Remember last week when I said I'd be on time this week?
I lied.
And was even later this time, to top it all off.
I tried, though. I really did. And isn't it the effort that counts?
Anyway, sorry again. Read on and enjoy. I'll try harder next week. Promise (yeah, right.)
"So why are we out here?" Charming asked Florian kindly, "Surely its private since you want us without servants and guards."
"I wasn't quite sure who to trust," Florian explained. "some oddities have been going on that I think you all ought to be aware of. See, just three days ago... no, I better start earlier. A few weeks ago, rather, a maid of mine began acting strangely."
"Overexertion." Adam waved off, "I see it all the time. Especially with the newer maids. Now can we go eat?"
"No," Florian disagreed, "This was possibly my oldest maid. She was my mother's maid. She birthed me, you see, so we were fairly close. Her entirely family has worked in my castle for as long as I can remember. And I don't mean she was slacking in her job in any way. What I mean is, she seemed to be going mad. Literally mad. She talked to herself. Walked in circles. Often, she came to me at odd times of the day, seemingly determined to tell me something, but always turned away and left before I could question her."
"Was she ill?" Belle asked. "You say she was old. Delirious, maybe?"
"I thought that too," Florian said, "I strongly believed she was going to die soon. So I made her take off work. I kept her in the castle, had a few doctors see her. I wanted to take care of her. She was like family, you see. But everyone said she was healthy and fine."
"She was such a wonderful woman," Snow White spoke up, "She and I read in the library sometimes."
"Anyway," Florian said, keeping himself on topic, "Some nights ago, she woke me up in the middle of the night. Pulled me out of bed and all but shoved me in one of the hallway closets."
"She was mad for sure." Aurora said, offhandedly, "I'd of gone for Eric."
Florian ignored her and continued talking.
"She shoved a letter in my hands and made me promise not to tell anyone about it. She made me swear to keep everything between myself and the other royals. She told me to trust no one."
"What did you say?" Charming asked.
"Well I agreed," Florian told him, "I still thought she was going mad, after all. I promised her this and tried to get her to go back to bed, but she wouldn't. She kept speaking of corruption and of spies. She told me I was in danger and that if I didn't open my eyes, we'd all be killed."
"Does 'we' include me?" Aurora asked, "Because I can't think of anyone dumb, and blind I might add, enough to kill me. It would be the biggest catastrophe in Pangrea."
"I let her speak on," Florian said, ignoring Aurora again, "But she wouldn't allow me to see her off to bed, so I went to bed myself. I put the letter under my pillow and went back to sleep."
"I don't know," Aladdin said, scratching the back of his neck, "She sounds crazy to me."
"Again, I thought the same." Florian said, "But the next morning, she was dead."
"I hope you weren't expecting us to be surprised." Aurora said. "She. Was. Old."
"She was dead." Florian said, putting on emphasis. "And she didn't pass away, either. She was killed. I found her right outside my room. Right outside the door, like she hadn't even left. You may not think of this as anything important, but I know for a fact that guards and maids pass my room all night. I hear them all the time. Why would no one remove the body? Why wouldn't someone wake and tell me? Its crazy, but I think they all knew or expected something. Why else would they ignore her?"
"Maybe they were waiting for your permission." Aladdin suggested. "Or maybe the guards took a different security route."
"No," Florian disagreed, "The case study said she'd been there only a short time. Her body was still warm. I heard guards outside my room. They knew. They had to."
Aurora made a sound and twitched, "That is positively disgusting. Heads would roll if someone even thought about leaving a body outside my room. I'd scream."
"I was so shocked," Florian said. "I couldn't even manage that. All I could think to do was close the door and make sure Snow didn't see."
Ariel hadn't realized it, but she must have been clenching Eric's hand rather tightly, because when he began tracing shapes on her hand again, it relaxed quite a bit. She looked to him, looking for his reaction to this news, but he hardly seemed to be paying attention. He seemed more worried about her reaction than anything else. She could see apology written in his eyes. This was what he'd warned her about. He didn't want this news to upset her.
"How did she die?" was all Adam said.
"I thought you might ask," Florian said, pulling pictures from his pocket, "I swiped this from the forensics lab."
Adam was looking at the pictures carefully, squinting in the dull light before speaking.
"Her arms are unbruised," he said, "She didn't fight her attacker."
"Her body is oddly shaped." Belle said, looking over Adam's body, "She didn't die from a single blow, I don't think."
"There isn't much blood." Charming observed, getting the pictures from Adam, "She must have died from internal bleeding. There probably was no trace or evidence of the killer."
"Don't look." Eric whispered to her, and Ariel hid her face in Eric's shoulder as the pictures were passed to him.
He didn't say anything though as he passed the pictures to Aladdin.
"I think she knew." Florian continued, "I think she knew she was going to die, that's why she'd been acting weird and pushed me in that closet. It was why she wouldn't let me walk her to bed. And just a few nights ago, I wanted to check up on the case. You can't blame me for wanting to know who was responsible. I had Snow to think about, and my other staff, after all. But no one was in the lab, so I looked for the file up myself...and...well... apparently, everyday since her death, a member of her family has been killed. Her husband. Her two daughters. Her three grandchildren. Her sister in law. All of them. Each killed in different ways, but all of them mangled."
"It may be more than one killer," Aladdin said, "With the different patterns. But they must all somehow be connected, because of the similar pattern."
"I figured the same," Florian said, "The moment I saw that, I ran and got the letter I'd forgotten about."
"What did it say?" Cinderella asked, her voice strangely clear.
"I don't know." Florian said, "I looked it over, but it isn't written in English. I've tried to do some research, but I can find anything even close to what its written in. I thought perhaps it was some ancient language, but nothing in any books I've seen, even closely resemble the letters."
"So it's all unreadable?" Jasmine asked, and Florian seemed to hesitate a bit.
"All of it..." he said, "Except one word."
Eric seemed to sit up a bit, and Ariel figured he hadn't heard this part of the story yet.
"What word?" Eric asked, and Florian took a deep breath.
"It's your fathers." he said, looking directly at Eric, "It's the name Daniel. It's the only word written in English. No other persons name was mentioned."
Now it was Eric's turn to grip Ariel's hand. She could feel his heart through his wrist, and it was pounding, even though he seemed calm and composed. When Eric had said he was somehow involved, she didn't think he knew just how much. But now, with his father's name in the note a dead woman gave Florian, Ariel had to suspect he was very surprised and possibly very involved.
"I gathered Snow as fast as I could," Florian said, "We came here the first chance we got. I've kept my word, not having told anyone, and while I may just be overreacting, I'm not so convinced anymore that Cora- my maid- was so crazy after all. She knew enough to get killed over. And she risked not only her life, but her family's life, to tell me something she thought would save my life. I'm not going to take this lightly. I'm going to decipher that letter and figure out what she wanted me to know."
