CHAPTER 9
"Deepening"
"Where do you think she could be?" Dash called out to Tip, who was just ahead of him, as he lumbered along one of the castle's many hallways. "We've looked everywhere! Maybe… Do you think she could be outside?"
Inspired by these words, Tip then hopped up onto a nearby windowsill to inspect the outdoors. After a quick wipe of his fin cleared up some of the fog that had settled upon the glass, Tip then spotted the one they were searching for: Ariel.
"Hey, big boy! Here she is."
Another bright, clear morning had helped in lifting the spirits of everyone on this particular day.
"Wow! You know, she hasn't really gone outside that much since we've been here."
"I know," Tip replied, his gaze still focused on their princess.
"Well… now we just have to find Belle." After Dash said those words to the penguin still stationed upon the windowsill, said penguin then leapt off in a flash, and began scurrying down the corridor once more, the hefty Dash lagging behind somewhat.
"Belle is a nice human. I thought so from the time we first met her," Dash projected his voice forward, so Tip could hear.
"Nice enough," Tip chuckled over his shoulder, back toward the walrus, "and weird."
It was not long before they encountered Belle, herself strolling through the castle, her intended destination nowhere in particular. She was in a slight daze, humming to herself and not paying much attention to her surroundings. Because of this, and also due to the fact that Tip was not watching where he was going, the rushing penguin soon smacked face first into Belle's shins.
"Huh?" Belle snapped out of her trance-like state to greet the clumsy penguin. "Oh, bonjour Tip. Didn't bend your beak, did you?" She smiled at him, trying not to laugh.
"Heh heh. Very funny." Tip then became conscious of his beak, smoothing his fins over it.
Dash, at last, caught up. "Hello, Belle. Tip, why don't you watch where you're going?"
"She was in my blind spot!" Tip lied, obviously a little embarrassed.
"Isn't it a lovely day?" Dash then continued to Belle.
"Good morning, Dash. Yes, it is…" She turned her head slightly, gazing dreamily out of a nearby window.
"Perfect morning for a walk outside," Tip then added, beginning to smile up at the human. Belle couldn't help but grow a little suspicious; Dash had always been polite, but Tip? Only several days ago he had threatened to thrash me with his fins!
However, at this time, Belle chose to ignore her suspicions. Instead, she just shrugged in a manner that was neither agreeing nor disagreeing.
"Maybe you could go ice-skating, or something. I hear humans do stuff like that all the time," persisted Tip. "Personally I prefer tobogganing, but hey, each to their own…"
Dash however, was less subtle. "You know, I don't think Ariel has ever been ice-skating."
Belle thought for a moment. She decided that this was in fact a great idea, and with the help of Tip and Dash, went in search for ice-skates.
Before too long, in one of the castle's utility rooms, they found just what they were looking for. The skates were a little rusted and appeared to not have been used in years, but apart from that, they were fine.
"I haven't been ice-skating in ages," Belle told Tip and Dash, excitement evident in her voice, as she opened a door of the utility room that led outside. "It's so much fun, I'm sure Ariel will like it!"
Ariel, too, was in good spirits this morning, and had decided to go for a walk on her own, inspecting the castle's grounds far more closely than she had ever done. She was in view of Belle, not too far away, carefully navigating her way across a frozen pond.
Belle rushed out to greet her, skates in hand, calling out: "Good morning!"
Distracted, Ariel lost her footing on the slippery ice and fell onto her rear with a thud. "Ouch!" She turned her head to notice that Belle, Tip and Dash had all witnessed her fall, before placing one hand on her now-blushing face and muttering to herself: "Oh... oh, embarrassing."
Belle jogged over, a little concerned. "Ariel, are you alright? Ha, and I thought I was the Queen of Clumsiness!" When she saw that Ariel was indeed unhurt, she playfully added: "Well, that should contribute towards me feeling better for fainting the other day."
