Disclaimer: I own all. I was advised by a reviewer to include here that I do happen to use elements of the original Little Mermaid story so they do not belong to me no matter how much fun they are to use, but I own everything else.

Author's note: Okay here's chapter fifteen. I hope it won't be too confusing. There will be connections in later chapters if some things are confusing. This chapter is shorter than most and I'm sorry about that. I just thought these things needed to be said before chapter sixteen comes out.

Unbetaed.

Anon- I just don't like Mary Poppins. What can I say? Also I understand about the format/plot line. After I finish the story I will rework a lot of it so that things are much smoother.

Aurellia- I know. I hate cliff hangers too. Thanks for reading.

Special thanks to Kaio for their wish of luck on my tests!

Thanks to everyone who reviewed. And thanks to those who read but don't review.

Reminders:

"/Words/" = Common/ English.

"Words" = Melena's home language - Athenian

{Words} = Written words in Athenian

{Words} = Written common/English.

~An interlude~

Elesea stood outside her house looking in and sighed. It was almost a year since everything had changed. First Deacon had gotten a handsome new apprentice. Then Tianine had gone off gallivanting in the village more and more. She sank to the grass remembering.

Melena had come into their lives not much later and then in just as much time she had disappeared. Rowan had gone with her six days but a nice man had brought him back to the village. He still refused to talk about that time or tell them where Melena had gone.

Soon after Rowan's return another young man came into their lives. This man, Lord Wilhelm of Carnie, was rich as well as foreign. He came to Deacon and asked for Tianine's hand in marriage.

Elesea and Deacon had said yes. They allowed their oldest daughter to be taken away by a foreigner. The family of course went to his fife to see where their oldest girl would live.

Elesea was impressed by the outside of the castle. It was tall and strong, made from gray granite. Ivy climbed the inner walls giving the place a pleasant alive feeling.

The inside however was not her favorite. Because Wilhelm had been a bachelor for so long he had let his house keeper do the decorating. The woman was wonderfully kind but she had no taste. Tianine assured her mother that she would gradually make changes so that the castle was more to their liking.

The wedding was a huge affair. Hundreds of flowers were brought in from islands around the edges of Sanar. Exotic colored and shaped flowers were to make up the whole arrangement.

The ceremony had been a blur. A nice blur of course, but still a blur. Elesea was a little unhappy about that but couldn't protest.

After the wedding Elesea and her family went back to their home. Life went back to normal; or as normal as it had ever been.

A few months later Yvenne and Ilane began raising sheep. They had a small flock to take care of. Harvesting the wool was the hardest part but they always joked that no matter how long it took them they would always have sharp sheers. Deacon had made them each a pair and sharpened them whenever needed.

The twins absolutely loved their sheep and Elesea could see that they would never want to be parted from them. It reminded her of her own first flock. Of course sheep did not live in the sea and Elesea's flock had been a school. A school of tiny beautiful silver fish.

Her brother had helped her tend them. Fish need much less care than sheep but the idea was the same. It was while tending the fishes that the accident had happened forcing her to leave her under sea home.

Elesea was glad her brother had done so well for himself. He couldn't help it if his daughters were some what unfit to rule. They had lost their mother long ago and he had done the best he could. Melena was an example of that.

A young voice broke through her reverie. "/Elesea! There is a messenger here to see you!/" 

~*

"Oh, my poor children. I am so sorry. There is nothing I can do to help you." A quiet voice whispered in the dreams of all the mer-people.

The goddess Maritime stepped away from the viewing pool in her private rooms. Her long hair brushed her hips as she moved sorrowfully away from the scene she had been observing. With a snap her hair was in an intricate twist close to her head and a long cloak with a hood gently flowed over her shoulders. In her haste to get away from the pool she ran into another goddess who had been looking for her.

"Mari, slow down, darling. Whatever you're rushing to, will still be there when you get there." The other goddess laughed.

"Glory. You've been looking on the future again have you not?" Maritime asked.

"I have." The blonde goddess looked sheepish. "What were you looking on Maritime?"

"Look your self. I know you have not chosen a side yet and that is why my children are at war." She pointed angrily at the viewing pool and waited for Glory to look.

The blonde goddess laughed when she saw what was going on. The mermaids were warring over the thrown. Maritime growled and waved her hand. The scene changed and was split.

One side showed a dark haired girl with light yellow eyes sitting on a horse surrounded by men on horses. On her back was strapped, a harp of beautiful design. She was not confined at all.

The other side showed another woman. She was not young but neither was she old. Long brown hair was caught in a large bun at the back of her head. A tall young girl was embracing her. Clearly they were mother and daughter.

"Look at the first. She is the last if the mer- royalty. Because of your war she is stranded on land. Look at the second. She was also heir to the mer. She came to land because she would have died if she hadn't. Her children should have been mer."

"This saddens you?" Glory asked mockingly.

"It does. I will have to end this war quickly and if you do not choose a side I will demolish the only domain you have in the sea." Her voice was sharp.

"Then end the war. I have lost interest anyway. Good eve Mari. I do hope things turn out." Glory let herself out while Maritime sat down on a bench next to the viewing pool.