Disclaimer: "Okay, here goes. I do not own any of the Grimm Fairy Tales. I do not own any of the new and reworked versions of these fairy tales that Disney has turned into movies. I do not own any of the characters here in. The only thing I claim are the twists and turns I included in the story that were obviously not part of the original tales told by the Brothers Grimm or Disney. And also, my description of the main character."

A Fish Out of Water

Grumpy looks to Ariel in curiosity, and then says, "Getting back to the topic that was brought up before, if Ursula isn't the reason you're still on land, and your father isn't either, then how is it possible for you to be a human?"

Ariel smiles slightly and says, "I had an encounter with a remarkable young woman who offered me one wish because I saved her life. I told her I wanted to be with my true love, Eric, but that he was a human and I was of the sea."

Eric squeezes her hand in his gently and says, "The woman turned out to be magical. She gave Ariel the gift of both worlds. She can live on land as a human, and when she wishes to visit her family she can return to the sea and her tail will return."

Snow smiles at Ariel, and then Aurora asks, "What was her name?"

"Robyn. She told me her name was Robyn."

"But I love him father!"

Triton's eyes bugged out of his head, and then his face turned red with anger. "NO! You cannot be with him! He is a human and you are a mermaid! You are of two different worlds! It is not possible!"

"I don't care."

"This is ridiculous Ariel! And this nonsense has gone on long enough!"

Ariel screams as her father takes his trident out from behind him. Pulling her by her arm to the side, he unleashes his fury on her cave of wonders, her cave of things that she'd discovered from the world above her home in the sea, the world on the land. The picture of Eric had been all she'd had of their encounter on the beach after she'd saved him from drowning on the boat the night of his birthday party.

Everything she'd worked so hard to gather, to explore, to understand, now all lies in ashes and rubble at her tail. Bending down, sinking to the floor of her cave, she curls into herself and cries. Triton looks down at her, and then turns and swims away, praying that his rash decision was the correct one.

Flounder, the blue and gold tropical fish that is her friend, asks softly, "Ariel?"

"Go away Flounder."

"Are you okay?"

"No."

Flounder swims down and snuggles up under her chin. "I won't say anything. Just hold me until you feel like getting up." So Ariel wraps her arms around Flounder and sobs next to him while the sun slips from the sky. Its hours later before she releases him and floats up off the floor. "Don't worry Ariel. Maybe we can replace them. Yeah, we can go back to the wreck sight of the ship again. I'm sure there's something there you didn't find the first time."

She smiles at her friend's attempt at cheering her up, but the picture of Eric is still gone, and there's nothing he can do to fix that. "Thanks Flounder. Maybe we'll go tomorrow. I think I want to be alone right now. Why don't you swim on ahead? I'll be just behind you."

"Well, alright. I'm sorry Ariel. I wish there was something I could do."

And as he swims away, Ariel mutters softly, "Me too."

A new voice, whiny and tenor pitched asks, "Why the long face dear?"

Ariel jerks to find the swordfish, the pet of Ursula, swimming up behind her. "What do you want Herman?"

He grins, his sharp and crocked teeth showing, and he says, "I want to help you with your problem dear. More importantly, she wants to help you with your problem."

Gesturing towards what had previously been her cave of wonders, Ariel asks, "And what could Ursula possibly do to fix this?"

"Not the cave dear, but the problem of separation. You want to be with the prince, but you can't, because you're a mermaid."

"And?"

He swims closer and whispers in her ear, "And Ursula knows how to turn you into a human." Ariel watches as he begins to swim away. "If you want to hear her offer dear, you must keep up with me."

For one second she considers how terrible this might end up being. But the thought of being with Eric spurs her into action, and she quickly moves to catch up and follow Herman to Ursula's cave home.

"It's really quite simple pet. I can create a potion that will give you legs for three days. Now, before those three days are up, you have to get that prince to kiss you. But it can't be just any kiss. It must be true love's kiss. If he does, then the spell will become permanent, and you will be a human forever. But, if he doesn't kiss you before the three days are up, which will be by sunset on the third day if we do this now, you'll turn back into a mermaid."

Ariel knows that Ursula's offer can't be that simple, so she asks, "And what is the price of this potion?"

Ursula smiles in a sickeningly sweet way and says, "If you return to being a mermaid, your life will belong to me, and you will be my servant."

Ariel looks at the bottle in her hands, and then asks, "And what do you need from me to make this work?"