Gingerly, Ariel began to rise off the frozen water and onto her feet again. Kindly, Belle took one of her hands and gently pulled her up. Once she was upright again, Ariel said: "Thanks. That fall hurt my…" Rubbing her behind, Ariel suddenly became incredibly self-conscious. "Ummm, my pride."
"As long as that's all that's hurt," Belle laughed, tapping the ice with her foot to test its sturdiness. "But… this is a perfect day for skating," she then added, holding up a pair of skates for Ariel, who simply stared at them, unsure.
Still, she politely accepted them, then watched as Belle sat down on a nearby ice-covered bench and affixed her own skates, attaching them to the work boots which were her standard choice of footwear.
Out of the corner of her eye, Ariel noticed Tip and Dash still standing in the doorway of the utility room exit. Fixing her gaze on them completely, she noted that they were both smiling expectantly. What's up with them?
Ariel turned back to Belle, who was now standing on the ice, skates attached, balancing perfectly. "Come on," Belle encouraged, outstretching a hand. "It's easier than it looks."
"Sure it is," an unconvinced Ariel retaliated. With a sigh and a slight shrug of her shoulders, she then sat down on the bench to affix her own pair of skates. Before long, she had joined Belle on the ice, stumbling and swaying in an attempt to keep her balance.
After one near fall, she asked Belle, who was zooming gracefully around nearby, one could almost say showing off: "Whoa! Little help?"
Belle skidded to a stop. She smiled at Ariel, before skating over and taking her hand. "I thought you said you were the Queen of Clumsiness," Ariel quipped as Belle came over. "You sure don't look like it at the moment."
"My clumsiness is always random and unexpected," Belle laughed. "I could still fall on my face yet."
"That would certainly make me feel better, after my fall a couple of moments ago," Ariel joked.
"You still owe me for my embarrassing moments in the library a couple of days ago," Belle responded with her own joke. "You promised me you'd walk into a library wall."
Ariel placed her free hand on her hip, although her smile was becoming wider. "I didn't promise."
"You should have."
Ariel was stifling giggles now. "Shut up."
"OK… Anyway, why don't you try like this?" Belle asked, referring to the art of ice-skating. "Count along with me."
Belle then proceeded to skate very slowly, along a straight line, saying: "One, two, three. One, two, three. Hey, it's just like a waltz."
"A what?" Ariel asked as she skated parallel, grasping tightly onto Belle's hand.
"Oh, it's a type of dance," Belle began to explain. "A waltz is distinctive because it is written in three-four time, as opposed to the usual four-four, or march, time."
"Uh-huh," Ariel reacted with some confidence, pretending to understand. "Of course."
After a short time, Belle then said: "You see, it's easy. Once you know how, anyway."
Then, without warning, she let go of Ariel's hand, giving her a little push as she did so.
"No, wait! I… WHOA!"
Ariel slid out in front, unbalanced at first, teetering and wobbling. Then, she lifted her arms out to her sides so they were perfectly straight, regaining her balance, as she slowly counted in her head: One, two, three… One, two, three…
To her own amazement, Ariel began to glide smoothly over the ice, almost effortlessly. Belle soon zipped in front of her, cleverly skating backwards, facing Ariel.
Satisfied with herself, Ariel smiled a smile at Belle that said: Hey, I'm doing it by myself.
Impressed by Ariel's quick learning curve, and enjoying herself immensely, Belle smiled back rather widely, before taking Ariel's hand once more and spinning them both around in a circle, so they swapped positions, Ariel now the one skating backwards.
With a rush of excitement, Ariel laughed lightly, unaware of how quickly they were zooming toward a nearby bank of snow.
"You're trying to make me fall over!"
"Who, me? Never."
Still smiling at Ariel, Belle failed to notice the rapidly approaching snow bank also, so it was quite a shock for both of them when Ariel suddenly tripped and tumbled backwards, dragging Belle down with her.
