Ariel gasped as soon as she heard the palace doors open and promptly put down the book she was reading, making sure to leave it open on the page she'd been studying. She rushed out of the library with childlike excitement, tripping over her own feet in her hurry until she reached the front lobby. With a small breathless squeal she flung her arms around her unsuspecting husband, bringing them together at the base of his neck. Chuckling slightly, Eric turned around in his wife's embrace until he was facing her and wrapped his own arms around her waist, lifting her a few inches off the ground.
"I've missed you too" he said with an easy smile. In response, Ariel let out a content sigh and buried her face into Eric's neck, clutching the back of his shirt with both hands as if she were never going to let go.
Last week Eric had received news that he needed to attend a business meeting in England; so, for the last four days, Ariel had been alone in the palace. Everything that she and Eric did together she'd had to do by herself and the crispness of late winter combined with Eric's departure meant that there was a constant chill in the air. Even though fire's had been lit, nothing compared to the warmth that Eric's arms provided her. He made her feel safe and, more importantly, loved. The Princess had only been on land for just over a year and still she was learning new things every day. Eric was constantly guiding her, teaching her about his world and answering her endless questions. He never judged her for being ignorant; he enjoyed spending time with her, watching as she ran about, a desperate need to know exactly what everything was and what it did, and was more than happy to help where he could. And he knew that she missed her family. The seventeen year old Princess would often wake suddenly in the middle of the night, glancing around with a set panicked expression as if she hadn't a clue what was going on or where she was. But Eric would always be there to comfort her, and to remind her that everything was alright. He would hold her, sometimes for hours, until she calmed down and was able to get back to sleep. But, the past four days, he hadn't been there, and Ariel had barely slept a wink. This was her home now, yes; but, without Eric, she didn't feel as if she really belonged here.
This was the longest amount of time the young couple had been apart, and it was needless to say that they hoped it wouldn't become a regular thing.
"What have you been up to then?" asked Eric, making no attempt to release his wife.
"Nothing really," replied Ariel, resting her head against Eric's chest and closing her eyes, "just waiting for you to come back." Eric sighed, and kissed the top of Ariel's head, breathing in that all familiar scent of the ocean. Ariel's eyes suddenly shot open and she pulled back.
"I have to show you something!" she said excitedly, grabbing Eric's hand and dragging him in the direction of the library. Eric was used to being pulled around by Ariel, but it always caught him by surprise when she suddenly took off like that. Still, he didn't mind, and prepared himself to answer whatever question she had ready for him.
Once the two of them reached the library, Ariel rushed over to where she'd been sitting before Eric had come home. The fire was still crackling away, eating at the logs and covering the room in a dim yet comforting light.
"Too cold for you then?" said Eric, raising one eyebrow in such a way that Ariel found positively adorable.
"It's only because you weren't here," she said, smiling as she picked up the open book from where she'd left it. "You usually keep me warm."
"Oh, that's my purpose is it?" Eric said, smirking slightly as he walked towards the sofa on which his wife was now sat. Ariel just rolled her eyes and pulled him to sit beside her before thrusting the book into his hands and staring expectantly at him. Eric lowered his gaze to the pages of the book. He was greeted by a double page, the left had an elaborate painting of a cathedral, and the corresponding was an entire page of writing, explaining the history of the building. Unsure as to what exactly he was meant to be looking at he slowly looked back to Ariel, whose eyes were completely fixed on him.
"This," she said, pointing a slender finger to the picture. "What is it?"
"It's a cathedral" replied Eric, taking in just how much detail had been put into the picture.
"What does it do?" asked Ariel.
"Well," continued Eric, "it doesn't really do anything as such. It's like a church, only bigger and much more attention is paid to detail."
"So… people go there to pray and… get married?" said Ariel.
"That's right," said Eric, nodding. "Although most are just used for special occasions, so that's weddings, coronations... funerals… things like that." Ariel mused over her husband's answer for a moment, taking in every word he'd just said before her curiosity fuelled yet another question.
"Is there one in the Kingdom?" Eric seemed to freeze for a second.
"Yeah" he said, his voice coming to nothing more than a whisper. He cleared his throat quickly before trying again. "Well, not actually in the Kingdom, but there's one just outside of it." The Prince hesitated for a moment and then looked up to meet Ariel's gaze.
"I was… I was going to go there tomorrow if you'd like to come with me?" Ariel's eyes practically lit up.
"Really!?" she exclaimed. Eric smiled and nodded.
"Definitely, in fact I… I'd really like you to come" he said. Ariel beamed and wrapped her arms around Eric's neck, pulling herself closer to him and allowing him to loop his arm around her shoulders. There was something in that way that Eric had spoken that made Ariel wonder as to whether there was something else that he'd wanted to say. But she ignored it, and planted a chaste kiss on his cheek before lowering her head to his chest and cuddling up to him, glad to have him back after several days apart.