The sea witch laughs delightedly and says, "Oh, nothing much. I just need that lovely voice of yours."

"My voice?"

"Yes. The object I take must be something very special from you. I can think of nothing more special about you then that lovely voice."

"But…"

Ursula scoffs and waves a hand dismissingly before Ariel can protest her worries. "Oh, don't worry dear. You still have your pretty face. Let him fall in love with that. Now, do we have a deal?" Ariel thinks on it for a moment, and then reaches out and shakes Ursula's hand. "Good. Now, sing for me dear."

Ariel lets out a soft note, and holds it until the sound no longer comes from her, but from the bottle Ursula now holds in her hands. "Excellent my dear, excellent. Now, swim close to the surface and drink that. The potion will do the rest."

Ariel swims to the surface near the shore near Eric's home, and then takes a deep breath before drinking the potion. The bottle falls from her hands as she feels her body changing in a strange way. Gasping, she uses her arms to pull herself up onto the sand, and then gasps when she looks back and sees that where her tail used to be, two legs have no appeared.

If her voice had still been hers, she would've laughed. But no sound escapes her lips. Only the air that comes in and goes out.

"Hey! Who's out there? Are you alright?" And as she looks up, she sees Prince Eric running up the beach towards her. But upon seeing how exposed she is, he pauses and then quickly runs back up the beach for a towel before coming back and wrapping her in it. "Here you go. You poor thing. Where did you…" And as their eyes meet, Eric stares into those deep green eyes and then asks, "Have we met?"

Ariel nods and Eric smiles hopefully before asking, "What's your name sweetie?" She tries to speak, but no sound comes out, and she touches her throat to let him know. "You can't speak?" She nods and his eyes sadden. "Oh, then you must not be who I thought. Regardless, it is a pleasure to meet you Miss. Come on, let's get you up and into some dry clothes."

She tries to explain on the way who she is, but without her voice she can't make him understand. Sighing, she decides that she will simply have to find another way to show him she loves him, and hopefully he will feel the same.

None of this makes any sense. Things had been going so well. Eric had almost kissed her just the other night. And now, now he was getting married, immediately, on a boat out at sea that Ariel is watching sail away.

"Ariel?" She looks down at Flounder, but simply shakes her head and sinks down on the dock as tears fall from her eyes. Eric is gone, and now, once the sun has finally set, she will be Ursula's servant forever.

"Ariel!"

Flounder and she look up to see Scuttle flying hurriedly towards them. He crashes onto the dock and says, "That woman, whoever Eric thinks she is, she isn't! She's Ursula! The witch disguised herself like that, and she's somehow got your voice, and now they're fixing to get married and Eric is gonna be married to the mother of all sea witches!"

Ariel's eyes widen, and she stares out at the boat as it continues to get farther away. Looking down at Flounder, she points to the barrels sitting on the dock nearby. He swims over and grabs the rope attached to one of them after she pushes it into the water.

Utterly confused, he asks, "Ariel?" She jumps in and holds onto the barrel and then points to the ship. Realizing what she has in mind, Flounder smiles and says, "Oh! Okay! Scuttle, help us!"

"How? I can't pull her like you."

"Just stall the wedding. Do anything you can think of to stall long enough for us to get there. Hurry!"

"Oh! Okay! Don't worry Ariel. I'm on it!"

And he is on it. Seals, gulls, pelicans, starfish, goldfish, and every other type of creature nearby swarm towards the ship to help Scuttle create chaos that prevents Ursula, in her woman like form, from saying I do.

Ariel pulls herself up onto the boat when Flounder gets her close enough to climb the side, and she runs up and tackles Ursula to the ground. "You! Get off of me! You have no idea who I am!"

Ariel tears the necklace from around her throat and tosses it aside, shattering it against the ground before pointing a finger in her face. She can't speak, but Ursula's eyes widen as she realizes that Ariel knows exactly who she is.

Growling in anger, Ursula shoves Ariel aside, slamming her against the side of the ship harshly before standing to her own feet. "You can't stop us. We are getting married and that is final."

But everyone's eyes widen now, because Ursula doesn't sound like Ariel anymore. She sounds like the witch of the sea that she is. The glowing essence of Ariel's voice rises up from the shattered shell necklace, and the beautiful note that she'd been making when she gave it up returns to her.

Eric blinks rapidly, coming out of the spell Ursula had put him under. And when he sees Ariel, hears her singing with the voice of the woman that had saved him from drowning days ago, he smiles and says, "It is you."

