December had come, and brought all sorts of change with it. Snow began falling all over the kingdom, and Ariel's sisters began bemoaning that they didn't bring enough warm clothes.
"I thought they'd be married by now!" Andrina whined one nippy morning, scooting closer to the parlor fire.
"In due time! It's going well." Alana sighed dreamily. "He really loves her."
It seemed that as the season grew colder, Ariel grew warmer, and one could finally venture that perhaps she loved Eric as well. The two had become inseparable, spending at least some time each day together. It had grown too cold to take to the sea, so they would go on walks around the castle, or spend time in the library.
"My sisters never did well with the cold." Ariel snickered, having caught a bit of their daily complaint.
Eric laughed. "Isn't your country even colder?"
"We're only a little farther north. Not by much, but yes." Ariel shrugged. "And it's only gonna get colder!" she said in a sing-song voice. "Christmas is coming!"
"So what'd you get me?" Eric asked playfully, nudging her shoulder.
Ariel smiled wide. "The pleasure of my company."
"Well, that's pretty good." Eric snorted. "But next year I want a new telescope."
"Too bad, I already have next year's gift planned – it's the pleasure of my company, again."
She's planning to stay! Eric didn't know if that should make him as elated as it did, she was already betrothed to him, after all, but the notion that she was willing and excited to be here, for at least another year, meant a lot. Even if she was saying it jokingly, the notion was in her head. She clearly liked him, but maybe she was beginning to love him too.
…
"Aquata, don't leave your stuff on my bed!" Adella walked into the sitting room. The whole group was resting there – plus Eric, who Ariel was leaned up against, though talking to her sisters.
Adella dumped a cream colored dress and black coat down onto Aquata's lap. "Just cause we're sharing a room doesn't mean you get to take over all of it!"
"I didn't leave anything on your bed!" Aquata snapped. "This isn't even mine!"
"Well then who's is it?" Adella put her hands on her hips.
"I don't know! Not mine!" Aquata picked up the dress to examine it. "Ooh, I will keep it though. It's pretty."
"Uh-" Eric interjected, holding up a hand. "Sorry, that would be my bad. Adella, it's for you."
"What?" she asked, furrowing her brow.
"You should all have one. Ariel said you guys were feeling cold around here, so I had them commissioned."
The girls were quiet for but a second, and then they collectively leapt to their feet and ran off towards their respective wings.
"You got them all dresses?" Ariel had not moved, and craned her head up to look at Eric.
"I got you two."
Ariel smiled. "Oh, that's not what I meant. Why did you do that?"
"Your family is my family. And I want my family to be comfortable, if I can help it." Eric said, a little quickly, almost as if he was embarrassed.
Ariel smiled up at him, turning in closer. "It was very sweet of you to do so."
"They can just see it as an early Christmas present, I guess." Eric slid his arm around Ariel's waist and began to lean in a little. For the first time, Ariel did not back away.
"Ah! Ariel, look at this!" Andrina burst into the room, pressing her new dress to her torso and spinning. "It's such a lovely shade of coral, absolutely goes with my eyes!"
The other sisters followed very shortly thereafter, bringing the gowns. Artista had put her gown on over her nightshift, and left the robe behind in her room, but the rest of the girls carried them over draped arms.
"The embroidery is lovely."
"I LOVE this fabric! I swear I saw it downtown somewhere – but who can remember?"
"Thank you, Eric!"
"So sweet of you."
"Ariel, what do yours look like?" Attina finally asked, looking at the couple.
"Guess I better go see!" Ariel hopped up, and Eric loyally followed her.
She pushed open the door to her room – a room that had been steadily decorated throughout the waning fall and early winter with shells, projects, and books she had taken from the library and then forgotten to put back. It gave the room a cheer of life, and Ariel was beginning to enjoy it even more.
"Oooh – I get two!" Ariel exclaimed enthusiastically, rushing forward and lifting up the dresses.
"Yeah, I guess I like you more." Eric approached her, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "One's more holiday looking, and I was thinking you'd want something special to wear on Christmas."
"Oh, that's so sweet!" Ariel cooed, bouncing and admiring the dresses. "Thank you!"
The two made eye contact, and before either could get another word out, the sisters came bursting in again.
"Oh, Ariel, it's so lovely!" Adella cried, rushing forward and pulling on Ariel's gown. "Such a lovely shade of green, it'll go great with your hair."
"Hey – she got two!"
"Ooh, let me see!"
The girls elbowed and pushed at each other, dresses still draped over their arms. Christmas was coming, and the surprises and presents were only just beginning.
…
"Wake up! Wake up!"
Eric rose groggily, rubbing sleep from his eyes. "Christmas?"
"No, silly!" Ariel hopped up into his bed and kept shaking his shoulders. "Get up!"
"Why am doing the getting up if it's not the Christmas day?" Eric slurred, still not fully awake.
"Because!" Ariel beamed. "It snowed! Like two feet, just last night! We've gotta go out, before it freezes over or does something of the sort."
"Breakfast?" Eric asked, sitting up.
"Grab something quick, get dressed, let's go!" Ariel jumped to her feet and scuttled out of the room to go get changed herself.
Eric chuckled ad rolled out of bed, rubbing the last bits of sleep from his eyes. Of course it wasn't Christmas, yesterday was only the 8th. Time was moving so strangely lately, and he couldn't seem to properly hold onto it. Eric dressed quickly, and decided to forego breakfast, as he saw Ariel sprinting across the ballroom, wrapped up in hats and scarves.