Everything he had to say out, Florian sat beside a shocked Snow White. Ariel didn't think the girl had known the whole story, herself.
The air was heavy and quiet around everyone, the only sound being that of crickets and other night animals out. Ariel herself appreciated the silence. She was afraid of anything else Florian might say. She would lying if she said the thought of death didn't frighten her. That finding a dead woman outside her room would be something she could handle as well as Florian had. And now, she knew Eric might somehow be involved.
Was he in danger? Was she? Her friends? No one had threatened Florian, or anyone he knew. But the woman had told him not to trust anyone. Did that mean there were bad people everywhere? Even within Eric's castle?
"We should head back." Charming said, standing up. "This is something we can further discuss in the morning. By now, we'll be missed."
Everyone nodded in agreement. Cinderella stood up, and she and Charming headed back through the hedges. Aurora followed after, Snow White, Florian, Aladdin, and Jasmine right behind them. Ariel waited patiently for Eric to compose himself enough for them to head back as well. But for a while, he simply stared ahead of him, deep in his own mind.
Ariel watched the fountain, trying not to let the thought of killers in the castle get her freaked out. It was nighttime, and eventually, she'd have to go to bed. Such dark thoughts only called for nightmares and she wasn't sure if she could handle such things at that time.
"I'm sorry." Eric said suddenly, making her jump, but not looking at her, "I didn't want you to know at all."
Ariel squeezed his hand gently. She'd of preferred that as well, but she supposed that since she was now involved in Pangrea's affairs, mainly, its prince, that she ought to know such things. As a true princess, she knew it was unwise to ignore any kind of information. Even the kind you didn't want to hear.
"You know your safe, don't you?" he asked, turning sharply took look at her, "You know I would never let anything happen to you, right? That you have nothing to be afraid of."
He sounded so nervous. Like the very answer she gave decided whether or not he would live. She couldn't tell him, at least not now, that Florian's story had actually creeped her out a bit. Made her nervous. Especially since he'd been so reserved to allow her to know anyway. For him, she had to be brave. Besides, she was more afraid of what would happen to him than herself anyway.
"I know." she told him, and he seemed to breath out a sigh of relief.
"Come on," he said, standing and helping her up, "Lets head back."
"You do realize though," he said, as they walked down the path, "That this all has to be kept under tight secrecy."
"Yes, I know." she told him, "But what now? What about that letter? It may have something to do with you."
"Maybe, but then, maybe not. My father and I are different people. Maybe I'm left out of it entirely."
"Who do you think wrote it?"
"I cant say. But if they mentioned by father by his first name, with no title, it had to be someone close to him. A friend perhaps. But I cant see him close to anyone outside of royalty. But their name would have been signed at the bottom if it was, most likely in English."
They'd reached the opening to the hedge garden, and now that she knew it was there, Ariel could see the 'hidden' door they'd come out of. She longed for Eric to take her back to the secret garden, back to 10 minutes ago, when she wasn't afraid a maid might slash her in the middle of the night. But she supposed their was no use crying about what wasn't about to happen. She wiped unpleasant thoughts from her mind, ready to pretend she was alright.
"Ready?" Eric asked, looking to the castle with a kind of disdain.
Ariel nodded, and together they went back inside.
The maids who had previously been rushing around the room, was scarce, and all that was left in the room was well dressed servers, and her friends. Ariel realized she and Eric must have entered the party before the maids and servants had been ready, and they'd all frantically been trying to finish their jobs. Now though, they were ready, and the room seemed barren and low-energy, now that they were no longer freaking out.
No one, in fact seemed very high energy. Snow White and Florian was sitting at the table. Snow seemed particularly upset. Jasmine and Belle were talking by the window, and Cinderella and Charming were talking to Aladdin and Jasmine by the band.
"Lets dance." Eric said, pulling her towards the band.
Ariel didn't much feel like dancing, but maybe Eric already knew that, and that was the point. In fact, maybe, dancing was a good idea at the moment. She didn't think about much other than Eric when they danced and that idea sounded just about perfect. But they hadn't even reached the floor before a hand tapped Eric on his shoulder. Both Eric and Ariel turned, and there standing in all her glory, was Jewel.
The girl had a sweet, slightly uncomfortable look on her face, like if she could, she'd vanish or turn invisible. Like she'd take back being seen if it didn't make her look foolish.
But besides that, the first thing Ariel noticed, was the girls dress. Ariel and Jewel was dressed completely different. Ariel's dress was big. Girly. Fluffy. Jewel's dress, was not. For one thing, it was so skin tight that Ariel knew she'd need to be cut out of it after the dinner. It was, ironically, purple. But not lavender. Instead, it was a dark, grape color, seemingly rich with the finest fabric Ariel had ever seen. It was a halter top, but the neck line dropped so far down that the girl couldn't have worn a bra if she'd wanted to. But it seemed no need anyway, for the halter held her almost unnaturally perfect shaped breasts in a way that Ariel was sure was meant to be suggestive. But it wasn't until the girl swayed a bit in place, that Ariel noticed that, to top it all off, she had a split in the side of her dress that practically went up to her hip.
To look so sweet but in dress like... that... just made her seem like a walking oxymoron.
"Hi." she said, her voice small, "I'm sorry. I hope I'm not interrupting."
Eric looked at Ariel with a look that basically said: yes, she is interrupting, but we can do this later, so smile.
Ariel smiled at her sweetly.
"No," Eric said, his voice smooth within his gentle lie, "Not at all."
She smiled, if possible, even sweeter, "Good. I just wanted to make sure you didn't dance yourself out. You owe me a dance from our last meeting."
Jewel giggled, some unknown insiders joke Ariel had missed, before suddenly, green eyes met blue and Jewel jumped a bit.
"Oh, Ariel." she said, "I didn't even notice you. How are you?"
"Fine." Ariel said, her voice extra syrupy, "And you, Jewel?"
"Perfect." she said.
"You know each other?" Eric asked, looking between them.
Ariel opened her mouth to speak, but Jewel beat her to it.
"We met in the fitting room," she said, "We were tailored at the same time. Doesn't she look so cute? My little sister has a dress just like that."
Of course, back in the fitting room, Ariel hadn't known then that Jewel had been getting fitted for a second skin. Compared to her, Ariel looked so... so childish. Like a little girl at a princess party. Like someones little sister. Cinderella had on a blue floor length evening gown, a black belt tied around her waist. Jasmine had on a teal ball gown, but it wasn't nearly as poofy as Ariel's. Belle had on a brown simple spaghetti strap, ankle length dress. Even Snow White had on a bright yellow evening dress, with a tight red blazer.
Ariel was the only one dressed up like she was at a real ball. The only one with a skirt 5 times her radius.
"I think she looks positively stunning." Eric said, but even his words didn't not make her want to run and hide in a corner.