"Oh Eric." But just as he runs up to her, she cringes and falls to the ground. Looking back, she sees that her tail has returned in place of her legs. "Oh no."

The sun has set, and is now disappearing beyond the horizon. Ursula laughs loudly and everyone watches in horror as her eight legs return and she scrambles across the boat. Scooping Ariel up, she pushes Eric back onto the deck and says, "Say goodbye to your true love Eric. She's mine now. Ha, ha, ha!"

And as they dive back down, Ursula drags Ariel back down to the sea cave that is her home. Cackling, she shoves her into a caged room and says, "And now you're mine. At least for a little while. And when your…"

"Ursula!" She turns and smiles as Triton floats into view, Flounder close behind him. He'd gone to warn Triton after he'd gotten Ariel to the boat. "Release her."

"I'm afraid I just can't do that dear. We shook on it you see. She's mine." And as Triton brings up his trident to strike her, Ursula holds up her hand and he sees that it's glowing, but not from her own magic. It's glowing as a warning that Triton doesn't have the right to kill her. "You see. We made a deal, legal and fair. And now she is mine."

The cunning smile that appears on her face makes Ariel's stomach churn. "Of course, I'm always willing to make other deals. I tell you what Triton, I'll let her go. If, you are willing to take her place."

"What?"

"I will set your precious daughter free, her life will be spared, if you will take her place as my servant for life. What do you say? Do we have a deal?"

Ariel looks up at her father and says, "No dad. You can't." But as he looks at her, she watches a tear roll down his cheek. "Dad, no!"

But he reaches out and says, "We have a deal." He shakes Ursula's hand and says, "Now release her."

"Of course, of course." She pulls Ariel out of the cage and then takes Triton by the arm and pushes him inside. Cackling, she then takes the trident from his hand and says, "And to think, if you had simply attempted to understand your daughter's feelings, she never would've come to me. Now you are mine forever, along with everything you own. Your kingdom, your people, and your trident are now all mine."

Cackling again, she shoots off a bolt from the trident and laughs when it destroys one of the walls of her cave. "See you later dears. I have a kingdom to destroy."

Ariel swims forward and says, "No. I won't let you."

Grabbing the trident with both hands, she tries to jerk it away, but Ursula shoves her back. "Don't you dare touch me you bitch. Deal or no deal I'll kill you now."

And she cringes when she feels a pain in her hand, and instantly realizes her mistake. She'd promised Ariel would be spared, and now she'd just threatened to kill her. Triton can feel it too, the deal breaking almost as quickly as it had been made, but from behind the cage he can't break free to go after her. "Swim Ariel!" She swims around Ursula, leading away from the cave.

Ursula curses and says, "Get back here!"

Ariel's getting closer to the surface when she spots Eric diving down towards her. Swerving, she slams into him, pushing him out of the way just as Ursula shoots up at him with the trident. Swimming up, she hauls him back into the life boat he'd taken from the ship to come after her. "You can't be here. She'll kill you."

But he shakes his head and says, "I'm not leaving you here."

"Eric…"

And he leans down and presses his lips to hers, cutting off her protest. Pulling back, he says, "I already lost you once before. I am not about to lose you again."

The boat tips then and Eric is thrown back into the water as Ursula comes up on the other side. "How sentimental. Too bad this happy reunion couldn't last forever."

Eric spots his ship, sailing just behind Ursula at the moment. Whispering to Ariel, he asks, "Can you get me back to my ship?"

"Yes."

"Do it."

She swerves away as Ursula shoots again, and dives down with Eric holding onto her as she drags him behind her towards his ship. Pushing him up to the ladder, she says, "Get away. Get as far away as you can."

"I'm not leaving you."

"Eric, you can't…" Suddenly the current jerks her away and she finds herself being sucked into a whirlpool that drags her down to the ocean floor again.

Ursula laughs harshly and says, "You thought you could beat me. No dear, not while I hold the trident. Your father was foolish to not think of this sooner. But all he could think of was you and how he might save you. Well, look at how well that worked out. Now, say goodbye Ariel, you stupid little mermaid."

But just as she's about to strike, her body seizes and she gasps as a sharp pain rips through her back. Eric has turned his ship around and has rammed into her at full speed, the end of his ship going straight into her back that is high above the water.

