The Little Mermaid
The look on the princess's oldest friend's face was incredulous. For a split second, Madison felt self conscious. Surely her idea wasn't that crazy. "Chip, please help me. I have to see him again."
But the yellow merman shook his head, his eyes wide with horror. "Necrolai is not to be trusted," Chip said firmly. "That much is common knowledge. Why else would parents warn their children of her since birth? Madison, if it were anything else, you know I would assist you. This I won't help you with. And please, forget Necrolai. She'd hurt you before she'd help you."
"You don't understand. No one does. I've never felt this way about anyone before. I can't stop thinking about him." Madison moved closer to her friend, her eyes pleading with him. Then she looked to see that Toby was not close enough to overhear and found that he was examining trinkets at a vendor's booth. The blue princess smiled in relief before turning back to Chip.
Chip lowered his gaze to the cobbled street that made up the main road of the kingdom. "Maddie," he groaned quietly before looking up again. He locked gazes with her and finally nodded. "When do you want to do this?"
Madison's face lit up with a huge smile. "As soon as possible. How about right now?"
The red haired merman let out a sigh. "We might as well, before I lose my nerve. Honestly, I would expect this from Vida, Maddie, but not you." Chip looked over at Madison's babysitter and saw that he was coming closer. Quickly, Chip hugged the youngest princess. "Be careful."
She bobbed her dark head. "Thank you." Then Maddie casually swan over to a different booth, pretending to be interested in the charms for sale. She glanced at Chip and saw he had already distracted Toby. The two mermen were engaged in conversation, and there was no way her baby sitter could possibly spot her amongst the crowd.
Her heart beating at what felt like twice its normal speed, the blue mermaid took off through Atlantis.
0o0o0o0
Nick sat up. He was still on the beach under the warm sun, but now it appeared he had company.
At the ocean's edge, a boy and girl stood, staring at each other. They appeared to be around his age, and he smiled slightly. He could tell they weren't from nobility even from a distance.
Just as he was about to slip away, he saw them lean in to embrace. After a moment of this, the young man took his companion's face in his hand before leaning down to kiss her.
'I want that,' flashed through the prince's mind. 'If only that girl would come back…'
0o0o0o0
Madison was well outside the safety of her kingdom now. She was a little nervous as she moved further away from Atlantis. Necrolai was reported to be dangerous; Chip was right about that. Maddie was unsure of what Necrolai would be willing to do for a princess, but she had to try.
Like the other young merpeople of Atlantis, Madison knew the legends. Necrolai had once been a mermaid, living in the kingdom Maddie would one day rule.
Necrolai had been a beautiful young mermaid. She was a good daughter, helping her mother at her shop. She had been well regarded throughout the kingdom, until it was discovered that she dabbled in ancient spells, magics that had long been illegal in Atlantis. Once discovered, she was tried and found guilty of practicing dark magic.
She put up a fight, firing her black curses at everyone who tried to secure her. She managed to hit King Niall square in the chest, killing him instantly.
A young Prince Daggeron took his father's triton, swimming up to meet Necrolai and finish the fight Niall had lost.
As Necrolai paused to regroup, the young prince took his chance. He aimed the weapon at the murderess, releasing a bolt of golden light at his enemy.
Necrolai was transformed from purple mermaid to a mutilated hybrid. She now possessed eight violet tentacles instead of her tail.
Having humiliated her, the new king started his reign by showing a bit of mercy. He offered Necrolai a deal. She was now powerless to perform evil magics, but if she so desired, she could mix helpful potions, so long as she didn't set up shop in the kingdom. Being that her only other option was jail, Necrolai agreed.
She was relatively quiet, living in a cave far outside the kingdom's borders. The understanding was that she was normally sought out by young girls wanting concoctions to make boys fall in love with them.
But every so often one of those girls disappeared, Madison reminded herself as she reached the purple cave where Necrolai lived.