How could she have been so blind? She should have asked around. Gotten a feel for what the others were going to wear. She'd simply trusted the seamstress, but clearly that wasn't such a smart idea.
Before any other thoughts crossed her mind, a throat was cleared, signaling the beginning of the dinner. Pep gone from her step, Eric must have noticed, because he pulled her into him, and kept his arm around her waist as they made their way to the table.
Aurora, who had been in a corner fixing her makeup in a hand-held mirror, quickly flew to the table and stood in front of a chair.
For some reason, she looked especially proud of her placement. It wasn't until Ariel and Eric reached the table that Ariel understood. Apparently, Eric must sit in the same place often, because Aurora had secured herself a seat right next to him.
Servants pulled out chairs for everyone, except Ariel's, she noticed. Eric waved her apparent 'chair puller' aside and did it himself. He flashed her a grin and she couldn't but smile. Just a bit. And just her luck, Jewel made herself comfortable right beside Ariel.
Right across from Ariel, Jasmine and Cinderella were next to each other, talking away, and Belle seemed to be educating Snow White on something important. All in all, Ariel was happy to have her friends there with her. Once she got into the new mood, she managed to forget about what had just happened outside, and focus more on dinner. Of course, she wished she didn't look like a cotton candy ball... but Eric seemed to like her outfit, so she supposed she could deal.
A bowl was placed in front of everyone by a maid, and Ariel was a second away from picking up a spoon and tasting some. Thankfully, she noticed Jasmine across from her dip her hands into the water and wipe them on a towel beside her. Apparently, this was some way to wash your hands.
Ariel blew out a breath of relief as she copied the motion. She might have made a large fool out of herself in front of everyone. She'd look like the little girl who drank the washing water. Had she had a proper meal in Paris, or France, or even Agrabah, she might have known this. But this avoided disaster made her wonder: how much else didn't she know?
"Your majesty." said a servant beside Ariel, who was addressing Eric, "Chef Lois requests your presence."
"Of course." Eric said, dipping his head at the table to excuse himself.
The moment he was out of sight, Aurora two seats down from Ariel spoke up.
"Jewel?" she said sweetly, "I didn't even see you there, I'm sorry. Though I guess your used to being ignored."
Ariel bit her lip. She had to admit Jewel's intentions made her a bit suspicious to Ariel, but Ariel would never insult the girl such as Aurora had just done. And to say it so nicely, implied a certain amount of stupidity. Ariel wondered what kind of history the two girls had together. It couldn't have been a very pleasant one.
Ariel looked around her, seeing Charming shaking his head, Aladdin and Cinderella perplexed, Jasmine and Adam looking extremely interested in the coming conversation, Belle confused, and Snow White and Florian blissfully ignorant.
"Hello to you too, Aurora." Jewel said, her voice equally kind, "Well, I suppose your used to being stepped on. How else would your face get like that?"
Aladdin pat Jasmine's hand, because clearly the girl wanted to laugh.
"Well," Aurora responded, "I could have just been born like you. Anyway it's such a lovely surprise seeing you here. Did Eric invite you?"
Jewel let a bit of her kind façade fall and Ariel saw a split second of annoyance cross the girls face. But in but a second, her kind smile was back.
"Grimsby, actually." she said through slightly gritted teeth. "This time, anyway. Did he invite you?"
"Oh no," Aurora laughed, "I don't need a servant to invite me. See, real princesses, like me, don't need that kind of stuff. Of course, you wouldn't know anything about being a real princess. But, that was so sweet of him. Grimsby did always like to get the ugly kids out the house. You know, it makes the society more excepting to their faces."
"Well I think you've paved the way to what the society cant take quite well"
"You would know."
"Okay." Charming interrupted firmly, "We get it. Your both ecstatic to see each other again."
Ariel caught Jasmine's lip twitch. It was clear the girl was trying her very hardest not to burst out laughing. Cinderella and Belle both still looked shocked. And Snow White was biting her fingernail, looking between the two girls as if she was sure one of them would begin a physical fight.
Ariel, uncomfortable with the now heavy silence, smoothed her skirt out, but happened to catch Aurora's eye. The girl opened her mouth to speak, but right before she did, Eric returned to the table and quite chatter picked up around Ariel again.
"Sorry." Eric apologized to her, "Minor emergency in the kitchen. Anything interesting happen?"
Ariel smiled innocently, shrugging her shoulders. Eric smiled, squinting his eyes at her. He could see straight through her.
"Dinner!" announced a short, portly man with a mustache that curled inwards and a tall white chefs hat, "Is served!"
Lines of servants placed silver trays of food on the table in front of everyone and in unison, removed the covers.
As if she wasn't already stressed, what Ariel saw, would haunt her forever.
"Stuffed crab." Jewel hummed, "My favorite."
Perhaps Ariel was wrong. Maybe she'd just been slightly traumatized by the sight, because for a second, she'd been sure she saw Jewel flash her a evil smile. But it was gone so fast Ariel was sure it was her imagination. It had to be. Loving seafood and being allergic to seafood wasn't something easy to get mixed up.
The sound of cracking shells filled the room, and Ariel was sure her ears were bleeding. Those poor crabs. Crabs who had no chance against fishing nets. And harpoons. And ships. And boats. Crabs she might have known. Sebastian. Her school mates. Teachers. Friends.
Eric placed a gentle hand on her arm, and Ariel couldn't help but jump.
"Are you alright?" he asked her, lowly. "Your not eating."
Ariel tried to give Eric a convincing smile, but his frown deepened.
"I'm fine." she admitted, seeing no reason to tell a half truth when he'd see through it anyway, "I'm just... allergic. To shellfish, that is."
With a flick of his hand, her plate was suddenly gone, already replaced with something totally different.
"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked, half turning back to his own plate, a surprising look of mild disgust on his face at it. "You know you can tell me anything."
Eric had no idea how much that comment had actually hurt her. How she wished she could simply tell him anything. How she longed to tell everything. About who she really was. Where she really came from.
"It never came up." Ariel offered, her voice small. "I didn't think it was served often."
"It doesn't have to be served at all." he countered, "I would have never had it prepared if you'd only asked. In fact, if Jewel hadn't requested it, we'd probably be having steak."
If Jewel hadn't...
"What?" Eric asked, immediately sensing something.
Darn him and his perfectly tuned in sense of her.
"Nothing." Ariel offered, not wanting to cause any trouble, and grabbing her fork, prepared to eat. "Nothing at all. Everything's fine."
"Ariel." he said firmly, and she used all her will power not to turn and look at him.
The moment she did was the moment she confessed everything. But Jewel, she was right next to her. Even if Ariel wanted to tell Eric, there was a large chance Jewel would overhear. But then again, who cared? If the girl was bold enough to request seafood after Ariel had mentioned being allergic to it, then did her feelings in the matter really matter anyway?
"Later, then." Eric said, most likely sensing her hesitation, and grabbing his own fork.