The impact is so rattling that Ursula drops the trident, and as it floats back down to the ocean floor, Flounder swims by and grabs it in his mouth and hurriedly carries it back to Triton. Freeing himself, Triton then swims up to the surface to see Ariel reaching up for Eric as he jumps into the water off of his sinking ship. Ursula is jerking away, further into the ocean, dragging the ship along with her.

Looking back, she screams at Ariel, "I will get you for this you stupid little mermaid! And I've still won! I've still stolen your happily ever after! Ha, ha!"

They remain, floating in the water for a while as she disappears, and then Ariel pulls Eric back to the shore. Looking her up and down, really taking the time to study her new figure, he can't help but awe at her. He then looks to her eyes and says, "Ariel."

"I'm so sorry Eric. I never meant to cause any of this. I just wanted to be with you."

"And I want to be with you. Ariel, we can work this out. Just because we're from two different worlds doesn't mean we can't be together."

She smiles at him sadly, and then looks back at her father for a moment. "Listen Eric, there are some things that I must take care of right now back at home. Can we meet here tomorrow at noon?"

She can feel his reluctance in letting her go, but finally he sighs and says, "You promise that you're coming back."

"I promise."

"Good, because I…"

She smiles and says before he can finish, "I know. You can't lose me again." Leaning down, she kisses him deeply and says softly, "I love you Eric. I will see you tomorrow."

He nods, and then watches as she swims back out to her father and they disappear below the surface.

After the kingdom had been relieved with Ariel's return and Ursula's disappearance, Triton decides to escort his daughter back to the shore line where she will wait for Eric. "I'm sorry Ariel, for the pain my actions caused you. I was trying to make you see reason, when it was I who needed to do the seeing."

Smiling, she hugs him tightly and says, "It's okay father. I love you."

"And I love you. And if there was some way I could grant you your wish to be on land with him, I would. But that isn't within my power."

"I know dad. It's okay. We'll work something out."

Tilting his head, her father asks, "How can you be so sure?"

"Because I love him and he loves me. And as long as we have that, we can accomplish anything."

Triton smiles down at her and says, "You have your mother's determined spirit. I will leave you alone to your own thoughts then."

Only once she's sure he's gone does she allow her smile to fade. Yes, she loves Eric, and he loves her, but what are they going to do? How can they be together while she doesn't have legs?

Sighing, she decides that since she has several hours before noon even arrives, she will take a swim to clear her head. Approaching the neighboring kingdom, where Phillip and Aurora are rulers, she finds a rock jutting up out of the water a ways off the shore, and perches on top of it as she looks out at the land she's grown to love. She would give anything to be able to stay up there with Eric. She would miss her home of course, but to be with Eric… no gift would be greater.

Smoke is rising from a great deal away in the forest beyond the shore, and Ariel at first thinks nothing of it. But then the hooded figure on a black horse bursts from the tree line and turns and starts racing along the shoreline. And the man on the horse behind her is yelling profanities and declaring revenge against the man.

The rider is obviously already injured, and the arrow that pierces his side now does not aid his escape. Ariel watches the horse falter, watches the rider kick the black beauty on, spurring her to keep going even as he falls to the ground from her back. Ariel then watches as he pulls himself to the water and forces himself under to evade the attacker.

Diving down from her rock, she watches as the hooded figure swims lower and holds his breath while waiting for the arrows to stop flying down towards him. But when they do, when he tries to pull himself back to the surface, his limbs seize, his body jerks, and Ariel can hear his gasp before the water floods his lungs. He's drowning.

Spurring into action, she swims forward and reaches down for him just as his eyes close. Grabbing several batches of seaweed before reaching the surface, she hauls him onto the dock nearby and hurriedly starts patching up the bleeding wounds she can see.

It's when she pulls the hood back and sees the face that lies behind it that she pauses. This is no man, but a woman. Shaking her head, Ariel quickly begins pushing against her chest, as she had seen Eric do once before. Sure enough, after a few tense moments, the woman's eyes open and she starts coughing up the water she's taken into her lungs. "There, there, that's it. Get it all out. Everything's going to be fine now."

As the woman rolls back onto her back, she looks up at her and Ariel can see the worry flashing behind her eyes as she tries to remember what happened. Reassuringly, Ariel adds, "You will be alright now. I've tended your wounds with a healing plant from the sea. They will heal quickly, though you may still feel a slight pain from them for some time."

The woman stares for a moment, and Ariel realizes that she's simply trying to catch her breath before speaking. Finally, when she not breathing in as deeply, her groggy voice asks, "Who are you?"