The two of them crashed onto the snow almost comically, Belle half-landing on top of Ariel. They couldn't help but burst out into laughter, despite the fact they may have been experiencing some minor pain from the fall.
Belle abruptly stopped laughing however, once she opened her eyes and realised just how close her face was to Ariel's—so close, in fact, their lips were almost touching.
Hastily rolling off and sitting up alongside Ariel in the snow, Belle could feel her face becoming flushed.
Catching her breath, Ariel also sat up. "Well, there's the random clumsiness," she said with a giggle, dusting the powdery snow off her clothes. "It wasn't enough to fall by yourself, oh no… you had to take me down with you."
"Yeah," Belle agreed, staring straight ahead. "Random clumsiness. I tried to warn you."
Forcing herself out of her coy state, Belle then felt the snow immediately around her, to estimate its depth. With a sudden movement that surprised Ariel, Belle then flopped onto her back and began to move her arms up and down and her legs inward and outward.
Ariel stared at her, dumbfounded, as she stood up to dust the rest of the snow remnants off. Soon, Belle stood also, and pointed to the imprint she had left behind in the snow. "It's a Christmas angel."
Ariel stroked her chin and looked at the shape, confused. She had never heard of Christmas, or angels, before.
Realising this, Belle made a dismissive hand gesture. "Never mind. I'm an atheist, anyway."
Of course, this statement failed to help Ariel understand; in fact, never having heard the word 'atheist' either, it simply confused her more.
"You're a what, now?" Was all she said, still trying to comprehend the snow angel.
"It doesn't matter," Belle grew a smile as she spoke. "Do you feel like the next installment of 'The Wind Waker'?"
At this, Ariel's eyes lit up. She turned to Belle and nodded, before awkwardly attempting to remove her skates whilst still standing. Belle managed to remove hers first, before sprinting off cheekily.
"Last one there is the undisputed Queen of Clumsiness!" Belle called out behind her, laughing, confident with her head start.
"Hey, no fair! Wait up!" Ariel shouted back, though she couldn't help but giggle as she hobbled in the inches-deep snow with one skate still attached, determined to catch up to Belle.
Another bright, sun-filled but brisk morning, Ariel and Belle sat at small dining table together, eating a varied breakfast that Belle had prepared. Cheeky sat on the floor beside Belle's feet, staring wistfully up at his master, pleading for a treat. She couldn't help but unintentionally ignore her cat; her mind was too distracted, filled with thoughts of the young woman sitting opposite.
As Belle absent-mindedly buttered one of the several pancakes that adorned her plate, pancakes being one of her favourite types of breakfast food, Ariel gazed at her and smiled, yet to touch her own pancakes. Once Belle had begun eating, cleanly and quite properly with both knife and fork, Ariel's eyes returned to her own plate.
Instead of registering the pronged utensil beside her plate as a fork however, Ariel thought of it as a dingelhopper, as Scuttle had once explained it as. Not a tool with which you eat food, but a hair-combing device.
Excited, Ariel plucked the dingelhopper from upon the table and began to comb her thick auburn locks with it.
Watching from nearby, Tip and Dash looked at each other, embarrassed for Ariel, hoping Belle did not find her behavior too bizarre.
When next she looked at Belle, still combing away, Ariel was surprised to see Belle staring at her, with a single raised eyebrow, a completely baffled look upon her face.
Ashamed, Ariel placed the dingelhopper back down beside her plate and looked away—toward Tip and Dash. Meeting Ariel's gaze, Tip then mimed using the utensil for eating purposes, encouraging his princess to try again.
With a sigh, she picked up the fork and dug it into a pancake. Silly Scuttle.
Half-watching Ariel whilst continuing to eat her own breakfast, Belle began to smile to herself.
Awkwardly, Ariel held the pancake too far away from her mouth, and soon it dislodged from the fork and spilled onto the floor. With another sigh, she slapped her face with her free hand, half out of frustration, half out of humiliation.