He didn't touch his food though, and while Ariel hated the prospect of a crab being eaten, she didn't want to shame Eric into changing his own ways either.
Within the hand he hadn't let go, Eric intertwined their fingers. Jewel, beside Ariel, cleared her throat rather annoyed. Ariel was sure Jewel could see her and Eric's hands together, but the girls face was strangely serene. Like this was something she'd prepared for. It made Ariel's stomach feel unsettled.
Jewel threw a black curl of her hair behind her shoulder before sitting up a bit and speaking to Eric, her voice back to its sing-song sound.
"Eric," she said, her voice just on the verge of a giggle, "Do you remember last time I was here, and that waiter tripped and all of that crab fell on Grimsby?"
Ariel was glad to hear Eric chuckle beneath his breath and looked to Jewel.
"Yeah," he said, still smiling, "and his pipe got full of all that lettuce?"
"Carlotta said it was the best possible thing to smoke." Jewel said, laughing a bit.
"Carlotta says a lot of things." Aurora spoke up, suddenly throwing herself into the conversation. "Eric, do you remember when she told us how our parents dream was for us to marry? We spent a whole day in the garden picking out possible wedding flowers. Don't you remember that?"
Ariel made sure not to make a face. She made sure to keep her head straight and her hands calm, because if she clenched them, Eric would know. It was clear Jewel and Aurora didn't get along. They were simply having a go at each other. It had nothing to do with Eric, and nothing to do with Ariel.
"No." Eric said, his eyes widening slightly as he cleared his throat of the crack that had found its way into his usually smooth voice, "No, I don't remember that."
"Speaking of gardens," Jewel said, "Remember all those flowers you gave me when I was here. They were so pretty."
"I-I didn't pick them for you." Eric clarified, a random stutter adding to his slightly higher pitched voice. "Remember, you simply asked for them and I said you could have them."
"Oh that garden," Aurora sighed, "Eric we should walk through it again. Just the two of us, tonight. Like we used to do."
"That was once." Eric defended, "And I was made to go on the walk. It wasn't by choice."
Jewel laughed lightly, "Next you'll tell me our kiss wasn't by choice either."
When Jewel had begun speaking, everyone's quiet conversations had all but ceased, but now, it seemed as if a heavier air had somehow found its way into the room.
Ariel wanted to think they were making things up, but Eric's answers proved her wrong. She wanted to think the girls were only trying to outdo each other, but Ariel looked up from her plate, and the first thing she noticed, was that Jewel was staring right at her. A look in the other direction told her Aurora was staring at her too. And immediately, Ariel knew both girls weren't trying to outdo each other. They were trying to outdo her. They were mentioning those things at her expense. Proving without directly saying so, that maybe, Eric hadn't been 'hers', to begin with.
She could feel tears brimming her eyes, from both heartache and embarrassment, and before she made a complete baby out of herself, childrens clothes on and all, she excused herself from the table. Eric called her name, and she heard his chair slide back against the marble floors, but she didn't slow down nor look back. She waited until she was out of the room and out of sight, before she scooped up her shoes and ran down the hall to the nearest bathroom.
Dropping her shoes by the sink, Ariel didn't even think to look around the beautifully decorated golden bathroom, like her normally curious self would. Instead, she ran the cold water in the sink and held a hand to her stomach, trying to force herself to stop panting, and breathe. She felt like at any moment, she might die. She couldn't even think about Eric not truly being hers. She couldn't imagine a life without him. A life where he didn't really love her. A life where there was another- no, other- women, more important than she to him.
And through this all, even if she felt like she might die, she knew she couldn't change how she felt about him. Even if he straight-out dumped her. If he ignored her. Yelled at her. Hit her. Any number of things that could break her even further, she knew, not even so deep down, that she loved him. No matter what he or anyone could do to either of them, she knew she'd always love him. Would always do everything in her power to try and make him happy.
Maybe it was selfish, but she needed Eric to love her. Needed it. Where would she be if he didn't? She'd gone through so much. So much. Just to have a chance with him. But maybe that was the point. She'd done it all for a chance. Just a chance. Maybe her gamble hadn't been worth it. The thought that it had all been in vain... it made the tears come harder. What if her father was right about humans. What if, merpeople and humans were more different than she had thought?
And to think, that no one could know how hard she worked to be with him. How hard she struggled. How she'd gone through physical changes. Emotional trauma. Pain. Isolation. A cast shock. She'd been hungry. Cold. Worked and cleaned and fought. All for him. For him. For no other reason, than for him.
And what if she'd wasted her time? What if he was only putting on a façade? Covering up the fact that in the past, he'd had a number of women at his side. A number women who had actually held his heart. And she... she was just a number. Just the next girl in line. He was a prince after all, he could have any girl he wanted. Maybe Grimsby was right. She wasn't who she thought she was to him.
Ariel knew she was letting her mind run wild. She knew she was beginning to exaggerate on things that hadn't even happened yet. Things that may never happen at all. But those girls... they'd known all along that she'd been affected. And it wasn't like they'd lied. They'd only told half truths. But walking through a garden at night, picking wedding flowers... kissing? Just the thought of him doing that with someone else made her heart pound to the point where she heard her blood pumping in her ears. Felt it in her feet. In her temples. Her hands.
She felt a mess. Tears streaming down her face. Panting, like she was going to hyperventilate. Somewhere between her mild panic attack, she'd begun sweating. Her stomach was twisting in so many knots that she was sure at some point, it would shrivel up and fall out.
Ariel heard the bathroom door opened, and she simply prayed, that Eric hadn't found her. But pleasantly, she found the girls, minus Aurora and Jewel, had somehow found her.
"Oh, sweety." Belle said, going over to her and wrapping her arms around Ariel.
Ariel allowed her to do so, burying her face in the girls shoulder. She loved Belle like a sister, but for a moment, it was nice to pretend Attina was there comforting her.
"Those girls aren't worth the tears." Jasmine said, matter of factly, "They were lying through their teeth and we all know it."
"But Eric never fully denied-" began Snow White's voice, but she must have gotten glared at, because she stopped short in the middle of her sentence.
"They were exaggerating," Cinderella said, kindly, "You should have seen Eric's face. He was mortified. I truly believe those girls shocked him into silence on purpose. Just to upset you."
"Trust me," Belle said, "You've nothing to worry about. We all know how much Eric loves you. Seriously. I don't think he's the kind of guy to lie about that kind of stuff."
"He isn't." Jasmine backed up, "I've known him since I was 6 and he's never had a girl at his side until you. Trust me, he's the guy that'll stick with the same girl until he dies. All his life he's been talking about 'the one'. He knew love when he saw it, and would settle for nothing less until he found it."
"Found you." Snow White added, redeeming herself from her last comment, "He's already chosen you, and I know his judgment is excellent."