Ariel smiles gently down at her, and with her fingers she tenderly touches the woman's brow, tucking some hair back into the cap that still rests on her head. The woman before her freezes, clearly just realizing that the hood she had been wearing has been pushed back from her face. Ariel hopes that's alright. She hadn't known what else to do. "My name is Ariel dear. What is your name? Do you remember?"

For a moment she doesn't answer, but then says softly, "Robyn."

"That is a very pretty name. It's a pleasure to meet you Robyn. I'm glad that you are okay."

Robyn just stares at her for a minute or so more, and then asks, "How did you find me?"

Ariel smiles again and says, "I was in the water when you dove in to get away from the wicked man chasing you."

"Why were you in the water?" But as she sits up, Robyn sees the tail that extends past the upper half of Ariel's body. "Oh. Well, that explains that."

Ariel smiles again, and then asks, "Forgive me for prying, but why are you dressed this way? I thought you were a man."

"I was hiding from that wicked man. He didn't recognize me this way."

Well, it's only a small lie. Anyways, Ariel is nodding and then asks, "Is there anything else I can do for you?"

Robyn smiles and laughs a little before saying, "I think I should be the one asking if there is anything I can do for you. You saved my life. Thank you for that."

"Of course."

Robyn reads the sad look in Ariel's eyes, the look that is slightly hidden right now behind the worry she had for Robyn's own well-being. Reading the look in peoples' eyes is something she'd always been good at, and she hasn't been wrong yet. "Something troubles you my new friend. Tell me what it is. Perhaps there is something I can do to help you."

"I'm afraid you can't. My problem is not so easily resolved."

Smiling anyway, Robyn says, "You never know. What is difficult for some could be quite easy for others? Come on. At the very least you will no longer have to be sad alone. Sadness is always better when there are two to share in it instead of one. Then eventually one will cease being sad and pull the other out of their slump as well."

Ariel debates for a moment, and then figures that it can't do any harm. She reveals all of what just happened between herself, Eric, her father, and Ursula, and how in spite of finally defeating her and sending her away, she had still won in at least one way. "Now I am still a mermaid, and I still love Eric, and we still can't be together. He says we can work it out, and I hope he's right. But if I can't live on the land and he can't live in the sea, I don't see how we will be together."

Robyn watches her head fall slightly, and then says, "I owe you my life Ariel. I am in your debt for that."

"It's okay Robyn. I feel even better about it knowing you were someone truly worth saving."

"And how do you know that?"

"The way you talk. You are a person who cares deeply for all those you meet. It's why you want to share in my pain. I am happy knowing that I have saved someone with such a big heart." Looking up at the sky, she realizes that noon will be upon her soon, and she needs to get back to Eric quickly. "I'm sorry to leave so quickly, but I promised Eric I would meet him at noon."

"If I could grant you any gift, any wish you could ask for, what would it be Ariel?"

She looks back at Robyn in confusion, but then says, "I want to be with Eric. That would be my wish."

"And you love him?"

"With all my heart."

She watches as Robyn debates for a brief moment, and then smiles. "Can you take me with you to where you are going to meet Eric?"

"Um, I can. But what about your horse?"

"Don't worry about Midnight. We always find each other. Well, she always finds me. Will you take me with you?"

"Um… okay."

Robyn hangs onto Ariel's shoulders as she swims them swiftly back to the ocean above her land and the shore that rests just beside Eric's castle. Looking at the area Ariel has brought her to, she lets out a little whistle and says, "Wow, he has a really good view."

"Yes, yes he does."

Looking back at Ariel, Robyn offers her a hand and says, "Let me pull you up onto the beach. There is something I want to show you." Once she is seated on the sand, Robyn kneels in front of her and holds her hands out on the sides of Ariel's tail.

When Robyn's hands begin to glow and the magic starts to engulf her tail, Ariel's eyes widen. "What's going on?"

"I have magic Ariel. And in return for saving my life, a complete stranger that you didn't even know, I am granting you the one thing your heart desires most."

And unlike with Ursula's magic, Ariel doesn't even feel the change. She doesn't even realize that instead of her sea shell top she's wearing a dress until she finally looks down and sees feet sticking out from beneath the smooth green material.

Gasping, she jumps back, and then moves quickly to try and stand on her feet. And unlike Ursula's magic, where her legs had felt weak and foreign, she feels as though her legs now are just as strong as her tail had been in the water. "But… how?"

