Ariel lay in a dazed confusion, withering from a thirst so intense it burned. Days had passed without sunshine, sustenance, any thought of hope. Were she human she would have faded away, but her kind were strong.
Abruptly one morning the spell woman was standing before her. Ariel squinted up at her. She was as Ariel had first seen her, tall and light and beautiful, no trace of the other woman in sight.
"Time to go," she snapped, then her nose wrinkled as she saw Ariel, "My aren't you pathetic looking. Stand up."
Ariel stood slowly, struggling, and the woman sighed.
"Oh, here," she waved a hand and water appeared in a cup, she passed it to Ariel as if annoyed.
It was sea water, rich with kelp, and she drank it down quickly, it reviving her much more quickly than fresh water would have done. She wondered how the woman could know to give her that, didn't know it was the spell that had done all the work.
"Now, let's go." Ariel fumbled after her through the barrier the woman must have released her from, into blessed sunshine. Its rays touched her skin, but only for a moment. The woman spoke a flurry of harsh words, and abruptly all went black.
Ariel woke in a dark tower, a single small window lighting the circular room. She crawled to it. Far, far away, she saw the barest glimmer of the sea.
Weakly, not understanding, and too tired to care, Ariel wept.
Prince Philip rode high against cliff, feeling the wind whip around him. He heard Eric's call behind him and paused for the captain of the guard to catch up. They had recently purchased new mounts for the guard and the prince and his friend were trying them out.
"What do you think?" Eric asked, gesturing toward Philip's horse, and Philip laughed,
"I think one of these days you'll actually learn to ride." He turned his mount, intending to race away, but the horse stopped dead in its tracks.
Before him, where nothing had been before, stood the Enchantress. She was tall and elegant with hair that whipped fiercely in the breeze and Philip felt rage build within him.
"You!" his hand went to his sword, but a raised hand from the Enchantress stopped him.
"I do not come to fight, but to collect. You owe me a dept, Prince Philip."
The prince stared her down, mute with silent rage, as he heard Eric ride up beside him.
"That's not exactly right," The guard leveled a smile at the woman, angling his horse so that his prince was somewhat behind him. The Enchantress raised a hand as if to dismiss him, then froze.
"What is this." Her beautiful face contorted in surprise. Her magic must have sensed the change, for Eric felt a sharp, sudden clenching around his heart.
"How can this be?" she snapped, but a moment later she calmed. "No matter, I suppose I don't need you anymore," she waved a hand at Philip and turned to the guard. "As for you, with me."
A moment later he stood, still atop his horse, next to a dilapidated castle that lay at the far outskirts of their kingdom.
"What are we doing here?" Eric snapped, startled at being transported and very angry because of it.
"Oh hush. You wanted the dept, now accept your role. Up there." The woman pointed to a window very high above in the corner of the castle where a tower still stood. "There is a woman, well, not a woman, she's a mermaid."
She was quite pleased when the man before her drew back in apparent disgust.
"I need her guarded. She is not to leave this tower. You are not to tell anyone what you are doing here, if you fail in those things, if she escapes to her sea, you will have broken your end of the covenant and your heart, will, stop."
Eric sat in a state of some shock, he had been prepared to refuse whatever task she gave him and accept certain death, but this he was not expecting. To guard a mermaid? Here? Why? It raised questions, and he suddenly realized that in taking this task he may learn something of the Enchantress and her plan. He had only a moment to decide, and in the end it was a risk he was willing to take.
"I understand," he said, and the Enchantress disappeared, leaving Eric to enter the tower and take the many stairs alone.
He reached the top, ashamed to say he was a little winded, and stood beside a door. All was silent within. Eric swallowed, he had heard many stories of merfolk and did not relish meeting one. There were keys by the door, but he made no move to open it.
"Alright, in there. Name's Eric. I'm to guard you. Don't do anything foolish and we'll get along fine."
There was the sound of movement from within, but no response.
"Hey!" he called again, with the same result.