Unable to control himself, Tip chortled. Dash glared at him fiercely, but the penguin merely shrugged. "What? It's funny."
Knife and fork still in hands, Belle glanced down at her half-eaten pancakes. Then, she looked back up, waiting for Ariel's gaze to meet hers. When it did, Belle smiled and dropped the cutlery down. She then seized the nearest pancake with her hands and began eating again, in a manner less dignified than before. "It tastes better when you eat it like this anyway."
With an appreciative smile, Ariel then proceeded to do the same—and enjoyed herself while doing so.
That day passed pleasantly for Ariel and Belle, as all days tended to now.
Belle had learned that, due to her living most of her life as a mermaid, there were many things that Ariel didn't understand, or hadn't experienced.
On a different day to that one that had witnessed Ariel's first encounter with the scrumptious food known as pancakes, Belle was teaching Ariel yet another first-time experience—how to build a snowman.
The mid-afternoon sun shone down on them as Ariel patted the snow that was meant to be her creations' head.
"You know, it doesn't really look like a man. Maybe I'm just not doing it right," Ariel wondered as she stared at the lumpy white snow sculpture.
"Its fine," Belle laughed as she smoothed down her own snowman. "That's how it's supposed to look."
"Are you sure?" Ariel asked as she took a step back. Shaking her head, she added: "Funny-looking man."
Belle smiled at her fondly. Returning to her own creation, she then grabbed a nearby twig from upon the snowy ground, and shoved it into the snowman's side, thus giving the snowman an arm.
"Ta-da!" She presented as she turned back to Ariel, but Ariel was looking away, toward a gathering flock of small birds.
"What are they?" Ariel asked as she began to slowly walk over to them. "They're so cute."
They were Swablus, relatively docile and human-friendly by nature. Ariel was intrigued by their fluffy, cottony wings. She crouched down and cautiously approached the chirping birds, outstretching a gentle hand.
As Belle quietly watched, she felt her mind—and her heart—begin to race. She was not eager to have moments lost in thought as she currently was, for those thoughts always eventuated to the same realisation, a realisation that no amount of meagre distractions such as snow-man building or Swablu watching could divert from forever. I've never felt this way about anyone before. She's so sweet, so innocent… and so spirited. I can't believe how much I care for her.
Shaking herself, more mentally than physically, Belle tried to focus on the current Swablu scenario, not wanting to appear detached. Darn it.
Suddenly noticing how close Ariel was to the birds, Belle called out: "Ariel, be careful, or they'll…"
With a flutter of wings, the flock dispersed, frightened by the approaching Ariel, who could now only hold out her warmly-gloved hand sheepishly. "Oops," she said, completely still in her rigid outstretched hand pose.
Belle giggled and walked over. Crouching down beside Ariel, she said: "Birds frighten easily. Instead of going to them, let them come to you." She placed a hand on Ariel's arm as a token of affection, before lifting her other hand in the air and bending her index finger, creating a perch for a Swablu to land on. With a cheery whistle, Belle invited any cotton-winged would-be visitors over.
Soon, a Swablu floated down and landed deftly upon the finger. With an amazed smile, Belle slowly moved her bird-bearing hand toward Ariel, who realised she must make the same perch with her own finger. Sure enough, the Swablu fluttered onto Ariel's finger, and she was delighted. She smiled broadly at the adorable Swablu, then at Belle, whose hand was still resting upon Ariel's arm.
Realising that she had been gazing at Ariel for quite a long moment, Belle sharply turned away, before standing up and beginning to walk toward one of the garden's standout features, a water fountain. Stop staring at her, idiot.
Ariel gradually stood upright also, not wanting the Swablu to be frightened off. Now trusting Ariel however, the Swablu instead hopped onto her shoulder, and Ariel outstretched both of her arms to give the bird more room to explore.
Her gaze then returning to Belle, who had now outstretched a finger again in hope another Swablu would land, Ariel became lost in her own thoughts, but more peacefully so than Belle.