She hesitated for the first time since she'd convinced Chip to help her. Did she really want to go through with this? She thought of Chip, her loyal best friend; of Vida, her stubborn sister; of her hotheaded father…
The prince's handsome face flashed through her mind, making her remember just how badly she wanted to see him again. She had to explain why she had left so abruptly. And if she was able to get help from Necrolai, she could learn so many things. All the information she had gotten from Xander over the years could finally be put to use…she could pick up where Mother left off.
Feeling brave again, Madison swam into the cave without another doubt.
0o0o0o0
Toby was growing suspicious of the younger merman. It was odd that the redhead would approach him like he had, and just to babble about nonsense. And where, exactly, was Princess Madison? If anything happened to her on his watch, the king would murder him on the spot.
Chip was now going into great detail about the clown fish he had kept as a pet when he was a child. "Nemo wasn't afraid of anything."
Feeling he could no longer pretend to be interested in Chip's childhood, Toby put a hand on Chip's shoulder, patting the yellow merman awkwardly. "That's great. Now tell me something. Where is the princess?"
"Well, it's a funny story, really…" Chip looked at the older merman, a nervous smile on his face. "She, um…"
Toby folded his arms across his chest, clearly wanting a better explanation. "I'll ask you again. Where is Madison? The last time I saw her, she was with you. Was she planning to do something she shouldn't be doing?" He watched Chip carefully.
The oldest friend of the two princesses lowered his tawny gaze, and Toby knew that the other merman had indeed acted as a decoy for Maddie. Toby groaned, rubbing his temples. "Do you realize just how much trouble we are going to be in? We have to bring her home."
He swam off towards the palace. When Chip realized what Daggeron's intention was, he raced after him. "You can't tell King Daggeron!"
"I have to. I'm going to tell him you distracted me so Madison could sneak off to see that human boy on the beach!"
The redheaded merman scrunched up his face and blurted, "She's not at the surface!"
King Daggeron's curly haired advisor turned slowly to look at Chip. "Then where is she?" he questioned in a steady, deliberate voice. "If she's not with the humans, where did she go?"
Chip was silent, debating with himself. He wanted to do the right thing; he just wasn't sure what that was. Maddie had turned to him for help because she trusted him. He should respect her enough to keep her secret. On the other hand, who knew what the sea witch would do to a daughter of King Daggeron?
"Is the princess in trouble? If she is, you need to tell me," hinted Toby.
"She went to see Necrolai," Chip admitted finally. "She wants to be human, so she can be with their prince."
Toby turned again, swimming at twice the speed he had before. "King Daggeron needs to know, now." He was shaking his head as he continued towards the castle. "I can't believe you would help her visit the sea witch. Do you want her to be killed?"
The yellow merman's face clouded with hurt. "That's not fair. She was so sad, Toby. I think she really cares about him. But you're right. Necrolai is dangerous. And if Maddie is in trouble, we can't wait for Daggeron to gather his soldiers. Let's go. Just us."
Toby nodded in agreement. "If she's really with Necrolai, she'll need help. Maybe we can get there in time to change the princess's mind."
And the two mermen turned and went back the way they had come, hoping they wouldn't be too late.
0o0o0o0
"Hello?" Madison called as she entered Necrolai's lair. "I want to ask you a favor…" The raven haired princess ventured further, noticing that there was a strange fog coming from the back of the cave. She tried again. "Necrolai?"
And suddenly, the thick gray smoke was gone. Necrolai came forward, a seemingly kind smile on her face. "Well, well, what have we here? One of Julia and Daggeron's girls, no doubt." She took a good look at Maddie's face and questioned, "Madison?"
The younger princess nodded, smiling back. Maybe the "sea witch" was not truly as evil as Maddie had always been told. "I do not know what to do, Necrolai. I think I am in love, but my father and sister do not approve of the match."
Necrolai's expression was a mask of sympathy. She moved to the young princess' side, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "My poor darling," she cooed. "Tell me, child, why is it that your family doesn't wish for you to be happy?"
Madison looked up, her big tawny eyes round and sad. "He is human," she whispered. "Vida says I betray Mother's memory. Father says I am not to see him."
"I see. How did you meet this boy?" Poor Madison was so desperate for help that she didn't realize Necrolai was carefully forming the beginnings of a plan.
