The last thing he could remember was the ear-piercing explosion of gunpowder sending his world to a spinning whirlpool of darkness. He didn't know where he was now, but the enchanting, hypnotic melody that filled his ears assured him he was at a safe place and nothing could no longer hurt him. She assured him he was safe. He could feel her so close to him, warm, alive...singing to him. Her voice...it was so beautiful...she was so beautiful...he was yet to lay his eyes upon her but he knew, he had finally found her, the one. Her fingers trailed soothing caresses down his cheek and he had just regained enough strength to lift his arm and hold her, feeling warm, velvet soft skin that practically melted onto his fingertips.

He breathed her in deep and his eyes fluttered open. Amidst all his effort to resist the sudden exposure of light, his eyes searched desperately for the girl. He finally succeeded to open them fully...there she was before him, alive, beautiful and singing . He blinked a few more times; he wasn't dreaming. Ocean blue eyes met sky blue. Her feminine silhouette was framed by a mass of auburn curls that glowed like embers against the bright morning sun. She was everything he had ever dreamed of and...she was real.

He tightened the grip on her hand, he'd never let her go.

"Just you and me...and I could be," Her singing had almost slowed down to a whisper and she smiled down at him with adoration. "Part of your world…"

He felt the corners of his mouth stretch weakly to return the smile and his hand shook through the numbness to touch and caress the skin on her cheek, which was blushing a deep shade of rose. She took his hand and pressed a lingering, feather soft kiss on it.

"Who-" He was cut off through the aching dryness at the back of his throat, he attempted to speak again, "W-Who are you?"

"Shh," She whispered. "You must rest, my prince."

How does she know who I am? He groaned as he struggled to get up but concern drew over the girl's face as she kept insisting, "Please, you really must lay down."

Disappointing her was the last thing he wanted to do. He let her lay him back on the warmth of the sand and her fingers began to run through his raven hair. He sighed deeply in relief, this time feeling a little more comfortable and conscious.

"I...I must thank you for saving my life, miss...but may I please ask, why did you save me?"

She chuckled in response, "Why wouldn't I? I couldn't let you die, my dear prince."

"Thank you, again." He breathed, caressing the blush that rose on her cheek with the back of his fingers. "What's your na-"

"Eric!"

"Grim." He recognised his advisor's calls, along with loud barks from his dog, Max.

He saw her eyes widen with fear as she turned around, spotting the old man approaching them from a distance. "Oh, I must go!" She panicked, lifting her head from his chest.

"Wait!" He called, holding her hand. "Please, don't go!"

"I have to! Please!"

He couldn't find the time to say another word as her hand slipped from his grip and the warmth of her body left his. He was about to go after her when Max found him, licking over his face and blocking his view. He grunted as the unbearable pounding in his head, one that he was sure he had forgotten about until now, returned. He winced in pain as he attempted to lift his body from rest.

"Eric!" He heard Grimsby's voice nearer, "Eric!" The old man took rushed steps towards him and helped him up to his feet. He then muttered something about how relieved he was to find him alive but all the prince could focus on was catching one last glimpse of the girl who had saved his life...and also stolen his heart for good.

He looked out to the sea; he looked out to all the other vast ends of the beach. She was gone. He glanced at every direction around him again...she was nowhere in sight. He let out a frustrated groan and kicked hard on the ground, sending a cloud of sand in the air. He couldn't believe he let her go. He didn't even know her name.

All she had left him with was that alluring melody of her singing. That one melody that was now stuck, ringing inside his head. He quickly reached out to the drenched pocket of his pants, retrieving his ivory-coloured flute. He began to let the memory of her voice drift into the air. He decided from that time on he'd play her song near the ocean everyday. Perhaps, when she would hear it, she would know that he was there, waiting just for her, to hold her close and hear her sing once more.

He saw her in his dreams that night. She was in his arms, singing the same song that made him breathe back to life. After she had finished singing, he held her face very close to his, and they were both smiling, leaning closer. Her ruby lips were soft and luscious like he had always imagined and the kiss had left them both breathless. She had then wrapped her arms around him, pulling him close and that was the first time he had felt her, tasted her. She had the sound of the sea in her voice and the feel of the ocean on her skin...and he couldn't get enough of her.