I thought that all humans were heartless and cruel… but I don't think so anymore. Belle is caring, kind, thoughtful and brave. She's exactly the type of human I wished to find, to prove my father's theories wrong…
So preoccupied by these thoughts was Ariel, that she failed to notice more Swablus landing upon her. One even perched upon her head, giving the appearance that she was wearing a fluffy blue and white hat.
Belle was soon overjoyed when another Swablu made acquaintance with her, and she looked back toward Ariel with a proud smile, only to discover that Ariel was in fact now staring at her.
Ariel smiled sweetly, and Belle grew coy, blushing a little. After the Swablu fluttered off, Belle ducked behind the nearby water fountain, hidden from Ariel's vision by the tall statue that was in the centre of the ice-covered concrete feature.
Wishing to compose herself, Belle remained there for a long moment, her mind still racing. She was confused, alarmed… but not so much by her feelings, but rather from her own reaction toward those feelings. What is wrong with me? Why am I so worried?
Belle was almost disgusted with herself. Had she become like them—the other villagers? Unfortunately, if you live in a town long enough it has to affect you somehow…
Fiddling with a wayward piece of hair absent-mindedly, Belle was hit by a sudden, discerning thought: You're not IN town, Belle. It's just the two of you here… well, you're the only two humans, anyway...
Besides, it doesn't matter how much I could try to deny my feelings… I know there's something about her that I simply can't resist.
With confidence and composure returning as she peered back from around the water fountain's statue, Belle giggled to herself when she saw the amount of birds that had decided to land upon Ariel.
Ariel looked somewhat like a scarecrow, her arms stretched out wide as she stood perfectly still. Swablus hopped along her arms and shoulders, chirping merrily. Eyes darting every which way, Ariel was unsure about what to do—if, indeed, she should do anything, apart from remain as statue-like as possible.
"Ummm… help?" Ariel squeaked once she noticed Belle re-appear in the distance.
"Make some cat-like sounds," Belle laughed. "Where's Cheeky when you really need him, huh?"
Suddenly and without warning, the birds all departed in a flurry, Ariel cowering a little due to the fluttering noises and the tiny, but sharp, bird talons.
Once she had regained her poise, she intended to meet Belle's gaze again, this time with a silly grin, but that grin was met with an incredibly accurate snowball.
Having swept the snow from her eyes, Ariel could then see a mischievous Belle laughing at her.
Ariel smiled a sneaky smile, determined to get her own back. "You are so gonna get it!" She declared confidently. But as she hoisted her snowball high into the air, preparing to hurl it, she was hit in the face—again.
"That's two out of two," she heard Belle say as she again swept snow from her eyes.
"Unfair!"
Scooping up a handful of snow as she lunged forward, Ariel intended to ambush Belle by sneaking around the other side of the fountain. But when she reached the far side, Belle was already sliding across the frozen water of the fountain, another snowball in hand.
As Ariel took the third snowball square in the face, Belle laughed and said: "That's three for three."
This time, Ariel swept the snow from her eyes just in time to see Belle trip backwards over the edge of the fountain that she was sliding across, flip a quick somersault in the air, and crash onto the snow face first.
Despite concerns that Belle could be injured, Ariel couldn't help but break into hysterical laughter. "Who's the Queen of Clumsiness now, huh?" She quipped, leaning against the fountain.
Belle, indeed fine, lifted her snow covered face to rest in her hands. Through her own bursts of giggles, she said to Ariel: "Oh, shut up. I meant to do that."
"I don't believe it, mon," Sebastian began, having watched the frenzied frolic from high above within the castle, perched upon a windowsill. "They're already spending most of their time together."
"Told you we wouldn't have to do much," Dash grinned, also watching. Tip and Scuttle were there also, pressed against the glass, staring in awe.
"It is just so strange," Sebastian began again, shaking his head a little; but, also, couldn't help but smile a tiny flicker of a smile.
