Chapter 7 - In the Castle
Arron sat back against the rocks that littered the shoreline and caught his breath. Short, silent gasps escaped his chest until he regained his energy. Nearly drowning had been the most terrifying feeling he had ever felt, as he had always been able to breathe underwater and above it, and it was a pain he never wanted to feel again. Now he knew why the people on the ship had been so terrified the other night, the ocean wasn't meant for them. And now, the very thing he had once called his home wasn't meant for him anymore either.
But all of Arron's worries were quickly forgotten as he opened his eyes and was delighted to see that the thing he had wished for for years had finally come true. Instead of the teal-green tail he had been born with and controlled for years, he had new human legs! He couldn't help but smile as he felt the sensation of lifting up a new limb for the first time. Just then, in flew Sienna, humming a dizzy tune as she flew down to meet the trio.
"Well, look at what the catfish dragged in!" said the bird. Arron smiled wildly. "Look at ya, look at ya, there's something different!" she said, flying around the boy with a huge smile on her face. "Let me guess. It's your hair, right? You've been using the dingle-hopper, right?" she asked eagerly. Arron smiled but shook his head. "Well..." Sienna trailed off. "I can't put my foot on it now, but there is something different-"
"HE'S GOT LEGS YOU IDIOT!" exclaimed Stella, amazed at the bird's mere stupidity. "He traded his voice to da sea freak and got legs. Geez, mon!"
Stella looked down at the Prince and her face fell.
"Oh, no" she said. "Not ya beautiful pipes!" Arron looked down in disappointment as it dawned on him that he was going to have to win Erica's heart while physically unable to speak.
"Arron's a human!" Flora said in disbelief, her face slackened in shock. "He's gotta make the Princess fall in love with him-" Arron tried to stand up on his new legs, only to lose his balance and topple over, sending a wave of water crashing over Flora and Stella. "And she's gotta kiss him!" said the fish, shaking some seaweed off of her face.
"And he's only got three days!" Stella cried as another wave splashed over her.
"Look at him! Just look at him!" Stella wailed. "On legs, on human legs! My nerves are shot, this is a catastrophe! Do you know what his mother'd say? I'll tell you what his mother'd say. She'd say she's gonna kill herself a crab, that's what she'd say!" Stella cried, clearly afraid for her life. "Her youngest son is now the the very thing the Queen hates da most. Oh, that's it! I am gonna march meself straight back home and tell da Queen just like I should have done de minute-" Stella was interrupted by Arron, who scooped up the crab and was shaking his head frantically at the crustacean.
"And don't you shake your head at me, young man!" she scolded, pointing a red claw accusingly at the former merman. "If we can just get that sorcerer to give you back your voice, you can go home with all de normal fish and just be, just be..." she trailed off when she saw Arron's pleading expression. "And just be miserable and alone and hurt and not allowed to leave for the rest of ya life" Stella sighed. "Alright, alright. I'll help you find dat Princess." Arron's face lit up as he embraced his friend in a crushing hug and placed her back down on the rock. "My, what a soft shell I'm turning out to be…" said the crab.
Taking pity on her friend, Sienna spied an abandoned ship sail floating in the water nearby. She used some rope to tie a knot here and straighten out the fabric there and flew over to the Prince with the rag in her beak.
"Now, Arron," said the bird as she displayed the make-shift cover up "If you wanna be a human, the first thing you gotta do is dress like one, now let me see here…"
Further up the beach, Erica and Maxine walked aimlessly along the shore. Her beloved flute in hand, Erica began to play the tune she had heard when she was rescued, but to no avail. For the past five days she had come down to the beach, hoping to find the mysterious boy who had saved her life. But she had found nothing. Grimsby had insisted that she had merely dreamt the entire experience, and Erica could understand why he didn't believe her. But her thoughts would always travel back to the song he had sung. She had never heard it before, and although she racked her brain for any memories from years ago that could have materialised into the song's lyrics, Erica just couldn't emotionally connect with the song's meaning. But whoever had saved her, and possessed the voice of an angel, she wanted to find them and thank them for saving her life.
"I don't get it. We've searched everywhere, Maxine" she sighed to her cat. "Where could he be?" suddenly, Maxine picked up a familiar scent and starting running at full speed down the beach, mewing frantically. "Maxine, what is it girl?" she called after the flufffy snowball as she ran to catch up with the feline.
