Chapter 4: A Mermaid's Lament
Today could not be as simultaneously great and horrible as our little mermaid Ariel's day was.
On one hand, she made the discovery of a lifetime finding the mysterious crystal ball that she just can't get out of her mind and on the other side of the spectrum, she almost got herself killed by a shark and completely missed out the concert she was supposed to be in, ruining the entire celebration in the process.
She also can't get the entire ordeal with her father and Sebastian out of her mind either.
A few minutes earlier
"Well, I just don't know what we're going to do with you young lady."
"Daddy, I'm sorry I just forgot I-"
"As a result of your careless behavior-"
Then Sebastian buts in by saying, "And RECKLESS behavior!"
"The entire celebration was er-"
"Well, it was RUINED! That's all. Completely destroyed! This concert was to be the pinnacle of my distinguished career. NOW THANKS TO YOU I AM THE LAUGHING STOCK OF THE ENTIRE KINGDOM!"
Flounder quickly comes in and defends Ariel, "But it wasn't her fault!"
"And just how is any of this Ariel's fault?" Sebastian asked in a rather condescending way.
" Ah - well - first, ahh, this shark chased us - yeah - yeah! And we tried to - but we couldn't - and then-"
While Flounder goes on and on with his 'explanation', Both King Triton and Sebastian looked at each other in complete confusion.
" GRRRR - and then we - WHOAAAA - ahh and then we were safe. But then this seagull came in and it was this was this and that is that and -"
King Triton quickly snapped out of his confused state after hearing about them encountering a seagull.
"Seagull?"
"Oops" Flounder squealed while hiding behind Ariel who gave him a face that said, 'Darn it Flounder!'
"You went up to the surface again didn't you? DIDN'T YOU?!"
"Nothing happened." Ariel reassured her father.
"Ariel, how many times must we go through this? You could have been seen by those barbarians - by - by one of those HUMANS!"
"Daddy they're not barbarians!"
"They're dangerous! Do YOU think I want to see my youngest daughter snared by some fish-eater's hook?"
"I'm 16 years old! I'm not a child anymore!"
"Don't you take that tone of voice with me young lady! As long as you live under MY ocean, you'll obey MY rules!"
"But if you would just listen-"
"NOT ANOTHER WORD! AND I AM NEVER, NEVER TO HEAR OF YOU GOING TO THE SURFACE AGAIN! IS. THAT. CLEAR!?"
Ariel then storms out her father's presence crying with Flounder close behind.
Back to present.
As Ariel and Flounder make their way to their secret hideout, Sebastian follows them by King Triton's orders after HE gave the king the idea of having Ariel under constant supervision.
"Me and my big mouth!" Sebastian pouted to himself as he gets closer to Ariel and Flounder's destination.
Sebastian then quickly hides from Ariel and Flounder since they've reached their final destination and Ariel proceeds to push the rock 'door' open while swimming inside her hideout.
As the rock door closes, Sebastian barely makes it into the cave before the rock could crush him into pieces, and what Sebastian discovers next is nothing short but awe inspiring yet terrifying at the same time.
The grotto was filled to the bone with various different treasures and human artifacts that the surface fanatic mermaid has collected for quite some time and right at the center of the grotto, lies Ariel looking at the 'dinglehopper' looking a little forlorned.
"Ariel, are you ok?" Flounder asks his friend.
"If only I'd make him understand…..I just don't see how a world that makes such wonderful things...could be bad?"
[Feel free to listen to Part of Your World if you can]
Look at this stuff
Isn't it neat?
Wouldn't you think my collection's complete?
Wouldn't you think I'm the girl
The girl who was everything?
Look at this trove
Treasures untold
How many wonders can one cavern hold?
Looking around here you'd think
Sure, she's got everything
I've got gadgets and gizmos aplenty
I've got whozits and whatzits galore
[You want thingamabobs?
I got twenty]
But who cares?
No big deal
I want more
I wanna be where the people are
I wanna see
Wanna see'em dancin'
Walking around on those
[Whad'ya call'em?
Oh-feet]
Flippin' your fins you don't get too far
Legs are required for jumpin', dancin'
Strollin' along down a
[What's that word again?] Street
Up where they walk
Up where they run
Up where they stay all day in the sun
Wanderin' free
Wish I could be
Part of that world
What would I give
If I could live
Out of these waters?
What would I pay
To spend a day
Warm on the sand?
Betcha on land
They understand
Bet they don't reprimand their daughters
Bright young women
Sick of swimmin'
Ready to stand
And ready to know what the people know
Ask 'em my questions
And get some answers
What's a fire and why does it
[What's the word?]
Burn?
When's it my turn?
Wouldn't I love
Love to explore that shore above?
Out of the sea
Wish I could be
Part of that world.
[End of song]
Suddenly Sebastian comes crashing down making a lot of noise in the process, causing Flounder to hide in a knight's helmet.
"Sebastian?!" Ariel exclaimed in a frightful manner.
Now Ariel was really worried, How long was he here for? Did he hear my song? And most importantly, Did my father put him up to this? Ariel thought to herself.
But before Ariel can think what to say, Sebastian starts to shout..
"Ariel-what, are you MAD? How could you-what is all this?!"
Ariel nervously answers, "It, err, it's just my-collection.."
"Ah, I see. Your collection. Hmmmm…."
There was a brief pause before Sebastian exploded with rage.
"IF YOUR FATHER KNEW ABOUT THIS PLACE HE'D-"
Flounder interrupts by saying, "You're not gonna tell him, are you?"
"Oh, please, Sebastian, he would never understand." Ariel pleaded to the crab.
Then Sebastian regains his calmness as he says…
"Ariel. You're under a lot of pressure down here. Come with me, I'll take you home and get you something warm to drink."
However, as Sebastian leads Ariel out of the grotto a huge shadow passes by overhead, instantly catching the young mermaid's attention.
"What do you suppose that is?"
Ariel starts to swim towards the surface to find out what the mysterious object is, what she is about to find is something that is more than she bargained for….
Author's note: Well, it's almost time for the main event, the meeting between mermaid and saiyan alike (in a non romantic way) that will result in events that are yet to come and some familiar events that will happen a bit differently than in the original stories of both The Little Mermaid and Dragon Ball Z. I had to take a short break for a while from the story to catch up with school work and other factors of life, so yeah, stay tuned for Chapter 5: Worlds Collide!