Retreating from the glass, Tip placed his fins on his hips. "Yep, there's definitely something going on between those two," he sighed, also unable to keep from smiling.
"What? What's goin' on?" Scuttle asked, somewhat stupidly. "All I see is two girls hurlin' snowballs at each other."
"Geez mon you are hopeless!" Sebastian snapped at the seagull. "I mean, c'mon! This was your idea!"
"It… was? The snowball fight?" Scuttle stared at the crab vacantly.
Simultaneously, Sebastian, Tip and Dash all rolled their eyes in annoyed frustration.
"Alright, alright," Sebastian began to Scuttle again, clamping the seagull's beak shut with his pincer so that he would have the bird's undivided attention. "I'll explain it to you. Now please, I need you to pay very close attention…"
As the four sea creatures had observed, Ariel and Belle were now spending nearly every moment together. They ate together, read together, played together in the snow, and spent many nights just talking by the warm glow of the fireplace. Belle would explain about how she wished to become a concert violinist, about how she loved the literary world, or recite humorous anecdotes of the mischief that Cheeky would cause in his kitten-hood. Ariel would recall her days as a mermaid, the shipwrecks she'd explore, the idiosyncrasies of her sisters, and how she loved to paint—she even exhibited her paintings to Belle officially, although Belle noticed that Ariel went into little detail regarding the portrait of the powerful looking merman.
During their readings of 'The Wind Waker', Ariel would sketch what she believed the characters to look like, and often she would sketch Belle.
She grew more relaxed with Cheeky too, cuddling him whenever the opportunity arose, Cheeky's purr then drowning out Belle's reading if they happened to be situated in the library at the time.
The four sea friends all noticed a gradual, positive change in their princess—she was becoming more and more like the young mermaid she once was; a happy-go-lucky, cheerful and friendly girl.
And they knew why she was changing, too.
However, they were unsure if Ariel actually realised why herself… or if, in fact, she realised how much her attitude towards life had changed recently.
Dash volunteered to speak with Ariel regarding the matter, meeting her one night in the princess' west wing bedroom. She was sitting at her easel, sketching, when the walrus thundered in.
"Good evening, Ariel," he greeted politely with a wide, tusky grin.
"Hi Dash!" She answered cheerfully, looking up from her artwork momentarily. "What can I do for you?"
"Oh nothing… I just wanted to talk…"
His smile becoming nervous, he lumbered over, immediately noticing what Ariel was drawing; yet another Belle portrait.
"Is everything OK?" Ariel asked, her voice and expression tinged with concern.
"Uh yeah…" he gazed at the sketch almost vacantly before suddenly blurting out: "Isn't Belle nice?"
Ariel narrowed her eyes playfully. "Nice?"
"Well, you know… this picture is nice," he regarded the sketch with a raised flipper, "and Belle is really nice, and… it's great that everything is so… nice."
"Uh huh." Ariel eyed him with growing suspicion. "Dash… do you have a crush on Belle?"
"WHAT?" The walrus was flabbergasted. "No! I just meant… you seem to be happy, like your old self, and it's only since Belle came here that…"
Ariel raised a hand to stem the flow of rapid words. "Woah, easy. I was just kidding!"
Dash breathed a sigh of relief, before noticing that Ariel appeared to grow pensive, as if considering his words.
Her eyes cast towards the floor, she began quietly: "I know… things have been so good lately. I thought I'd almost forgotten what it felt like to be happy… to laugh..."
Dash nodded knowingly, growing a sincere smile. Ariel began to twiddle her fingers, as she often did when she was nervous, her eyes still looking downward. "I… I really like her, Dash."
"I know."
"I… what? You do?"
"Yes. We all do… me, Tip, Sebastian and Scuttle."
Ariel sighed. "Well thanks for telling me!"
Dash stifled a chuckle. "Sorry, princess."