As soon as he saw the sun rise the next day, he headed out of the castle in search of the girl. He had to find her. He had to see her again, hold her close and tell her he loved her. He had seen his whole world in those loving, blue eyes; he was past the point of no return. He loved her and he needed her, beside him, every moment from now on.

He began to play her song on the flute again as he strode forlornly along the beach, his head lowered in despair. "Where could she be?"

His dog, Max, had followed him along his journey to find the mysterious lady who saved his life. He noticed as Max suddenly halted mid-walk and began to sniff into the air. He then began to bark furiously and loudly, running towards the other end of the beach.

"Max!" He chased after him. "Come back!"

The dog eventually led them both to the other end of the cliff and continued to bark.

"Quiet, Max! What's gotten into you, fella?" Eric panted. It took him a few seconds to look at where the dog was trying to point. "Oh, I-I see."

A girl sat on top of a low boulder, barely dressed in rags and her red hair was drenched, partially covering her face. He took a few steps closer, and gasped both in delight and shock. It was her. He ran to her and grabbed her hands and his voice quivered in excitement. "It's you!"

Ocean blue eyes met sky blue once more.

Her cheeks blushed a rich shade of crimson and she nodded shyly, returning his smile. He sighed happily, lifting her off the rock and setting her on the ground. The girl laid her head over his heaving chest and put her arms around his torso, tightly, like she was drowning and he was a plank of wood she could hold onto. Eric wondered what ever made her leave so abruptly the day before...why didn't she stay with him?

He wrapped his arms around her and whispered, "Please don't ever leave me...again."

She remained silent as she looked into his eyes with the same adoration and longing as of yesterday. She nodded reassuringly and caressed his jaw. Her touch made him shudder and he closed his eyes, relishing the feel of her pearly smooth skin on his. He couldn't comprehend how her touches could manage to drag fire across his skin while leaving a trail of ice cold shivers right after. She wasn't from here and he knew it.

He held her chin and gently lifted her face to meet his. His longing eyes searched hers for consent and a shy, almost inaudible giggle escaped her mouth as she leaned closer to his face, her hands snaking around his neck. Their foreheads touched as he gently brushed his lips against her nose, enjoying the teasing and taking it slow. After all, this would be his first ever kiss...and one propelled purely of true love and not lust. Perhaps a hint of lust, but he knew he had given this girl his heart. He would make her his wife and queen.

As he leaned in even closer, finally ready to devour, she was suddenly snatched away from his embrace. His eyes shot open in horror as he watched large, black tentacles grip on her feet, dragging her into the sea. "No!" He yelled running after her and grabbed onto her arms. The tentacles had gripped her so tight he couldn't free her.

His eyes quickly searched for defence and as soon as he spotted a spare tentacle on the ground he stomped on it hard and someone shrieked out sharply. The grip of the tentacles loosened and he managed to free her with some struggle, just before a monstrous woman's body rose out of the water. He grimaced as he looked at how the tentacles attached to her. "What is that thing?" He muttered under his breath.

The monstrous woman glared at his lover, "You spoiled little brat! Contract or no contract I'll-" She was cut off short as the red-haired girl lurched towards her the same time a seagull landed on her grey hair, squawking loudly and distracting her. A crab joined the show and pinched onto one of her tentacles. A fish began to swat away a pair of eels with its fins. He realised he was standing there, useless staring at all the commotion. Deciding not to be useless, he ran and punched his hardest punch into the woman's face and stomped on another tentacle, just as his lover had managed to snatch off a glowing snail shaped pendant.

The monster shrieked and fell back onto the water, limp and defeated. He felt cruel and selfless having done this to her but he knew she had serious intentions of harming his love. He lifted up a rather large rock and then a couple more and began to throw them at her. Her cries of pain grew so did the guilt in his heart but he had no choice. Suddenly a loud explosion occurred as black, pungent foam began to surround the woman's body.

"Let's get out of here!" He took the girl's hand to run away from the scene but the shell pendant from her hand dropped against a rock and shattered into tiny pieces. A glowing golden orb, sounding of the same melody she had sung to him, rose from the shattered pieces. The girl gasped as the orb made its way into her throat and she sang the last note once its light faded. She coughed a little, placing her hand on her throat, "M-my voice, i-it's back!"