Erica stopped in her tracks at a large rock, where perched on top of it was a short, crimson-haired boy, excited by the cat and scrambling to get away from it. Althogh Maxine was well into her nine lives, the way she rolled around on the rock and nipped at the boy's arms made her seem just like a little kitten again. Maxine reached out her paws to snatch up the boy's hand and shower it in love-bites, and the poor lad seemed terrified!
"Maxine!" the Princess called after her cat and scooped her up, turning to face the poor person she had been tormenting. "Sorry about this fur ball. She's harmless, really, on her good days." Erica looked up to see striking cyan blue eyes and a smile so adorable she couldn't help but smile back.
Erica stopped and stared at the boy dressed in rags. He seemed to be wearing some sort of makeshift cover up made out of an old sail. As dingy as it was, it served its purpose and Erica wasn't one to judge. The way his eyes were set and how his hair framed his face seemed to awaken something in her mind, like a puzzle piece satisfyingly sliding into place. Could it be?
"Do... do I know you?" she asked inquisitively. Arron's smile widened. Maybe this wasn't going to be so hard after all. "You seem very familiar…" said the Princess. Suddenly, something clicked. "Oh my gosh, you're the one, the one I've been looking for!" Arron's face lit up as he took Erica's hands in his. "What's your name?" she asked, her aura as bright as the sun. Arron went to answer her question, but when he moved his lips, no sound could be heard. He then remembered how he had been able to obtain human legs in the first place, and his face fell, as if knocked down by a wave of painful realisation. "What's wrong?" asked the Princess. Arron bit his lip and tapped a hand to his throat. "You can't speak?" she asked, looking at the sore looking red marks on the boy's neck. Erica couldn't help but notice that the marks on his throat were shaped in the outline of a very spiky and bony hand, faint but visible.
Arron shook his head, and Erica's face fell.
"Oh" she sighed. "Sorry, I... then... y-you couldn't have been who I thought..." her words felt like a dagger in Arron's chest. He had been so close right at that very moment to straightening everything out! Of course that sorcerer just had to make it so there would be some sort of barrier between him and the Princess. His mind racing, Arron begged his brain for something, anything he could do to assure Erica that he was indeed the person who'd saved her. He'd have to leave out a couple details of course, but he only had a few seconds to re-ignite the conversation. He tapped Erica on the shoulder and pointed out to the ocean beside them.
"What is it? The water?" she questioned, and Arron nodded. He moved his hand in a swimming motion, up and down and he hoped she would know what it meant. "Waves? A ship?" she asked, and Arron thought. He could go with that. A ship had been involved in this whole ordeal, after all. "A shipwreck?" she continued, and Arron nodded. "Whoah…" said Erica. "You must have really been through something." Erica's midnight black eyes gazed into the sapphires that were the boy's. There seemed to be so much history hidden behind them, as if he had an amazing story to tell. She didn't know why, but if he could ever convey that story to her, Erica would listen intently. "Come on," she said, holding out a hand to the stranded red-head "Come with me back to the castle. Let's get you cleaned up." Arron wanted nothing more than to do so, but as soon as he stepped down from the rock, he struggled to stay standing and had to catch himself a couple times as he staggered. Luckily, Erica was right there to slip an arm under his and keep him steady, and she laughed at how adorably lost this boy seemed to be.
Arron blushed. It was a tad embarrassing that he needed help to walk, but if it meant being as close to his Princess as possible, he would deal with it. The sun shone high in the sky and for once he was able to finally enjoy the warm rays properly, as he was now a part of the land the sun served to nurture. And he loved every second of it.
In the palace, Arron sat in a huge white bathtub in the castle's enormous bathroom, gazing in amazement at the bubbles on the surface of the warm water. He picked one up and flinched a little as it popped before his eyes.
"Fell from a shipwreck!" said Carlotta, the kind, plump caretaker and head cleaning lady of the castle. "Oh, you poor thing." she said as she poured a vase of warm water over Arron's crimson head. He had managed to explain to Erica somewhat of where he came from, and from his various hand gestures and facial expressions, Erica had deducted that he had survived a shipwreck of some sorts and ended up on the beach. Arron had gone along with this story as best he could, as it wasn't entirely incorrect.
At first, the palace staff had been skeptical about this newcomer in the castle, but as soon as they had set eyes on him, their nerves were instantly stifled. This boy seemed so sweet, so lost, and a little shy. He clearly needed help, and sensing no sign of suspicion or danger from this short red-head, the staff was more than happy to take him in for the time-being.