Eric moved to the door, where a center latch opened a window to a barred section of door. He would be able to see in, but the mermaid would still be trapped.
He opened it slowly and looked inside. A young woman stood in the center or the room. She was tall, and intensely beautiful, but he would expect no less from a mermaid. She was covered in dirt and rags, the only part of her that looked at all clean was her hair, a vibrant red that hung nearly to the floor. He swallowed, she looked young and frightened, but he strengthened his resolve, he wouldn't be falling for a mermaid act.
"What's your name?" he asked despite himself. Her lips moved, but no sound emerged. She looked frustrated, then tapped her lips, shaking her head. "Don't want to tell me?" he quipped, and she frowned, shaking her head more forcefully, tapping her lips, again.
"You, can't speak?" Eric guessed, and she nodded, looking relieved.
"Well how did that happen?"
She looked at him as if wondering if he was serious. And Eric waved a hand, "Apologies." He went to shut the little door. "At least I won't have to worry about siren songs." he muttered. He heard a sharp intake of breath and looked back in to see the mermaid glaring at him, little hands fisted in obvious anger, and Eric shut the door quickly and shrank away.
Ariel couldn't believe it, she had had her voice stolen, been kidnapped and taken to some ruins now to be guarded by him? She recognized that voice, and the way he had said "siren song." He had been the one on the ship that night, the one who thought she would harm prince Philip when she had been trying to save him! The thought of Prince Philip filled her with shame and Ariel dropped to the floor, arms folded over her head as she silently wept. She missed the sound of the little door opening again, and her new guard eyeing her with wary confusion.
"What in heaven's name?" Belle muttered to herself, heading towards the harsh pounding on the outer door. Andrew was nowhere to be seen and Belle cautiously glanced out a little window to see who was there.
Prince Philip stood at the door, looking very agitated, and quickly she unbolted it.
She had to jump back to avoid being hit by the door being swung open the moment it was unbarred. She went to speak but Prince Philip barreled right by her, not even noticing she was there. She frowned fiercely after him, then quickly closed the door. Then, pausing only a moment to consider, she crept toward the study Philip had stormed towards, curious as to what was going on.
Muffled voices came through the door. She recognized Marcus's low even tones and Philip's sharper agitated one. Her nose crinkled a little. Marcus had told her once that she had encountered Prince Philip at a very unfortunate time in his life, and he wasn't normally so abominably rude to the servants, but Belle had yet to see it.
The door to the study burst open suddenly and Belle ducked into an alcove with a gasp. Marcus stepped out, seeing Belle's skirts disappear around the corner, but paid it no thought as Philip emerged behind. He had been told of the Enchantress summoning Eric's life dept. Philip had no idea where the man was taken, but there had been an understanding between them all that death was better than serving that witch.
None of them intended to live through the woman's debt.
Marcus wanted to refuse to believe it. If Eric had been taken somewhere there may still be time, but there was no way to know where he was or if he still lived. Philip had suggested some sort of tracking spell, but they did not work when magic transportation had been involved. They were leaving now to ride out to where Eric had been taken, to see if any clue had been left behind.
Many hours later they returned, and Belle met Marcus at the door. He looked tired, worn, and she understood instantly that they had not found Eric. She had tea waiting for him, and for once he let her pour it for him by the fire. He sat in one of the arm chairs with a deep sigh.
"Do you go into the woods tonight, my lord?" Belle asked after he was settled, and Marcus looked at her with some confusion.
"Philip has not left any letters, has he?"
"No, my lord," Belle answered innocently, but didn't press the issue. She just saw how heavy his expression was, and knew how his treks to the little cabin in the forest always seemed to lighten his mood.
Marcus studied her a moment, as if wondering, then shook his head as if to himself.
"It's late, much too late for that now, there's no reason to disturb them."
Belle let it drop as she quietly left to bring him dinner. When she returned, she saw he had dropped off to sleep right there in his chair.
There was movement and Belle looked to see Betty Potts, the cook, padding softly towards her. She stopped beside and followed Belle's gaze to their master.