Belle pulled back, and Cinderella passed Ariel a napkin.
"Besides," Jasmine added, "Both those two faced girls have been after Eric since, well, birth. You should see the way Jewel stalks him at school. Its like she's a vampire or something."
"Even if you did need to win Eric's affection," Cinderella said, waving a hand dismissively, "We all know you'd trump those girls."
Ariel dabbed at her eyes some more, but shook her head.
"I cant compete with them," she confessed, "Both Aurora and Jewel are beautiful. They know nearly everything about him. They've got class, and elegance, and grace. And they can walk down a hallway without tripping over their own feet. I'm not even from here, I just don't belong."
"That is nonsense." Snow White said firmly, "You can do anything they can. And 10 times better, too. That's no attitude to take."
"Trust me," Jasmine said, "Those girls have everything but class, elegance and grace. The worst thing you can do for yourself is get to know them. But if you do, you'll know what I mean."
"A friend once told me that everyone's got a one up somewhere." Cinderella told her, smiling, "But that means you do too. Your as pretty as any of them, but you've got a inside to match. I'd like to think the prince is more interested in the beauty in you."
Ariel would have never guessed her pep talk to Cinderella would be used on herself.
"But its understandable to feel doubt." Belle said, factually, "This is a new environment for you. For most of us really. And we're all new to love. Insecurity is very normal."
"We must nip this attitude in the bud." Snow White said, "I can prove to you that your more than you think you are."
"We all can." Cinderella said.
"Clearly." Jasmine said, a sneaky smile widening on her face, "This calls for war."
"We are not going to war." Belle said. "I was actually thinking along the lines of her and Eric sitting down like adults, and talking their feelings over."
Jasmine made a face that practically said: who and what are you, a shrink?
"No," Jasmine stated, "She needs to be aggressive. Show those girls that Eric is hers. And not to be bargained for."
"She needs to take him on a romantic nature walk." Snow White said, twirling.
"You just need to be yourself." Cinderella told her, "Eric fell for you. You should stay true to that."
Ariel's head spun. Talking. Aggression. Nature. Being herself. What was she supposed to do?
"Enough." Belle said, noticing her confusion, "I think we're doing more harm here."
"Our opinions... differ." Cinderella agreed, "Perhaps we can put them together. You know, for a full-proof self-confidence boost."
"An aggressive nature walk?" Snow White said aloud to herself, confused.
"No," Jasmine told her slowly, "More along the lines... of a full out war."
"We are not going to war." Belle repeated. "The last thing the boys need to see is our evil side. We need to forget those girls and focus more on Ariel."
"But those girls are the root of the problem," Snow White said, "That amongst other things. I think, maybe, Jasmine is right. We should try and nip this at all angles."
"All in favor of taking out the trash," Jasmine said, raising her hand high, "Raise your hand."
"I think we should call this something else." Cinderella said, raising a tentative hand, "More along the lines of, establishing boundaries."
"I agree," Snow White said, her hand going up as well, "We should focus on education. You know, like, silently outdoing them. Without the pretense of being at war."
Everyone was looking at Belle, waiting for her response. She had her hands folded across her chest and seemed very serious before she sighed, and slightly put her hand up.
"Someone has to make sure you guys don't go overboard."
"We're so happy your doing this," Jasmine said, "We're even going to ignore your lame excuse for wanting to get in on the action."
They all shared slight smiles amongst each other, glad to be on the same page, before slowly turning to Ariel. Ariel shrunk back a bit, not quite sure what all had just happened.
"Ariel," Jasmine said, throwing her arm around her, "We're going to make you the ultimate princess."
"Just," Belle said quickly, "for your own confidence and self reassurance."
"And," Cinderella said, "to show those girls, and anyone else who even daresto look at Eric, what will happen if they mess with you."
"This is so exciting!" Snow White cried, jumping up and down and clapping, "We're like spies or something!"
"More like teachers." Belle suggested.
"Teachers, spies." Cinderella waved off, "Regardless. For tonight, though, I think we need to play it off like everything's fine. There's nothing we can do until tomorrow."
"Agreed." Jasmine said, standing up. "So wipe those tears Ariel, and put on you happiest smile. In front of the boys, you must show no weakness."
"Come on." Belle said ushering the other girls to the door, "Lets give Ariel a moment to herself."
The girls, chattering away about ways to make her 'the ultimate princess' left out the bathroom, leaving Ariel alone. For the most part, Ariel was still confused about what had just happened, but she tried to leave it in the hands of her friends. She trusted them.
But then, she also trusted Eric. The girls claimed it was simply Aurora and Jewel, sneakily trying to get at her. And Ariel, honestly, could believe that. Aurora made it quite clear her intentions involved being with Eric. Jewel was a bit sneakier, Ariel hadn't suspected the girl was so gung-ho, but looks could be deceiving.
And Jasmine, who had known Eric since she was 6, she wouldn't lie right? She and Eric seemed so casual around each other. She would know whether or not he'd been in love before, right? Cinderella had also said he'd looked mortified. Perhaps he had been as surprised at the verbal attack as she had been.
Taking a deep breath, Ariel tried to compose herself. Yes, Jewel and Aurora had known Eric longer. Yes, they were actually from the human world. And yes, they even had stories with him. But through all of that, Eric still held her hand whenever they walked together. He could still tell when she lied or when something was wrong with her. He took her to his secret garden. He'd taught her how to dance. And he'd been her first kiss. No matter what the others girls said, it couldn't erase what Ariel and Eric had between them.
Ariel took another deep breath and studied herself in the mirror. She wiped at a few stray tears and tested a smile. It didn't look convincing, and if Eric saw it, he'd know for sure how fake it was. But to anyone else, she might only look a tad bit upset. And a tad bit upset didn't get you stared at nearly as much as full-freak-out did. She was presentable enough.
Brushing off her cotton candy ball of a skirt, Ariel put her shoes back on and left the bathroom. She had a brief thought about not even going back to dinner, but dismissed the idea. Nothing said 'you broke me' more than running away, and Ariel wanted to not appear broken. She hadn't lost faith in Eric. She still trusted, believed, and loved him. Her doubt that he'd never been truly hers melted from her mind. She needed to think more about how not to let Aurora and Jewel get to her.
Ariel was trying to think of ignoring tactics when she reached the dinning room. But other than the girls, minus Aurora and Jewel, the room was empty.
"Grimsby's called them out." Snow White said, speaking about the boys. "We probably wont see them until tomorrow."
Everyone seemed a little put out by this fact, and even Ariel wouldn't of minded at least seeing Eric before she went to bed. A goodnight wouldn't have destroyed her completely either. But then, maybe it was a good thing Grimsby had called them. Ariel was ashamed to admit that she'd seriously doubted Eric for more than a few moments. She wasn't sure of she could face him yet anyway. No, it was better to sleep on things and in the morning, she could speak to Eric.