Carlotta picked up the rag that lay on the floor and turned up her nose. "I'll just, um… get this washed for you…" she said with a nervous smile as she walked out of the bathroom and into the courtyard, where she proceeded to throw the rag in the bin. Stella then scuttled out of the rag's pocket and made to find a suitable hiding place, and eventually came across the palace kitchen... where a plate of stuffed crabs sat waiting for her as soon as she clambered up the counter...
In the magnificent, open space of the castle dining room, Erica stood gazing out of the huge glass windows that led to a stunning view of the ocean, day-dreaming about the boy who had saved her once again.
"Oh really, Erica" said Grimsby, snapping her back into reality. "I mean, young men don't just go swimming about in the ocean rescuing damsels and then disappear into oblivion." Erica was shocked at her guardian's disbelief.
"I'm telling you, Grim, he was real!" she snapped back like the teenager she was. "I'm going to find that boy… and I'm gonna marry him." she said, although, she was careful to keep the last part of that sentence to herself. Whoever that boy had been, he was out there somewhere, and she needed to see him again. Grimsby had originally suggested that perhaps what she had seen was a distant memory of her father, singing to her as an infant. The deceased King had been an accomplished opera singer, and it was he who had sang the baby Princess all her lullabies. But what Erica had seen that day on the shore had looked nothing like her father. She sighed, wanting her mysterious saviour to be walking along that beach and ready to run right into her arms.
"Well, if I may change the subject..." Erica turned to face her guardian. "This new boy of yours" Grimsby began. "I've heard nothing but good things about him, from Carlotta and the rest, you know. Apparently, he's rather shy. Good of you to bring him, it shows great compassion. You will make a fine Queen someday, my dear." Erica smiled.
"Thank you, Grim. I saw him on the beach and he looked so lost, the poor little guy. He looks about my age, a bit short though" the two chuckled. "But if you agree that I would be a good Queen, why must I marry before I can do so?" she questioned. Grimsby sighed. They had had this conversation numerous times, but Erica would always re-open conversations if she had a new input.
"Because, dear, you still have so much to learn. And the only way to be the best Queen you can be is to have someone at your side who will learn with you, who you can learn from. Perhaps they will even benefit from your knowledge. I'm afraid the being a lone Queen is a burden one shouldn't face until much later in life, when they have learned all they can. But whomever you choose to be alongside you, my dear, let them be worthy of your heart, and worthy of being your guide."
Erica smiiled at her guardian's words. Perhaps there was great truth hidden behind his impatience for her to get married. The trip to Arendelle she had recently taken had taken two days and ended with her birthday celebration, and she would have one more year to go until she came-of-age and would take the throne no matter what. But maybe Grimsby was right. If she took the throne alone, she would be leading an entire kingdom of people blindly, and they deserved their guaranteed security and safety that she might not be able to give. But if she could meet someone she shared her heart with, and they learned from each other until she was sixteen and forever more, then she would be much better equipped to govern her people. It was at least a solid theory.
But her thoughts were interrupted when a giggle came from Carlotta, and Erica turned to the doorway.
"Hm hm, come on, honey" she Carlotta. "Don't be shy…" she nudged Arron into the dining room, a smile growing as he came to meet his Princess. He was now cleaned up and wore a white shirt with rolled up-sleeves, white pants and a pink buttoned-up vest over-top, and smart brown boots. The light ballet-pink of the vest accented his vibrant red hair, which was now freshly dried and rid of the salt water he had come from, but still stuck out in all its messy glory. His cheeks were as rosy as ever, and Erica noticed just how, well, cute the boy looked.
"Oh, Erica" said Grimsby to the Princess. "Isn't he a vision?" Erica smiled warmly at the boy.
"You look wonderful!" she said, performing a small curtsey, and Arron clumsily bowed in response. Both kids walked to the long dining table and sat down, Arron hardly able to take his eyes off the beautiful young girl across from him, every part of her perfect now that she wasn't all sandy and sea-struck. Erica adorned a white shirt, a frilly blue skirt and a pair of black boots and a neat, red sash across her waist. Her long black hair was tied back into a pony-tail, only for a few stray strands to float around her face. She looked lovely.
"Carlotta, what's for dinner, my dear?" Grimsby asked as Carlotta set their cutlery and napkins down in front of them.
"Oooh, Loui's fixing his specialty, you know how much he loves seafood. He thought since our lovely guest was found near the sea, he'd delight us with some stuffed crab." she said with a warm smile. At Carlotta's words, Arron's face stiffened in horror as all the colour drained from it. Luckily, no one noticed his unease. The red-head ignored his own feelings, deciding that he needed to blend in at all costs, and instead averted his gaze around the room to distract himself from all thoughts of actually eating... a crab.