He hopped down the stairs of the palace, and Ariel waved up at him, dragging a sled behind her. Eric beamed at this – finally, they were alone! He liked Ariel's sisters, they were each lovely women, but they were constantly present. And now that Ariel had seemed to warm up to him, he wanted to spend time with her, and only her. They would see each other in meals, they would have private conversations and times in the library, but her sisters were never far behind her.
"Oh good, I was hoping you wouldn't fall back asleep." Ariel said, starting off towards a large hill.
"With all this snow waiting just outside? Impossible." Eric joked. "It's been forever since I've been sledding, probably years?"
"What?" Ariel exclaimed in disbelief. "How could you stop sledding? My sisters and I got out every winter, usually at least weekly."
"Family pastime?" Eric asked, trudging halfway up the hill.
"One of my favorites!" she sighed dreamily. "They after we go inside, and the maids have always put together food and cocoa." The pair reached the top of the hill. "Ah!" Ariel exclaimed happily. "And there they are!"
Ariel waved down at the six girls sitting below. Wrapped up in coats and scarves, some were sledding, and some were waiting their turn. Eric heard them screeching as they went over and down the edges of hills, tipping over and tumbling.
"Ah, so I'm a part of the family tradition now?" Eric asked, following Ariel over to the group.
"Well, we are betrothed." Ariel said offhandedly, but even this comment made Eric's heart soar.
Yes, it was already true, and he was very aware they were promised to each other, but to hear her admit it, and say so without scorn was such an improvement from her arrival that he couldn't help but be encouraged. She liked him, she saw him as part of the family, and she was at least no longer against the idea of marrying him.
"Right enough, let's get sledding!" Eric said happily.
"Ariel!" Artista said between bursts of giggled. "You should've seen it! Adella absolutely flipped her sled over and she – ha! – went rolling down the hill – ha! – and Attina went with her – ha! – into the brook!"
Ariel laughed and looked at her slightly damp sister.
"I didn't go all the way in!" Attina snapped. "Just my feet and my hem – I was able to stop myself!"
The girls laughed anyway, and Attina didn't pout with any real commitment to being upset.
"Okay, it's Ariel and Eric's turn!" Alana said, clapping her hands.
The couple sat on the sled, and Ariel insisted that she would sit in front, because she had been doing this more and was very good at steering. Ariel told Eric to push them off, but before he could get a chance, all six sister ran forward and pushed them with all their might, sending the pair speeding down the hill!
Ariel laughed and Eric found himself between holding on for dear life, and trying to keep her hair out of his face. He caught bursts of pine scent as they wove through trees, and snow nipped him in the face as it flew off the tracks of the sled. They went careening around corners, flying over rocks, and barely dodging trees! They approached a very heavily wooded part of the grounds, and Eric thought for sure that they would crash – and became more sure when they approached a thick pine.
"Uh oh!" Ariel exclaimed, pulling the sled sharply to the right, and ultimately tipping them over. The pair uncontrollably rolled, and stopped at the bottom of a small basin. The sled neatly stopped at the top.
Ariel began laughing. "Wasn't that fun?!"
Eric laughed too, mostly out of relief. "Yeah, not that I know I won't die, yeah, I guess it was." He sat up.
Ariel made a quick snow angel, giggling to herself. "I love winter. I'll miss it." She said sadly, but quickly clammed up. He didn't know of her promise!
"Well, spring won't be here for a while, so we can go sledding plenty of times." Eric smiled, unaware of the true meaning of her lament.
"That sounds lovely." Ariel scooted and sat up next to him.
"Thanks for inviting me to come out with you…and your sisters."
"Of course!" Ariel said sincerely. "I wanted you to come, even though it's usually a 'girls-only' type of thing."
She wanted me to come. "I wouldn't have wanted to spend my winter any other way than with you hear. Honest, I know you weren't too happy about it in the beginning, but I'm glad you came."
"You know," she sighed, looking at him. "I'm glad I came too."
He knew he hadn't gotten a lot of chances for this, and that the ones which had presented themselves had been quickly stolen away. So Eric acted on his first instinct, and leaned in to kiss Ariel.
His first realization was that she kissed him back, situating herself closer to him, and putting her hand on his jawline. His second realization was that the area was still perfumed with pine, with snow, and with a clean, crisp new essence that promised only beautiful things were to come. His third realization was that the woods were virtually silent, and he could hear only a muffled echo that the world around him still existed, a world filling up with falling snow. His final realization was that Ariel was still kissing him, and not once had she let go.
The two broke apart softly, and Eric felt warm and happy and in love. She had put her hands back on her lap, and Eric threaded his fingers through hers. She smiled at him, and grabbed his other hand, as if showing that she not only didn't mind, but that she liked him too.
A conflicted look crossed her face, but she brightened and looked back at him. "Eric-"
"Ahhh-aieeeEEE!" She was interrupted though, by the squawk of Andrina, as she and Alana careened down the hill, no doubt also pushed too hard by the band of sisters. The pair rolled their sled to avoid the same faithful tree, and tumbled, rolled, and fell down into the basin, where they splayed out in front of Ariel and Eric.
Ariel burst into laughter, scrambling over to her sisters. "Are you guys okay?"
"Yea." Alana blew a curl off her forehead. "Andrina almost KILLED us, but yeah."
Eric and Ariel helped them up, and the four rejoined the group, laughing and making light conversation. Andrina and Alana were so engrossed in rehashing their tale of adventure and mayhem, that they didn't even notice Eric and Ariel holding hands the whole way up.
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