Eric held Ariel close, resting his head on the top of hers as the two of them watched the dancing flames in front of them. The last four days had been full of endless meetings and he'd barely been able to sleep because of the storms, both on the way there and the way back. The nineteen year old Prince was exhausted, and nowhere near ready for tomorrow. Usually he'd mentally prepare himself several days before, but he hadn't had the chance this year. Hopefully taking Ariel would make it slightly more bearable, and he knew she'd be there for him if he needed her.
When Ariel awoke the next morning, the first thing she noticed was that she wasn't at all where she should be; the fireplace in front of her told her that. The next thing that became apparent was the slight pressure on her head, and glancing up she realised exactly why that was. A smile worked its way across her face as she took in Eric's sleeping form beside her. His head was rested on top of hers and his arm was wrapped around her in a protective embrace. Each of them had a blanket tucked around them, so it was obvious that Carlotta had come in last night and made the decision to leave them to sleep. The morning sun burst through the windows, and flooded the library in an orange glow. After several minutes simply listening to Eric's steady breathing, Ariel remembered their plans for the day and decided to get up. As gently as she could, the Princess slipped out from beneath her husband, making sure to be as quite as she could, and lowered his head to the arm of the sofa before pulling the blanket over him. She kissed his cheek softly and left the room, shutting the door with a quiet click behind her.
Eric was more than a little bit disorientated when he woke up to find himself lying on the sofa in the library, and even more confused as to where Ariel had gotten to. Bleary eyed, he sat up and yawned, raking his fingers through his shock of black hair. He assumed that he'd fallen asleep here last night, but was unsure as to whether Ariel had too. If so then she was probably already up; she always had been an early riser, usually waking with the sun and having to start the day immediately. But, all his thinking was brought to a sudden halt when he realised what day it was. Eric dragged his hands over his face and sighed heavily. Every year this day brought about a dread like no other. The annual visit to the cathedral left him emotionally drained, and brought back memories that he'd really rather stayed in the past. Even thinking about it now brought tears to his eyes, and he had to blink hard to push them back. Great, it was only nine 'o' clock and already he was falling apart. Today was going to be tough there was no doubt about it; but this was the first year that Ariel would be able to come with him, and with her there Eric knew that everything would be alright.
The carriage left the palace at about midday, and the first thing Ariel noticed was just how quiet Eric seemed.
"Are you alright?" she asked, her brow furrowing as she placed a comforting hand on her husband's knee. Eric turned his head to face Ariel and offered her a small smile, bringing his hand to rest on top of hers, interlocking their fingers in the process.
"I'm fine," he said, "just… a bit nervous, that's all." Ariel was about to ask why, but decided it best not to and, instead, leant over and softly kissed his cheek before giving his hand a quick squeeze.
"It'll be fine, you'll see" she said. Even though Ariel was unsure as to what exactly Eric was nervous about, that had seemed like the right thing to say. Eric hadn't told her the significance of today simply because he wanted her to enjoy herself rather than worry about him. That and the fact that his breath caught in his throat every time he tried to.
The carriage passed several groups of people as it neared the cathedral, some walking towards it, some returning to the village, but all there for one reason; one reason that, each year, brought the entire Kingdom closer together; the exact reason why Eric feared today more than any in the calendar year.
He stepped out once they came to a halt, and silently offered Ariel a hand down. The Princess smiled and let Eric help her down. As soon as her feet were on the ground, she stared up in awe at the building in front of her. There were two towers either side, each raising up into a point, with blue tiles at the very top. Each had a circular window about half way up, and a long rectangular window at the bottom, on which a scene had been painted, much like the windows of a church. There were large wooden doors in the centre, from which people trickled in and out, some lowering their head to Eric as they passed.
"Most are a lot bigger than this," he said as he turned to face Ariel, feeling as though he ought to tell her a bit about the building. "But seems as we're not a big Kingdom it wasn't necessary to make it any larger."
"So… it belongs to our Kingdom?" guessed Ariel.
"Not exactly," replied Eric, "it's exactly half way between us and Glowerhaven so we share it." Ariel nodded in understanding and once again turned her attention to the cathedral. The afternoon sun sparkled against the windows, creating an almost magical feeling. Behind her, she could hear the rhythmic crashing of waves upon the cliff on which the cathedral was situated.
"Do you want to go inside?" Eric's voice snapped her out of the trance she'd caught herself in and she nodded enthusiastically.
Ariel gasped as the two of them entered through the tall doubles doors. The inside was even more beautiful than the exterior. Flowers and candles were dotted all around, reflecting in the stained glass windows, and all sorts of paintings had been hung upon the walls.