Ariel was fairly sure Jasmine or Snow White could show her to whatever room she'd be staying in, and Ariel decided that the moment she was alone in her room, she'd call her sisters. She was pretty sure Atlantica numbers were similar to the human numbers, and that she could get a good connection. It was high time her sisters knew she was alive. Of course, they'd probably take turns screaming at her, but she'd deal. Talking to home might be just what she needed.
.
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Eric
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Eric would deny having heard anything Grimsby had said, only because it was true. Everything the man said went right over his head. Grimsby had put him in some secluded room full of books and worksheets. Apparently, it was the new standard to do school work before you even got to school. Something about getting your brain prepared for it or something of the like. If Eric was listening, he might know for sure.
But his mind was far from Grimsby or any man. Instead, it was on Ariel. He shouldn't have let the girls talk him into sitting back down. He should have followed his instincts and went after her. He should have explained everything. Told her exactly how he'd been manipulated into sounding like he had. Normally, he was never so scatterbrained. He could usually handle anything that happened to be thrown at him and talk his way out of anything, all while keeping calm and not losing his head. But the moment Ariel was in the room and she was at the defense? He completely lost his cool and all knowledge on how to stay calm. All of it.
And now, he couldn't imagine what she was thinking about him. The way Jewel and Aurora had made him sound, you'd think he had 5 girlfriends. You'd think he switched whenever he pleased. But that simply wasn't the case. He was in love with Ariel. He planned to marry her. There was no other way to word that.
But she didn't know that. Not yet, anyway. Not of the magnitude of love he felt for her. When he thought about himself, even hewas surprised. After all, he'd only known her for a few days. But there was no mistaking it. His feelings were written in stone. There was no room for debate.
"Are you listening, Eric?" Grimsby snapped, Eric's keen sense of ignoring people bringing him back into the conversation timely, like always.
"Of course." Eric said, looking to the man as if the entire question was stupid to begin with.
Grimsby nodded his head curtly. He had no response. Then began talking again.
It was times like then that Eric wished he could master the skill of disappearing. He'd give up his ignoring talents in a heartbeat, if he could just somehow learn how to fade into a wall and go on his merry way. If he could, he'd go straight to Ariel. Try and right things between them.
And maybe, he'd even leave Jasmine in a room alone with Jewel and Aurora. He was confident Jasmine could take the two girls on with no problems. They deserved it.
Eric was pulled from his mind, quite rudely in fact, when the disturbing feeling of his hands burning engulfed him. He looked down at his hands, his eyes wide with shock, and his mind sluggish for an answer. A thin line of blood was slowly creeping up from Eric's skin, as if a piece of paper was run across both his hands, and had given him a paper cut.
"Ahh," Grimsby said, smiling slightly at Eric's shock, "I nearly forgot to introduce you to our guest."
Eric's usually upbeat listening skills failed him just then. He was still staring at his hands in wonder.
"Look up when your being addressed." cracked a voice, and for curiosity reasons more than obedience, Eric looked up, just to see who had addressed him in such a way.
"This is Madame Grimhilde." Grimsby said, "She is your new habit coach."
"I don't like habits." lady Grimhilde said simply.
She was very tall and very skinny, skin skin having an unhealthy pale tint to it. Her lips were a blood red and she wore a long black cloak as a part of her creepy cowl lined with red on the inside and white fur on the bottom. Her high white collar attached to her cloak nearly reminded him of Snow White's collar.
"Of course," she spoke, "You could always call me The Evil Queen. It doesn't matter, as long as you choose one and stick with it. I hate people who change their minds."
Eric was going to stick with Madame Grimhilde. Although the evil queen looked fitting.
"She'll be assisting you with your little problem." Grimsby spoke, motioning to Eric's hands when he raised a confused brow, "It long past due that you stop that annoying custom."
As if habits were something you could choose.
"I'll be following you around," Madame Grimhilde spoke, "Any time you start up that nasty habit, I'll welt you with this."
She moved her cloak to the side, revealing a whip that she had tied to her waist. Eric looked back to his hands, which were still stinging, and then back again to the whip. He swallowed hard.
"She's been proven most effective." Grimsby said, and Eric really didn't appreciate his unhidden glee in the matter.
"So go on." Madame Grimhilde said, waving her hand dismissively, "Keep talking. Pretend I'm not here."
"Gladly." Grimsby said, beginning to read a math review he'd need to study for.
Now that he knew he'd be whipped for habits, Eric consciously tried to keep his mind off of Grimsby, and focused more on his hands. The pain was subsiding a bit but he still couldn't shake the feeling that at any moment, Madame Grimhilde might randomly feel like wrapping her whip around his neck.
She simply gave off that kind of vibe.
Clenching his hands, Eric tried to multitask between keeping still and listening to Grimsby. But trigonometry was simply too boring. After a moment, he allowed his mind to tune the man out. But he was brought back into the conversation by another stinging in his hands. This time, it burned more, having cut the previous wound again.
Eric was too shocked to turn around to Madame Grimhilde, and Grimsby simply kept on talking. Eric was pretty sure there was some law against whipping people over things they couldn't control. Unnecessary pain infliction, or something. He probably should already know Pangrea's laws backwards and forwards, but he knew that now, at the age of 17, it was a mandatory elective he had at school, not to mention the fact that he wasn't old enough to change or approve laws anyway, so he'd never put much thought into it.
Eric jumped, Madame Grimhilde having whipped his hands again. Eric bit his lip, watching as some of the blood now dripped down onto the desk he was sitting at. His hands were bleeding a lot more.
"Are you paying attention, Eric?" Grimsby asked, and Eric nearly asked him the same question.
It was kind of hard to focus on concurrent theorems and indirect inequality proofs when a mad woman was whipping you. Honestly, he'd never paid much attention to his hands, but when he was whipped every 30 seconds, he was shocked at how often he actually did this little habit. Surely Charming, Jasmine, and Adam already knew about it. Maybe even Ariel. It didn't seem to bother them much, so why did it grate Grimsby's nerves so bad?
Eric, as slowly and unnoticeable as he could, tried to discreetly put his hands under the table, where they'd have some protection from the Evil Queen, but she noticed the act as if he'd announced it.
"Hide your hands if you please," she said, "But I'll only whip your back."
Note to himself: wear thicker shirts.
"Clearly," Grimsby said, exasperated, as if training for school before school was so important, "Your not paying attention. You leave in two days, Eric. You must be ready."
Eric tuned into the man just in time to hear his last comment. But Eric was more concerned with his bleeding, and stinging, hands. Any more whips and they'd go numb for sure. And then how was he supposed to write?
"Go to bed," Grimsby said, waving his hand, "We'll start early in the morning."
Eric couldn't wait to leave the room. He left in such a rush that it wasn't until he was out the door and halfway down the hall that he realized the sound of clicking shoes was matching his walking. Eric spun around, and Madame Grimhilde nearly ran into him.