Considerably more relaxed now, Ariel folded her arms over her lap as she leaned forward in her chair. "Well… what am I going to do? I want to tell her, but… how?"
Dash pointed to the work-in-progress portrait again. "If you keep drawing these, I think she'll soon realise." After a brief pause he then added: "Maybe you could give her one… as a gift or something…"
Ariel broke into a smile and rolled her eyes. "Dash, why would she want a picture of herself?"
"Ummm…" the walrus pondered for a while, before finally conceding, "OK, maybe not."
Ariel knew it was not something she wished to express with a mere token gift. She felt compelled to simply tell Belle the truth, but not in a style lacking such class as to blurt it out in the midst of an ordinary conversation. No, it has to be a special, magical, romantic moment that both of us will remember always…
As a mermaid, Ariel did not hold the reservations toward her growing romantic affection for a member of the same gender as Belle did. Little did Belle know, but attitudes regarding such conventions were very different under the sea. Certainly more liberal. If anything, had Ariel dared to imagine what her father might think, not taking into account her humanity, he would be more concerned at the fact that Belle was not of the status of anything resembling royalty.
Suddenly remembering something else he wished to say, Dash interrupted Ariel's train of thought. "Oh, Sebastian suggested you should make a card. A really big one."
Ariel placed her hand upon her brow in mock exasperation. "Oh no, not the card idea again."
"I told him you wouldn't like it."
"And, dare I ask, what did Tip suggest?"
Dash averted his gaze, slightly worried. "Ummm… to lock Belle in the dungeons until she realises that you like her… and that she likes you too…"
Ariel could only laugh at the ridiculous suggestion courtesy of Tip, at least momentarily. Very soon however, her eyes grew wide, her expression serious. Does she? Could she possibly… feel the same way?
"I have to tell her," Ariel said aloud, suddenly standing up. "Soon. Or it's gonna drive me crazy." She began to pace, placing a hand upon her chin, Dash watching in silence as Ariel brainstormed, vocalising her ideas. "Over dinner, maybe? But no, not just a normal dinner, that's not special enough… a… formal dinner, maybe? We can both dress up, and… but won't she get suspicious? Asking her to a formal dinner for no particular reason? Well I can't tell her the reason beforehand, obviously…"
"Princess," Dash interrupted, growing a smile, "I think a formal dinner is a great idea."
"You do?" Ariel sounded uncertain. "But she'll have to cook, we all know I can't cook to save myself, won't she wonder 'What is going on? Invites me to a formal dinner that I have to cook!' and…"
"Princess," Dash interjected again, "I'm sure she won't mind. She likes to cook for you! Just ask her, OK?"
With that, Dash gave a confident grin, before leaving Ariel to pace and panic some more. He was satisfied now, both in the idea and the likelihood of success, and he wished to tell his fellow sea creatures as soon as possible. Ecstatic that their princess' life could still be saved, they would only be too eager to help with any preparations.
Ariel stared after the walrus as he left, her mind still frenetic. 'Just ask her, OK?' Oh, sure. Because asking her is the easy part…
It was to be during the final session of 'The Wind Waker', when they were snuggled up very closely near the library's fireplace, that Ariel had found the courage she needed to finally suggest the formal dinner.
"… Aryll was safe, as everyone was now that the great King of Evil, Ganondorf, had been destroyed forever. But Link still found the need to venture out into the great open sea. There was so much to explore, to do, so many people to meet, that he knew he would never be satisfied with an uneventful existence on Outset Island. Waving goodbye to his sister, and his grandmother too, Link then set sail from upon his small boat, The King of Red Lions. Alongside him, the friendly pirates' ship sailed, all the pirates with which Link was now very well acquainted. Glancing behind him toward his island home one last time, Link then sailed off into the yonder horizon, knowing not when he would return... The end."
Belle closed the book and sighed, somewhat sadly, now the story had ended.
"What an amazing story," Ariel said, staring into the dancing flames of the fireplace as she leaned affectionately into the older woman.