The princess told Necrolai of how she had been at the surface. Her father's anger had been taken out on the humans and caused a terrible storm. A boy had nearly drowned, but she had saved him.
"I was just so happy he was alright that I sang to him," Madison finished. "Then he woke and started to ask questions. I left before he could see what I am." As she finished her sad story, the most heartbroken look crossed her face. Necrolai could tell this one would require almost no persuasion.
The cunning sea witch nodded, her sympathetic mask still in place. "Say no more, dear. I know just how to help you. I have a tonic that can transform you into whatever creature you desire." Necrolai opened a small chest, rummaging carefully through the collection of bottles. She presented Madison with a pale blue potion.
Eager as the young princess was to walk on land, she was sure there had to be some kind of catch. "I can have this? How much do I owe you, Necrolai?" Madison started to open her blue coin purse, but the sea witch stopped her hastily.
"I don't take that kind of payment, darling princess. I require something a little more binding. You see, my dear Madison, these potions I make take time and energy to brew properly. They're quite an investment, and I've discovered some young girls like yourself come back to me very unhappy."
Madison's face scrunched into a puzzled frown. "Why? Don't the tonics work?"
Necrolai smoothed a hand over the young princess' raven colored hair soothingly. "But of course, dear. It's the girls who try to fool me. So, instead of collecting payment in coins, I thought up my little contracts."
Before the blue mermaid had time to react, the two were joined by people close to the princess. "We're not too late," Toby said, relieved. He was at Madison's side in an instant, hand closing around her wrist. "Come on, Princess. I'm taking you to the castle, where you can explain this little stunt to King Daggeron."
Madison broke her babysitter's grip easily. "Chip! You promised." She stared hard at her yellow friend, her big chocolate eyes filling with tears. The blue princess shook her head before turning back to Necrolai. "Contract?"
The sea witch picked up where she'd left off as if there hadn't been an interruption at all. "Before I let my girls drink their tonics, I make them sign a contract. There are certain conditions they have to meet, or suffer the consequences." She paused, looking thoughtful. "You may have the potion, but in return, I want your voice."
"Don't do it, Maddie," pleaded Chip.
"Princess, Chip is right," added Toby. "You can't."
Necrolai spoke again. "In addition, if you love the prince and are to be happy with him, you will have three days for him to kiss you."
Madison looked down at the little jar in her hands. She could be a human with the swallow of the blue liquid. But giving up her voice…
It was worth it, she decided as she prince's face crossed her mind once more. "I'll sign."
Necrolai smiled, and with a wave of her hand, a scroll appeared. She unrolled it and handed it to Madison, still smiling. The princess was given a pen, and waited for further instructions.
There were none. Slowly, Madison began to sign. 'Princess Madison.' Necrolai read the last clause of the contract to the younger girl.
"The princess has three days in which to kiss her prince. If she meets this requirement, her voice will be returned to her and she will live happily ever after. If not, she will immediately be summoned here and become part of my garden."
"Garden?" Toby asked suspiciously. Necrolai pointed and the princess noticed for the first time a small plot of what appeared to be strange gray plants…with eyes?
The yellow mermaid cast a pleading look at the princess.
"I said I was going to sign." And she finished her signature, the final statement reading, 'Princess Madison Elizabeth Rocca.'
The sea witch grinned as he contract was sealed. "Excellent. Now, as per our agreement…" Necrolai collected a small shell and held it out. "Sing into this, dear."
With one last look at Chip and Toby, Madison sang one long not until told to stop. She tried to thank Necrolai, but no sound escaped her lips. She smiled instead before pulling the stopper off of the small bottle. She downed the blue liquid.
Instantly, an aquamarine cloud enveloped Madison's body. As it drifted away, the two mermen saw what it had done to her. Gone was her tail fin, and in its place were two…legs. She looked pleased for a moment, but quickly the happiness was gone and a panicked expression was in its place. Poor Maddie couldn't breathe underwater.
Luckily, Chip realized what was wrong right away. "We can't let her drown," he told Toby. They each seized one of the princess' arms and began to tow her up towards the surface, wondering just what they were going to do now.