"I hate fast walkers." she spat, and Eric noticed her fingers twitched, as if more than anything, she wanted to pull out her whip and slash him in the face.
"Are you really going to follow me everywhere?" Eric asked and she barked a laugh.
"I follow wherever your habits occur."
Eric had a creepy flash of her standing outside his shower.
"Even to bed?" he asked.
She rolled her eyes, "Unless your hand-problem happens while you sleep, then no."
Eric no idea whether he did that in his sleep, but he couldn't imagine he would. Still, he showed her one of his many rehearsed smiles.
"Then it wouldn't make much sense for you to follow me now, sense that's where I'm heading."
Madame Grimhilde sneered, leaning down so that she was but an inch from him face. Clearly, she didn't do charm.
"It's a long hallway." she gritted.
And on that note, Eric spun on his heels and went straight to him room. He made a point of closing his door in her face and locking it. Locking his door didn't much matter, considering an entire staff of people knew how to get in whether the door was locked or not, in the case of an emergency, but it made him feel better. Like a child, he watched her shadow under the door, wondering if she was doing the same, before she left.
His room was neat and sparse, like always, his school clothes having been removed. He didn't bother changing his clothes yet, as he made his way to his balcony doors. With a well placed magnet he kept in his bedside drawer, he was able to open the doors without an alarm going off. He had planned to relax himself a bit. Possibly try and ignore any and everything that just happened to be bothering him, but he couldn't seem to unwind, and he knew that in the back of his mind, a certain red headed girl was the reason.
He'd left her on such a sour note, and he knew he wouldn't be able to focus or relax and definitely not sleep, until he spoke to her. There was no point even trying to get to bed, for he knew the task was impossible.
Eric sighed, running a hand through his hair. He had such early mornings, and it was late already, but he needed to see her that very night. Needed to talk to her. Needed to hear her laugh before he went to bed. It was mandatory, like forgetting to lock to front door, and forcing yourself to go and do it, even if you didn't much feel like it.
Eric went back to his door and opened it, cautiously looking both ways for Madame Grimhilde. When he found the hallway was empty, he kept his footsteps light as he made his way to the left. He hadn't had the chance to show Ariel to her room, and honestly, he'd of liked her closer to him, but he had an idea of where Jasmine would have taken her, and he was pretty sure the girl would have taken on that responsibility.
Mentally, he tried to organize his thoughts. What he'd say to Ariel. How she might react. How exactly he could make everything alright between the two of them again.
.
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Ariel
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Ariel had just hung up the phone with her sisters. She felt exhausted after that conversation. They'd been ecstatic that she was alive. Annoyed she'd taken so long to call. Pissed off that she'd spent all her money. And down-right frightened that she was on land. Actually, down-right frightened was an understatement. That topic had held a long list of emotions in itself. But once Ariel had explained that she'd fallen in love, and that every move she'd made since had revolved, basically, around Eric, they'd understood a bit.
Arista's and Adella's excitement over Ariel haven fallen in love helped. Alana's slightly proud attitude about Ariel attending a human party had put a positive note on things. Adrina's jokes about merman not being good enough for her, eased some tension. Aquata's prideful position about Ariel's resourcefulness had been helpful. It had been Attina who'd been quiet the longest. She hadn't been happy at all, and had several times, threatened to tell Triton and get her dragged back down to the bottom of the ocean. But the joint efforts off all her sisters had made her see things Ariel's way. For now, Ariel was fine. Happy, mostly. Healthy. She had everything she'd come for, and found everything she'd set off to find.
They'd all talked for seemingly hours. Ariel promised, that somehow, she'd attend all their weddings, which would take place in a few months. And she promised to call them the next night, to prove she hadn't been made into human sushi, and to tell them some more about Eric. They didn't have the pleasure of meeting him personally, yet, but they were determined to learn everything Ariel knew about him.
By the time Ariel had hung up with them, she was tired and her throat was parched, which was an odd feeling for her. She didn't know where the kitchen was, but she decided she'd wing it. Jasmine had given her a long, sheer, slip to where to bed. While it was very comfortable and cool, it wouldn't be very appropriate of her to be caught like she was.
Searching through the closet in her room, that was full of clothes, some that would fit her, some that wouldn't, she found a heavy, dark purple robe. She shrugged it on, tying and untying the robes tassels for no reason, and exited the room, not at all surprised that the hallway was completely empty.
She figured the kitchen was near the dinning room, so she headed in that direction absentmindedly. She rounded a corner and nearly ran into a boy. A surprised yelp came from her, and she held a hand to her chest, hoping she could hold in her frightened heart. She hadn't thought about it since before dinner, but the idea of suddenly being murdered by a rogue maid or servant was the first thing in her mind now.
"I'm sorry." the boy sounded, before she had a chance to find her voice, "I didn't mean to scare you."
"It's alright." she said, laughing breathy, still trying to catch her breath, "My fault. I wasn't looking where I was going."
Ariel looked up, and took the boy in quickly. He was clad in a black jacket, an earthy colored v-neck shirt, gray pants and black his brown hair, oddly enough, was tied back into some kind of braided ponytail. He had a curious look on his face, Ariel noticed. Like somehow, he'd been thrown into a trance. Like he were dreaming awake somehow. His face was blank, mouth agape, his eyes slightly wide, but hazy looking. He was staring at her like she'd suddenly grown another head.
"Are you alright?" she asked him, waving a hand in his face. "Hello?"
He snapped to attention, and she jumped again, a bit startled. She laughed at her jumpy behavior. But he looked a bit embarrassed as he tried to explain his odd behavior.
"I'm...it's just... I mean you..." he sputtered, motioning at her sporadically, "your just... wow...and... Jim. Jim Hawkins."
He stuck his hand out at her strongly, and she jumped back a bit. He shrunk down some, seeming incredibly embarrassed. He seemed so lost. But, somehow, in a way that was kind of cute. Like a little boy trying to pronounce a big word. Ariel giggled, holding her hand out to shake his. Her giggle must have relaxed him quite a bit, because he smiled back kindly.
"I'm Ariel." she told him.
"Ariel." he repeated, in a whisper, like her name held some special meaning to him. "That's so beautiful. I mean, you know, for a name."
Ariel was a bit at a loss for words, as a blush rose to her cheeks.
"Thank you." she said, a bit uncomfortable, as she noticed Jim hadn't let go of her hand. "Jim is nice as well."
She tried to stealthily give him a hint, gently tugging at her hand, but he seemed not to notice. The moment had quickly gone from a slight scare to small talk to now a bit uncomfortable. Jim Hawkins was staring at her face rather crisply. His eyes roaming into her eyes so sharply that she had to turn away from him. Surely he had to know how uneasy he was making her. The way his eyes were swanning, she mostly wanted to snatch her hand back from his and close her robe tighter.