"I know…" Belle sighed again, stroking Cheeky, who was curled up asleep beside her, opposite to Ariel. "But, as they, say. All good things must come to an end."
Ariel grew a sly smile. "Unless, of course, you read it again."
"I think that you should read it this time then," Belle smirked, passing the book to Ariel.
"Well, alright," Ariel answered, quite confident in her own reading abilities.
As Ariel placed the book upon the floor in front of her, Cheeky awoke with impeccable timing. After a stretch and a yawn, he strolled over, and flopped right on the book's opened pages, purring for Ariel.
Belle slapped her forehead. "Geez, Cheeky! What have I told you about lying on something that someone is trying to read?"
Ariel could only giggle. "It's alright. Maybe this is his way of telling us he doesn't want to hear this particular story again. There are plenty of other books in the library, after all."
"But he slept through all the important parts anyway! I'm pretty sure the only story he does like is 'Puss in Boots'." Belle laughed, shaking her head slightly at her cat. Cheeky just stayed sprawled out upon the book, continuing to purr.
Ariel gave him an affectionate pat. "Who's a fluffy little book critic, then?" She cooed, Cheeky only happy to lap up the attention.
"Stop it, you'll only encourage him," Belle laughed softly, gazing fondly at both her cat and Ariel.
Feeling her nerves grow, Ariel ceased to pat Cheeky. After a brief silence, she began very quietly: "Belle, I'd like to ask you something."
"Hmmm?" Belle looked directly at Ariel, who was shyly averting her gaze.
Before Ariel had a chance to continue however, she was interrupted by Cheeky's distinctive squeaky miaow: "Mieh?"
"See what I mean?" Belle laughed again. "He doesn't wish for you to stop patting him yet. He's got you wrapped around his paw."
Ariel began to stroke Cheeky again. "I don't mind. He's such a sweetie."
"He's not the only one," Belle added, almost in a whisper. Ariel glanced up, not hearing Belle properly.
"Pardon?"
"Erm, I said, uhhh…" Belle cleared her throat and focused her gaze upon the fire. "What did you want to ask me?"
Ariel looked back down at the loudly purring Cheeky. "Oh, I, uhhh…" She gritted her teeth, struggling to say the words. "I… I don't suppose you'd like to have dinner with me tomorrow night?" She at last rushed out, not looking back up yet.
"Huh?" Belle was surprised. "But, Ariel, we… we have dinner together every night."
At last Ariel glanced up, and gazed into Belle's eyes. "I meant, uh… a formal dinner. Like a special celebration, you know?"
"Oh… a celebration of what?" Belle asked with intrigue.
Ariel had been dreading a question like this. "Ummm…" She searched her mind for an answer that was both meaningful and… well, not exactly truthful. "Snow! A special celebration of snow. Because I've never seen it before this year, and it's so much fun…" Snow? SNOW? Geez, Ariel. How lame.
Belle grew a coy smile before answering: "You think you have to worry about asking me? I'd love to."
Ariel became excited, growing a wide smile. "Really?"
"Of course. I like snow, too… and we can celebrate snow… together."
Together.
There was something about the tone in Belle's voice as she said that wonderful, single word, that sent tingles down Ariel's spine and made her heart race. She knew, somehow, that Belle understood this special dinner was not a tribute to snow at all.
Ariel stood up, intending to leave, suddenly becoming very nervous. "Ummm, OK then. That's good, it's really… good. I think we should schedule it to start at eight o' clock tomorrow night, OK? Good… did I say good already?"
"Yes, a couple of times," Belle answered with a smile, still seated by the fireplace.
"OK, good… I mean, erm, great! So I'll see you tomorrow then, we can discuss it more… And meet later in the grand dining hall, tomorrow night at eight?" Ariel turned to exit the library, her expression an anxious smile.
"OK," Belle told her, in a voice full of sincere warmth and her own nervous anticipation. "I can't wait."