure, but things aren't so simple this time around. I can't tell you anything."
Azure's smile slowly faded. "Adam?" he asked slowly. "You haven't…you haven't done anything you shouldn't have, have you?"
Adam shifted uncomfortably and didn't answer. The bond between the two brothers had always been particularly strong, and he hated being so secretive with him. But how on earth was he supposed to explain this?
"Adam, you know you can trust me, right?" Azure said, leaning in close. "If you need me to keep a secret, I can, but…come on, it can't be that bad, right?"
Adam looked up at his brother and replied, "Um…"
Azure felt his heart sink. "How bad is it? Come on, Adam. You can trust me."
Adam hesitated for a moment. Then he sighed and said, "You can't tell Dad, okay? If he ever found out about this, he'd kill me."
Azure stared at his brother for a moment before answering, "All right. I promise. Not a word to Dad."
Adam paused again before he finally confessed, "I…I kind of went to the surface a few nights ago…"
As he told the story, Azure's eyes grew wide and his mouth opened in a small o. When he finished, the older brother stared in shock at the younger, unable to speak for several minutes. He finally managed to croak, "Oh, Adam…how could you…?"
Adam looked down at his fins. "I couldn't just let her drown, Azure! If you had seen her, the look of fear on her face, the way her struggles weakened as she ran out of air, you'd have done the same thing."
"Yes, I suppose so," Azure said weakly. "But…oh, Adam…contact between our worlds has always been forbidden! How on earth do you expect this to work out?"
"I don't know," Adam admitted. "But I love her, Azure. And one way or another, I will figure out how to make it work."
Azure didn't reply. He opened his mouth, but he couldn't think of a thing to say and quickly closed it again.
"Adam! Hey, Adam!"
The brothers looked around to see Star swimming toward them, looking excited. "What is it, Star?" Adam asked as the little seahorse came to a halt in front of them, panting slightly.
"Come on!" Star replied. "There's something I have to show you!"
Frowning in confusion, Adam turned back to Azure. "You promised," he reminded him. "Not a word to Dad, all right?"
Azure nodded, still unable to speak. Satisfied, Adam rose and followed the seahorse as he swam away in the direction of the palace. Azure stayed seated on the rock, gazing after him, his heart beating uncomfortably hard against his ribs.
"Azure?"
The young merman looked around to see King Poseidon coming toward him, looking hopeful. "Did he tell you anything?"
Azure hesitated for the briefest of moments before he replied, "Nope, not a thing."
Poseidon looked disappointed. "Oh. I thought for sure…you two have always been so close…"
Azure shrugged. "I guess he will tell us when he is ready." And he swam away. Poseidon gazed after him, head spinning in confusion. Something here wasn't right, and it was high time he figured out what….
…
Star led Adam back to the palace, swimming along the empty corridors toward the prince's bedroom. "Star, what is this about?" Adam asked a little impatiently.
"You'll see," the seahorse replied with a giggle. "It's a surprise."
Adam snorted; he'd never been much of a fan of surprises.
They reached the seaweed curtain that blocked off Adam's room from the rest of the palace. "Close your eyes," Star ordered, and the prince reluctantly obeyed. The seahorse led his friend slowly into the room and then said, "Okay, now open them."
Adam opened his eyes and gasped. Propped against the wall near his window was a large painting. The very same painting that Adam had seen presented to Princess Erica aboard the ship. "Oh…my…God!" the prince breathed, swimming up to take a closer look, a grin slowly spreading across his face. "Star! How…where…?"
Star chuckled. "It must have gone down with the ship. I found it in the wreck over near the rocks. I talked to some fish friends that were more than happy to help bring it here. Don't worry, they won't say anything about it to anyone."