"Forgive my staring," he said, shaking his head, but his eyes never leaving her face. "I just... I cant look away from you. Its like I'm under some kind of spell."
Ariel didn't even have a chance to respond because a loud throat was cleared directly beside her. Ariel jumped, for the third time that night, as she found Eric had somehow walked up to her without her knowing it. She'd thought she needed a good nights sleep to think about what exactly had happened at dinner, but now, she'd never been happier to see Eric.
But one look at him, and she wondered if he felt anything like she did. For the first time, she couldn't read his face. It was a kind of stoic that she'd never seen on him. A possible cross between anger, maybe, or possibly, he was hurt. It was strange not knowing.
"Eric." Ariel said, in the silence that had settled over them, "This is-"
"Jim." he interrupted, not even his voice giving way to any emotion. "Jim Hawkins. We met earlier."
Jim dipped his head Eric way.
"I was actually looking for you." Eric told her, "I wanted to talk. But I see-"
"No." Ariel interrupted, possibly to upbeat for the moment, "We can talk. Really. I'm not busy."
Eric raised an eyebrow, but not at her. Ariel followed his line of sight and in a moment of panic, snatched her hand back from Jim, which he'd still grasped from their handshake. She looked frantically between where her hand had been and Eric. She wasn't sure what kind of impression that had left on him. And if he'd heard any of their conversation, what would he think?
"Eric," she tried to explain, "I-I-I-"
Stuttering always made things worse. Ariel's heart beat wildly. She felt faint. The color drained from her face. This was all some big misunderstanding. She must have looked a horrid fright, because Eric's face softened at her. Perhaps, Ariel wondered, this was how Eric had felt at dinner. Ambushed. Unprepared. Misunderstood. Though Ariel hadn't kissed anyone, she wascaught holding hands with another boy. But maybe Eric had an equally fine excuse as well.
"It's alright." Eric stopped her, his voice soft.
Ariel breathed a deep sigh. He needed to say nothing else. His face was readable again. He meant it. He blamed her for nothing.
Jim, suddenly, cleared his throat, and Ariel snapped out of her relieved trance.
"I should head to bed." Eric said, nodding his head like this was better anyway, "We can talk in the morning."
"Right." Ariel said, a bit put out. She'd actually wanted to hear his side of the story from dinner. "In the morning."
Ariel felt like for the second time in the same day, she was leaving Eric on a sour note. The opposite situation actually, for now, it was her own fault. She'd of really loved to speak with Eric. Now, she had many things to apologize for. All she could do was hope and pray that in the morning, he still loved her.
Ariel took a step back, about to go back to her room. Eric had rescued her from her awkward moments with Jim, and at the moment, she didn't want to be left with him again. In fact, she was looking forwards to some solitude.
"Goodnight, then." Ariel said, turning.
She was shocked, as she was stopped mid-turn. Ariel didn't even have a second to process the hand on her forearm that had stopped her departure, before she was spun back around by Eric. His grip on her was a bit tight, but the thought vanished when Eric gave her a full kiss on her lips. His kiss was so strong and forceful, that he'd needed to put his hand on her back, just to keep her from buckling backwards.
But Ariel would take any kiss he gave her. For if a kiss meant affection, then a kiss meant he still felt something for her. She just hoped it was love he felt.
When he finally pulled back, Ariel knew that her lips would bruise and possibly swell. And yet, his kiss was definitely amazing. A kind of amazing that made her knees weak. Made her feel like she was about to melt into a pile of jello. A kind that forcedher to acknowledge the fact that Eric had never made her feel like anything less than the only person in his entire world, be it male or female. That her doubt in him, had been very plainly misplaced.
He smiled slightly at her, when she came down from cloud nine. She realized she'd been gripping his shirt with both of her hands, his arms around her for added support, probably in an effort to stop her from melting into the floor. She stood up quickly, color rinsing into her cheeks, and tried to compose herself.
"Goodnight." he told her, letting her go and backing up some.
Without his arms supporting her, she felt extremely weak. Like she might topple over at any moment. She felt cold, lonely. Which was crazy, considering he was still right there. Crazy, she reminded herself. Crazy, like she were on some drug. Some incredibly amazing, good for you drug. That incredibly rare, but entirely real, love drug.
.
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Eric
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Eric waited until he saw Ariel go into her room, before he turned back around to head back down the hall. He moved with purpose, trying his best to display confidence and nonchalance, in front of Jim, who was still frozen in his spot. It was all too clear that poor Jim Hawkins was beyond smitten with Ariel.
From the moment that Eric had rounded the corner just in time to see Ariel nearly collide with Jim, he'd known that he'd needed to label Ariel immediately, as his. Not that she was something to be labeled, but she was definitely someone who needed to be claimed. She was simply too wonderful to allow to wonder about, but too naïve to see why. That whole conversation they'd have, from Jim's stuttering to the excessive staring he'd done, Eric doubted Ariel knew the boy was so infatuated by her.
Which was why he'd needed to make an appearance. He'd of felt bad kissing her in front of Jim if he'd only done it for the show of it. Luckily, though, kissing Ariel was becoming one of his favorite hobbies, and saying goodnight was a perfect time for a kiss.
He wasn't so dim, though, that he didn't notice the glares he'd gotten from the poor, lovestruck, Jim. But if Eric was being frank, he didn't much care what Jim thought or how he felt. He'd felt bad for Jim when he knew he would be working with Aurora. And it had never been established publicly that Ariel and Eric were together, so maybe it wasn't necessarily Jim's fault that he'd thought Ariel was open territory. But Eric had been infuriated when he'd noticed Jim wouldn't let go of Ariel's hand. Even when she'd tried to pull away. You'd have to either be daft to not catch on, or you simply didn't care.
And that idea didn't sit well with Eric.
But Eric shrugged mentally. He was pretty sure Jim wouldn't be a problem from then on out. Eric had made a good enough show of possession. If Jim still didn't understand that Ariel was not up for grabs, then a boundary would be set. Or perhaps a talking too. Whichever seemed more effective.
Reaching his room, the first thing Eric did was change into his pajamas. Max was asleep at the foot of his bed, like always. Eric hadn't seen the dog all day, and supposed poor Max hadn't known he'd even been back yet. He pet the dog for a bit, stopping only when Max licked him in the face, and climbed into bed. It was always weird not having an enormous pressure on his feet when he slept, but now that Max was there he expected a good night. Especially since he'd settled things at least a little bit with Ariel. He hadn't heard her laugh, but her eyes said a lot, and he knew that for now, they were okay.
And that's an ending to this. Remember, I'm shortening the chapters, to prolong inevitably running out of previously typed things and keeping things (mostly) normal and up to date. Sorry about this short-chapter-shock.
Anyway, not feeling very chatty, but be sure to READ AND REVIEW. Your life depends on it.
_TheForgottenName