He observed the whole scenario with bewildered eyes. At one side, a half-octopus half-woman creature was dissolving into the distant sea water, creating grey smoke while a crab, fish and seagull cheered for them from the back. He shrugged when he realised he could actually understand what they were saying. And then he felt the sweet wave of relief and calm wash over him when he saw her, the most beautiful sight his eyes had ever lingered upon. He smiled and took eager steps towards her. With all his attempts to combat a literal underwater monster just minutes ago, he hadn't even noticed that the white ragged piece of clothing that covered her had fallen off, leaving her uncomfortably bare and indecent out in the open. He quickly took his shirt off and placed it on her.

"Thank you, Eric." She smiled shyly, pulling the shirt closer to her chest.

He let out a nervous chuckle, "You...you know my name. I'm afraid I don't know yours."

She laughed, "It's Ariel. I'm sorry I had to put you through all this. Thank you for saving me."

She quickly turned to face the trio at the back. "You too, guys! Thank you!"

He cleared his throat. "Uh, you're welcome. But I feel like there's a lot I...perhaps don't know about and…"

Ariel faced him. " Oh, y-yes. I'll explain everything, Eric." She chuckled. "It's quite a long story and I...I had to give up a lot to be here."

He watched the smile falter on her face. He held her close in an embrace, "I'm sorry...for everything you had to endure before this moment, Ariel."

The smile returned on her face when she heard him call her by her name. "That's okay. I mean...I chose this life, Eric. I chose to become human, you see I-"

"Wait." His eyes widened in shock, She chose to become human? How is that possible? He tried to find many reasons to support her claim, but realised it was useless, as for now. He loved her regardless, no matter how wild her story would turn out to be. He took a deep breath, trying to regain himself. "Ariel... I saw a lot of... strange and peculiar things today and honestly...I'm very eager to know everything that just happened but may I please ask…"

"Yes, Eric?" Her eyes sparkled and she smiled. He caressed her cheek and asked,

"May I kiss you, first?"

Ariel wasted no time. He felt the familiar lusciousness and softness of her lips on his as he had felt in his dreams—she did indeed taste like the ocean. It didn't take long for their kiss to turn passionate as he hoisted her up from the sand, her legs wrapping around his waist. He nestled her face to the base of her neck, her chest. The feel of her skin against his, and the heat of her tongue filling his mouth was all so euphoric. He couldn't get enough.

They broke the kiss as the breathlessness eventually got too painful to ignore. Ariel smiled at him, panting as he held her close to him. She pressed her forehead to his and her fingers brushed against his jaw, "Done." She whispered. "The deal is done."

The Prince's face scrunched in confusion. "The deal? I thought we-"

"Oh, not us!" She chuckled. "It wasn't a deal between us, Eric. It was between me, and that evil seawitch."

He remained quiet as she looked out to the sea, with an almost forlorn look on her face. "A true love's kiss before the sunset on the third day, and a pair of human legs is yours for life." She then turned to him, "That is...if you really do love me, Eric?"

He shook his head, "Of course, I love you, Ariel." He felt slightly embarrassed, what would have stopped him to just say those three words before he kissed her?

"More than anything." His eyes filled with hope and longing.

She smiled. "I love you, too."

They kissed once more, but before it could lead to anything else, he stopped himself, even when it went against every fibre of his being. Good things shouldn't be rushed, he reminded himself. He gently laid on her the sand before she almost lost her balance and was about to trip over.

"Careful! I'm sorry I—" Noticing her struggling on those legs, he scooped her into his arms. "You must be exhausted. Let's get you to the Palace. Then you can tell me everything."

She nodded as she held onto his neck, letting him carry her to the palace.

"I'm glad I found you, again, Ariel. I thought I had lost you forever."

"Oh, Eric, I couldn't imagine leaving you. I never wanted to—"

He caught her lips in a quick kiss. "It's alright, darling. I'm just happy that we're together now."

"Me too." Ariel sighed contently as she laid her head on his chest.

...

The afternoon went by quickly. Eric introduced Ariel as the girl who had saved him from drowning, proving Grimsby's claim that he was hallucinating, wrong. He made it clear to all the servants that her stay in the palace would be nothing less than what the future queen of the kingdom would expect. She was bathed in the palace's grand bathhouse with the most luxurious of cosmetics and later dressed in the most exquisite of dresses, shoes and jewellery. Dinner went evenfully.