Arron looked down and was delighted to see a dingle-hopper just like the one he used to have, before his mother had destroyed it. He picked it up and began brushing his hair with it, only stopping when he noticed the bewildered expressions on Grimsby and Erica's faces. Blushing like mad, Arron put down the dingle-hopper as a wave of embarrassment washed over him.
Sienna, what the HELL?! He screamed to himself. Had Sienna made everything up? How dumb really was she? Was Stella right about her? Oh god, Erica was gonna be weirded out now.
But to his surprise, Erica burst out laughing and Arron looked up, smiling brightly in relief that she didn't hate him.
Grimsby looked disappointingly at the little girl laughing her head off before him. The Princess looked to her right-hand-man, cleared her throat, and put on a distinguished expression, noticing his disapproving gaze.
"Eh hem, so sorry Grim." she coughed, but she couldn't help stifling a small smirk, and neither could Arron. He would have laughed along with her, but he knew no sound would come out, and the sight of a mute boy trying to laugh surely would have been a strange one for sure, so he just sat there and smiled sweetly.
Suddenly, a large crash sounded from somewhere else in the castle, and Carlotta's face fell as she knew that as head of household, it was her job to investigate it. Heaving a sigh, she gathered up her thick, brown skirts and scurried out of the dining room.
"I'd better go see what Loui's up to..." she grumbled as she waddled away, charging into a sprint as the commotion became louder. It was only then that Arron realised he hadn't seen Stella for a good long while, and he had a growing suspicion that she may be the cause of that ruckus.
Back at the table, Arron noticed Grimsby starting to light what he knew as a 'snarffblatt', and looked at it inquisitively. Grimsby noticed the young boy's expression and let him take the pipe. Maybe Stella was right about this one?
"Do you like it?" he asked. "It's an antique…" but his speech was cut short as a cloud of smoke erupted from the pipe as Arron blew through the mouth-piece.
Forgetting her manners again, Erica burst into another fit of outrageous laughter, nearly falling off her chair in the process.
Arron's heart beat faster, as that had clearly not been the intended result and he now feared the old man's wrath. Grimsby's soot covered face looked absolutely livid, and Arron gritted his teeth. But to his surprise, Grimsby too suddenly burst out laughing alongside Erica, and the little Prince's fears were forgotten as the happy trio laughed at the hilarious prank.
"I see you have a talent for humour and hijinks, my boy." Grimsby said as he wiped off his face with a handkerchief, and Arron's smile brightened. Whatever his mother had said about humans, he knew now more than ever that it wasn't true. These two were just as merry and caring as the merfolk down below, and he felt at home with them.
Erica regained her breath and looked at Arron. She place her head on her hand and eyed him dreamily. He seemed to radiate with the ocean-view behind them, as if he was a part of it. There was something so strangely familiar about this boy, but she just couldn't understand what. He couldn't be the boy who had saved her, that much was certain. But then, why did he look so mysteriously like him? It was only until her name was called that she snapped out of her daze and turned to Grimsby, who had apparently been talking to her for quite some time.
"Yes? What? Sorry?" she stammered nervously.
"As I was saying, maybe you would like to give our guest a tour of the kingdom tomorrow?" he said. The two broke off into a conversation as Carlotta re-entered the room, pushing a trolley that contained three domed plates, and Grimsby lifted the dome off of his as soon as it was placed in front of him, and Arron's train of thought wandered off as he saw a quaking Stella cowering under a lettuce leaf on the shiny silver. He looked around to make sure no one was looking, then gestured for Stella to quickly scuttle over to his plate, Erica and Grimsby too busy in their conversation to notice.
"Well, how about it?" asked Erica. Arron quickly slammed the dome back on his plate with an 'everything is ok' face, hoping that no one saw what had just happened. Luckily, they hadn't. "Would you like to go on a tour of my kingdom with me tomorrow?" Erica asked, and Arron's face completely lit up and a huge smile appeared on his face. What could be more perfect than an entire day available to kiss her? He nodded vigorously. "Great!" said Erica.
"Now, let's eat," said Grimsby "Before this crab wonders off my plate." Grimsby looked down in confusion, as the only thing he saw on his plate was a bed of lettuce and a trail of tomato seeds. Aaron chuckled silently.
Author's note: Pffffft. Snarffblatt. Lol.