"Star, you're the best!" Adam cried, swimming over to his bed and pulling out the locket. Opening it, he held the picture up beside the painting. "It looks just like her, too!" He slowly lowered the chain, closing the locket with a snap and clutching it in his hand, eyes glued to the painting. "She's just as beautiful as I remember," he sighed, reaching up to gently stroke the princess' face. "Thank you, Star. This is…this is the best gift anyone's ever given me."
"You're welcome, Adam," the little seahorse replied, smiling to see his friend so happy.
Adam continued to gaze up at the image of his beloved for a while longer. Then he said, "I've got to find a place to put it. Somewhere Dad won't find it…"
"Where I won't find what?"
Adam whirled around and gasped. King Poseidon had just entered his youngest son's room. His eyes went from Adam to the painting, and he blinked, momentarily too stunned to react. And then his face darkened in anger, and his trident began to glow, always a bad sign. Adam rose a little so that he blocked most of the painting from view, but it was far too late for that.
"What…is…that?" the king said, his voice shaking, eyes on the frame of the painting, which his son couldn't completely conceal.
"Uh…it's…it's…" Adam stammered, frantically looking for a loophole in his situation and finding none. "It's, well…ah…it's…a painting."
"A painting," Poseidon repeated with a snarl. "Of a human! A human artifact in my palace?! How could you even consider…?!"
"But Dad, it's harmless!" Adam cried. "Look at it!"
"I am looking at it," Poseidon growled. "And do you know what I see? I see a piece of the human world. I don't need to look any closer to know that it shouldn't be here! How dare you, Adam! How could you possibly bring something like that into this palace?!"
Adam didn't answer. He didn't want to get Star in trouble with his father, but he couldn't think of anything to say. He turned his head to look up at Erica's smiling face, and his heart contracted. She was so beautiful, and so far away…
"No…" the Sea King breathed, and Adam turned his gaze back to him. He was looking from the painting to his son and back again. Adam's heart missed a beat. "Don't tell me you… it's not possible! I knew you were acting strange lately, but it can't be…"
Adam didn't say anything. His heart was hammering too hard for speech.
"Don't tell me you are in love with that girl!" the king roared.
Adam flinched and looked away, blushing. "Dad, she's not bad, I swear!" he said.
"And how do you know?!" his father shouted. "How could you possibly know what she's like?!"
"Because…I saved her," Adam mumbled.
Poseidon's jaw dropped in shock. Then his face contorted in rage. "You…WHAT?!"
"Her ship sank in a storm, she would have drowned if I hadn't helped!" Adam said in a rush. "I couldn't let her die! She's not evil or cruel, she's sweet and kind and gentle and…and…" He straightened and looked back at his father. "And I love her, Dad. And there's not a thing in the world you can do to change it."
The Sea King stared at his son for a long moment, too furious to speak. When he finally unstuck his throat, he spoke in a deadly whisper. "Have you lost your mind?! She's a human, and you are a merman!"
"I don't care!" Adam said defiantly. "I love her, and I will find a way to tell her…!"
"I forbid it!" Poseidon shrieked. "Contact between our worlds is forbidden, and I'm going to get it through to you." He raised the trident, now glowing a violent shade of electric blue. "One way or another."
He reached out with his free hand, grabbed Adam by the wrist, and hurled him aside. He hit the opposite wall and grunted, looking around wildly as Poseidon leveled the trident at the painting. "Dad, NO!" he cried.
A jet of red light shot from the three prongs of the trident, tearing through the canvas and destroying it completely. The force of the spell was enough to crack the stone wall behind the ruined remnants of the painting. Tattered shreds of canvas floated to the floor and landed in a shapeless heap. Adam stared at the spot for a long moment, face blank and expressionless in his shock. Then his eyes hardened, and he swam away through the open window, Star flurrying to keep up. "Adam!" Poseidon shouted. "Adam, get back here! We aren't finished!"
Adam barely slowed as he looked over his shoulder and yelled an obscenity at the king. Then with one last flash of his fins, he hurried away, leaving his father to stare after him in shock and fury.
A/N: Hope you're enjoying it so far!