"Whatever are we going to do with him?" Betty asked, shaking her head sadly, she had been worrying over Marcus since he was a little boy.
Belle patted the older woman's hand and smiled gently, "I haven't quite decided yet."
They shared a smile before Belle softly set his plate on the table beside him, and crept away.
Darkness had fallen after the guard had left her, and the night had been long. As dawn finally brought some light to her tiny prison, Ariel began to explore her tower.
It was full of old dusty, sometimes broken things. There was furniture and chests full of dusty old clothes. In one corner she found a desk that had fallen almost to pieces. She set it to rights, letting her finger trail over the patterns in the wood, before an idea struck. She had heard of these, she thought perhaps this was a writing desk. Hurriedly she dug through the drawers.
She found paper, aged and worn, but there was a stack of it here. Beside it a quill. It was not the barb and squid ink she used as a child, but surely it would do. The ink she found had dried, and she was frowning at it when she heard a scuffle at the door.
She whirled in time to see the little window open and Eric's face appeared. He looked at the mess of paper in her hands and frowned.
"Well if I had known that was in there I wouldn't have bothered." He lifted his own hands to show he had brought paper of his own. Ariel spotted the little jar of ink he held and darted forward excitedly.
Instantly Eric drew back, eyes flashing angrily, he dropped the paper as his hand went to the weapon at his belt.
Ariel huffed at him, resisted the urge to roll her eyes and gestured towards the ink he held. She held up her own and turned it upside down, indicating it was empty.
Cautiously, Eric came forward and slid the bottle on the little edge between the bars on the door. Ariel waited until he stepped back to come forward slowly and take it.
"Now," Eric eyed her mistrustingly. "Write your name."
He watched the mermaid move purposefully to the little desk in the corner, but when she held the paper up it was covered in symbols he had never seen before.
"No," Eric sighed, "Write it in a language I can understand."
She just stared at him.
"You can understand me, in this language, can't you?"
Ariel gave him a displeased look, she could speak and understand any language, finally she nodded.
"But you can't write it?"
She nodded, that statement was correct.
"You can?"
Ariel threw her hands in the air in frustration. And Eric practically growled.
"Can you write in the language I am speaking now?"
She shook her head.
"Well then we have a problem."
She shot him a "You think" look before returning to her desk in the corner. She began arranging her papers and quill neatly, smiling at the little cubbies in the little wooden frame.
'Do you eat?" Eric asked and Ariel looked at him, nodding eagerly.
"...what do you eat?"
The mermaid seemed to consider, then raising her hands she made fluid motions.
"Waves? The sea?" Eric guessed, "You eat sea water?"
She nodded quickly, then with one hand she continued the wave motion over top of the other. With fingers pointed up, she wiggled them.
"And wiggly things under the waves? Do you eat fish?"
She drew back, pure indignation covering her face.
Eric held up his hands, "My apologizes."
She glared at him a moment before stalking over to the corner to one of the chests. She dug around until she found a gown. Pulling it out the pointed to the sleeve, a deep emerald color.
"Green?" Eric asked, at her nod, he considered, "You mean like plants, sea weed?"
The mermaid all but flounced onto the floor looking relieved.
Eric cast a glance out the window to the line of the sea a distance away.
"Does it have to come from the sea or will any water and plants do?"
She didn't pull back in disgust like he thought she might, instead she looked very thoughtful.
She made the motion for sea again, then held her fingers up to indicate a small amount.
"The sea is little?" Eric guessed dumbfounded. Rolling her eyes, she did it again, this time adding an eating motion.
"You eat a little from the sea?" Eric asked. She nodded. Then made the motion for sea while shaking her head.
"But not sea..." he ventured, and she nodded, then held her hands far apart, "You need to eat more...?" He finished, and she nodded again looking pleased.
"How did mermaids come to know that?" Eric asked, a little frightened of the idea, "You must come on shore often."
Ariel just stared at him, she had no idea how to act out that there were fresh water mermaids.
