Intro: I'd just like to say, The Little Mermaid has to be my favorite fairy tale of all time. I grew up on the Disney movie and read as many adaptions of it as I could get my hands on. This story came to me incredibly easy and quickly. So enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!
Disclaimer haiku:
Don't own CCS
Just a broke fiction author
Please do not sue me
The sixteen-year-old prince kicked at the sand angrily. He hated it. Sand was hard, it scratched, and it intruded where it was unwanted, which to the young highness, was everywhere. Ever since his father drowned, he was restricted to these unpleasant banks, unallowed to come in contact with the ocean. Kicking off his shoes, the boy stepped into the tide and let the warm salty water pool around his feet. He sighed contently, closing his eyes. This was what paradise felt like. No pressure on the soles of his feet, no stubbing his toes on rocks, just him and the sea. He swirled his toes in the water, making a small whirlpool of shells and sand. This was the time. The time when the sun made his pools of brown eyes look orange and the wind made his messy brown hair even messier. This was the time of day he saw her. On time as always he saw the head of wet manila colored hair emerge from the ocean and gaze at him from two hundred meters away with her large green eyes. He smiled to her, getting one in return. Then she retreated into the ocean as she did every evening.
One day he would meet her.
One day he would talk to her.
The young princess crossed her arms, "They are real! I've seen them!"
"Sakura," began her father, closing the thick novel he was reading, "Humans are a myth and nothing more, we've been through this. It's one thing to believe in them when you're a child, but you're well past sixteen. I hate to say this, but you have to stop believing in these childish fantasies."
"You don't understand! I've seen a human before! He must've been at least my age! He comes to the shore every evening and looks at the ocean," she stopped to sigh almost blissfully, "He looks so lonely, and every evening he comes singing a song quietly to himself. I can't really hear the words but it sounds beautiful!"
"Father," came a voice from wide doorway. Hair the color of lightly charred wood and eyes like a rusted anchor. He wore a navy blue jacket and a smirk, "There's a suitor here for Kaijuu-hime."
"Suitor?" asked Sakura, deciding to ignore her brother's insult. Fujitaka arranged the cuffs of his sleeves before removing himself from his chair.
"It's about that time in your life that you choose a husband. Show him in, Touya."
In entered a merman who was much taller than Sakura. His jacket was lavender with bright gold buttons and cufflinks. His hair was long and silver, his eyes a light periwinkle and almost feline.
"It's a pleasure to meet the lovey Sakura-hime," he said bowing. Sakura took the sides of her white flowy skirt and curtsied.
"Yue-ouji is from shores of China," explained the king, "Why don't you two sit down and get to know each other?"
The prince tiptoed, dripping across the hallway. His shirt was turned up as it held new additions to his shell collection. Only the rarest and most beautiful would even touch his hands. He ran his finger along an irridescent cowry smiling. No human could ever make something so magnificent.
"That girl I can't ignore, that mysterious girl," he sang to himself, a song he had made up, as he reached for the doornob to his bedroom.
"Syaoran." at his mother's voice the prince tripped on his own two wet feet as all his precious treasures clattered to the marble floor in hundreds of pieces.
"No," he whispered as he scrambled to scoop them into his hand.
"Where were you all evening? Every evening for that matter?" she asked, arms crossed. Her brown eyes pierced into his own.
"I-I was just..." his voice lowered to almost a whisper, "At the ocean,"
Yelan closed her eyes, "Syaoran, how many times have I got to tell you? The sea is dangerous, I thought I made that clear when your father died."
"I'm not a kid anymore, Mother! I know how to be careful!"
"And your father was a full grown man! I don't know what else to do!" her voice sounded tired and hopeless. "You are never to leave the palace for anything, am I clear?"
"But--"
"Am I clear?"
Syaoran's shoulders slumped, "Yes, ma'am."
"Good night, Syaoran."
Without saying anything the defeated boy pushed into his room and slowly closed the door. After dumping the broken shell pieces on his bedspread, he picked up the only shell that wasn't in fragments. The irridescent cowry. There was a small hole in the top as if it were meant to be used as jewlery. As he dumped the broken shells out his window, he threaded the shell with a thin leather cord and tied it around his neck. Somehow with this necklace he felt comfortable, he almost felt... protected somehow. His mother didn't understand anything. How could she be so thick? Syaoran kicked his wardrobe sharply in frustration and flopped onto his bed.
Meanwhile a dark female sat watching the young prince's anger with curious violet eyes.
"The poor thing," she sighed, popping another cooked shrimp in her mouth, "He wants so much to see his little friend, isn't that right Eriol?" she turned to a dark haired young man adjusting his glasses to look at the seeing pool a little better.
He nodded, "Pass me the water, please." he said kindly. The black haired sorceress handed him the jug, "Perhaps we should grant his wish."
Syaoran layed staring at the stark white ceiling. It was the same, every room in the palace was just a different size of the same room. He needed a change.
"How depressed we are," said a cool voice from his doorway. Syaoran sat up to a grey eyed boy smiling smugly as he pushed his navy hair out of his eyes.
"Who are you?" he asked cautiously.
"I can take you to someone who will grant your wish."
"My..."
"You wish to see that girl, you want to meet her." he replied cooly.
"How do you kn--"
"Are you coming or not?"
Syaoran felt a little insulted by being cut off, but got up from his mattress and followed the mysterious boy.
"Who is this person?" Syaoran asked as he followed him down a dark stairwell outside the castle.
"Tomoyo is an amazing woman. She'll grant any wish you want." Eriol replied as they reached a wooden door. He opened it after struggling with the latch a bit.
"I've never seen this part of the palace before," Syaoran commented as he dodged a cobweb. Eriol chuckled.
"We like to keep low," he explained. Syaoran's heart thudded as Eriol kicked a sleeping man in chains.
"Announce us at once!" he ordered as the man stood up. He bowed and entered a curtained room.
"Eriol-sama and your guest have arrived," they heard him say. Syaoran began to rethink his wish as he walked into the room. Lounging on a black sofa was a pale young woman. She smiled up at him.
"So you've come, I've been expecting you."