"It's beautiful" she breathed. But turning to Eric, she could see that he hadn't heard. In fact, he didn't seem to be at all focused. Something was wrong, Ariel just didn't know what.
"Eric?" she said softly, causing Eric to turn his head slowly until he was facing her. He took a deep breath and looked down at Ariel's hand, which was still intertwined with his own.
"You go and have a look around," he said, "I'll join you in a minute, there's just… something I have to do first." Ariel nodded, and reluctantly let her hand fall away from Eric's.
"Are you sure?" she asked? Eric nodded, not trusting his voice any more.
Almost as soon as Ariel had turned away, the first of what was surely going to be many tears fell from his blue eyes. He wiped it away quickly and turned to his right so that he was facing the very front of the cathedral, and forced his legs to walk forward until he was stood in front of around two hundred candles. Each held an orange teardrop, with at least another hundred unlit to the side. The tallest of these candles stood alone, untouched, in front of the others. It was the same every year, Eric would light that candle and it would burn for twenty four hours, alone once the others had burnt out; a painful reminder of how it had been for eleven years.
With quivering hands, Eric took the box of matches, hardly able to strike the match because he was shaking so much. His eyes stung with tears that he refused to let fall as finally the match burst in flame. The Prince lowered it carefully to the wick of the candle.
Tears ran freely down his cheeks now, as the flame leapt over and the candle lit. The cathedral was completely silent, and Eric hadn't a clue whether he was alone or not. But in this moment, he didn't care. He didn't even react at the familiar touch of his wife hand upon his shoulder. The two stood in silence for a long while before Eric couldn't bare the silence any longer.
"It's been twelve years since… since my…" he began, his voice shaking almost as much as he was. He let out a heavy sigh, his shoulders slumping as if they carried the weight of the world.
"Why didn't you tell me?" asked Ariel, understanding what would've come next.
"I couldn't," replied Eric, the pain in his voice bring tears to Ariel's already wet eyes. "I tried, but I couldn't do it." Ariel stared into the sea of flames, each one lit in remembrance of the late King and Queen. Ariel knew all too well the hurt that their death had inflicted upon Eric, for he seldom mentioned it. In fact, Carlotta had been the one to tell Ariel their fate, not Eric. His parents had died in a carriage accident when Eric was only seven. He'd been involved, but escaped with nothing more than a broken arm and a few cuts and bruises. Ariel knew he blamed himself, forever haunted by some survivor's guilt. But his parents love for him meant that he was still here; they had protected him and it had cost them their lives, and that was something Eric would never be able to live with.
The seventeen year old Princess looked up, noticing the shine to her husband's cheeks and the constant trembling of his body as he fought to keep his emotions under control.
"Would you mind if I lit one?" she asked. Eric shook his head, a quite sob rising from his chest. Seeing her intention, the priest handed Ariel a candle identical to Eric's and bowed his head in respect. She smiled a silent thank you and placed the candle beside her husbands. Just as Eric had taught her, she struck the match against the side of the box and, taking great care, lowered it to the wick of the candle.
Eric stared at the candles through blurred vision. Every year he would come up here alone, his candle would stand alone, burning long after everyone else's, he would spend the day alone, letting his thoughts swallow him. But now, all that had changed, he had someone to share that day with, someone who would support him, hold him, comfort him. The woman who had changed his life, who had saved him in many more ways than one stood beside him, and would do for many more years to come. He should be dead. He should have died in the accident with his parents. Yet here he was, standing, standing with a girl who was going to make everything okay. She loved him like they once had, replaced a love that he thought he'd lost forever.
With a heartbroken sob, Eric turned away, hurrying from the cathedral as if one more moment in there might kill him too. But he didn't go far. Just outside, overlooking the sea was a bench; the same bench that he used to sit on with his parents and listen to stories of their childhood. Every week without fail the three of them would come up here and sit together, and just hold each other; sometimes for hours. This was the place he remembered them by. Pained sobs tore from his throat as he sat and buried his head in his hands, his frame shaking with every cry.
That's how Ariel found him. Seeing her husband so upset threatened to tear her heart in two, for she hardly ever saw him cry. As quietly as she could, the Princess walked over and wrapped her arms around Eric from behind him, resting her chin on his shoulder and kissing his tear stained cheek.
"It's alright," she whispered, holding Eric as he sobbed, "you're alright, I'm here… I've got you."
Whilst Eric gave in completely to his emotions, and Ariel did her best to console him; inside stood two candles, side by side. And they would remain that way for a long time, burning together whilst those around them died, one by one. More would be lit, and they would die too and the cycle would repeat. But those two candles would live on, until one day they faded, and eventually went out, together.