As the day came to an end, Eric decided to escort Ariel to the room where she'd be staying. The spacious room was adorned with expensive furniture carved from the rarest woods as well as extravagant artworks and floral decorations. As Ariel hoisted herself on the bed, he locked the doors and closed the windows. A moment of solitude with her was something he desperately craved after all the turmoil earlier today.

He sat down on the bed beside her. "Do you like the room?"

"I love it!" She exclaimed. "Back home I never had my own room. I had to share it with my sisters. I've been loving it up here so far...the palace, the bath, the bubbles, the food! Everything here is so...I don't regret anything."

"I'm glad to hear that." He pressed a kiss on her forehead and placed his hand on hers. He took a deep breath, "Ariel, I don't know if you want to talk about it just yet but...what happened back there, will it happen again? I'm still worried about you and if the seawitch comes back."

"I think she's dead, don't worry."

"And about you choosing to become human? The thing you told me earlier about true love's kiss for a pair of legs? I mean, it's alright if you don't want to-"

"Oh, Eric, of course I do. It's just a really long story...and I'm not sure if you'd believe it." Ariel huffed, blowing a mass of red bangs away from her forehead.

Eric turned his full attention to her, his tone convincing as he held her hands. "I'll believe every word you say. Please, just don't hide anything from me, Ariel."

She took a deep breath. "Okay, here it goes...I...I used to be a mermaid."

….

He let her share her secrets until it was well into the middle of the night.

"Promise me, you'll never tell anyone."

He put his arms around her. "I won't. It will be our secret, forever, Ariel. I promise."

Ariel's voice shook. "I just want to live the rest of my life as a human, with you on land. I want to forget about my past…forget that I was ever a mermaid...my father will probably never forgive me as well."

"Your secret will be safe with me, Ariel." He kissed her hair, "I love you so much and I can't ever think of anything bad happening to you…I lost you once, I can't let that happen again."

She sighed with content. "I love you too, Eric. I'm so glad I got my voice back! And your kiss made me human permanently..."

He pulled himself from their embrace, lifting her chin, "Then…I'd like to do it again."

She noticed the spark of mischief in his icy-blue eyes. She suddenly felt bold, tugging into his collars and crashed her lips into his and straddled his lap.

He placed his hands on her hips, deepening the kiss, inwardly proud that his innocent little request for a kiss may turn into something more extreme if the girl didn't slow down.

Luckily for him, she didn't. After a minute her fingers started to pull at the buttons of his shirt.

"Show me what it's like to feel human, Eric. Show me what I've been missing."

"As you wish, darling." His voice was fervent and low as he slowly pushed her to the bed.

They were inseparable for the night. One thing led to the other until the lovers were deeply embraced in each other's presence, loving and desiring, leading each other into states of pure euphoria and bliss.

Ariel melted into the mattress in the aftermath of her ecstasy. Eric collapsed beside her to catch his breath, beads of sweat running down his head, shoulder and back. He watched the girl beside him panting.

They could only manage to smile at each other as they relished the foreign sensations throbbing through their veins.

Moments passed and the haze of pleasure soon faded as they finally met each other's eyes since their brief romantic escapade.

"So… this is what it feels like to be human." Ariel chuckled as she moved closer to him, kissing his shoulder and running her fingers through his raven hair. "I could definitely get used to this, Eric."

"Ariel, darling..." He breathed.

Her eyes met his.

"Please, don't ever leave me again." He kissed her nose. "Please."

"I promise. I'm never leaving you."

He smiled and pulled her on top of his chest, wrapping his arms around her bare back. He inhaled into her hair, smelling the fragrant ocean air in her cherry-red waves.

"I love you." Her voice muffled against his ears.

"And I love you too, shipwrecked human girl I found at the beach who saved my life and sang to me in the most beautiful voice."

Ariel chuckled, "That's better."

"I believe that's the right way to introduce you to everyone else." He laughed.

"The only way." She spoke quickly, her voice demanding. "Nothing else, Eric."

"Even though you are so much more to me than that, Ariel." He kissed her hand. "So much more than my lover and saviour…you're my whole world." He whispered.

"Oh, Eric...I'm just happy to be a part of it."