Robyn smiles lightly and says, "I told you. What is hard for some can sometimes be easy for others."

Smiling, Ariel turns and wraps Robyn in a tight hug. "Oh, my dear friend. How can I ever thank you?"

"There is no thanks necessary. This is my thanks to you for saving my life."

When she finally let's go, Ariel watches as Robyn bends down and picks up a beautiful sea shell from the sand. Her hands glow again, and when she opens them, Ariel smiles at the lovely necklace that has appeared.

Robyn slips it over Ariel's head and says, "And this is my second gift to you. While I cannot exactly grant you both legs and a tail, I can give you this. You don't have to wear this all the time, though I would recommend you keep it close always. On land you will have the legs of a human. But whenever you want to return and visit your family again, simply put this on and come to the water, and just think about swimming with your tail. I would recommend you be sitting down when you do that though. And when you return, think about walking along the shore, and your legs will come back."

"Oh, thank you. Thank you so much Robyn."

Robyn smiles, and then catches her arm before she turns around. "There is a small catch to the tail part though. If you take the necklace off while you're a mermaid, your legs will immediately grow back, whether you're out of the water or not. Please be careful with who you reveal that bit of information to. It would be dangerous for simply anyone to know."

"Yes, I will be careful." As Robyn turns to leave, Ariel says, "Oh, wait. Can't you meet Eric? I so want you to meet him. He will be just as thrilled as I am about this."

"I would Ariel, believe me. But Blake, the man who was chasing me before, was heading this way when he took off. I fear he may end up finding me if I stay for too long. No, I think my time here must be brief."

Though sad at that knowledge, Ariel nods and says, "I understand. Where will you go?"

"I'm not sure yet. I fear the land may not be a safe place for me at all at this point."

Ariel takes Robyn's arm and points to a harbor that is on the other side of town, but still barely visible from the castle. "If you can make your way to the harbor, they always have boats coming in and going out. As long as you don't mind hard work, and you don't look like you would, I'm sure someone would be willing to take you with them on their boat. The fact that you don't have a predetermined destination in mind will also be very appealing to them."

"Thank you my new friend." And out of habit, Robyn bows graciously and then kisses Ariel's hand.

When she stands back up, Ariel smiles gently and says, "You weren't just hiding from him were you? When you were dressed as a man I mean?"

Robyn sighs and says, "No, I wasn't. But seeing as you know I'm a girl now, I think I can allow myself a small indulgence." And for the first time in a while, Robyn curtsies as she had been raised as a princess to do so long ago, and then stands up straight. "I must be going."

Looking past Ariel, she smiles and says, "I believe your prince is here."

Ariel turns, and then runs down the beach where Eric appears to be waiting for her to arrive. "Eric!"

He turns to see her, his eyes widening in shock and surprise, but when she reaches him he picks her up and spins her around in a circle before placing her back on her feet. "But how? How is this possible? Your father?"

"No, even my father does not have the power to do this. No, my new friend…" She turns to point, and she can barely see Robyn hopping onto the back of her black horse. "Strange. Either that's the fastest horse ever known to man, or she did something to bring her back."

Eric looks down at her and asks, "What do you mean? Who is that?"

"That's Robyn. She granted me my legs for saving her life. She fell off of her horse while running from a very bad man named Blake. But this was all the way in the next kingdom."

Eric looks up too as the girl kicks and she and her horse bolt away down the road. "What was her name again?"

"Robyn. My dear friend Robyn. Come Eric, we have much to discuss, and I must inform my father of this wonderful news."

"How will you do that?"

She grins at his question and says, "Just wait and see."

At the edge of town, before she reaches the harbor, Robyn stops and hops off of Midnight. "Now, listen girl, and listen very well. They aren't going to let me take you with me on any of these boats."

Midnight huffs, and Robyn smiles gently at her faithful friend. "We've been through a lot together, and I hate to leave you behind, you know that my dear friend. But for both of our sakes, I think it is time that I spent a little while away from the land. No matter where I go these things seem to keep happening. Maybe if I get away for a while, let the memory of me die, then maybe we can go back to the simple life of living in the woods where our only adventures will be to revisit those we care for most. But until I return, my faithful friend, I cannot leave you in just anyone's custody. Now, do you remember how to find Belle?"

The horse literally nods her head up and down once. Robyn smiles again and says, "Good. Go to her, and I'm sure she will take wonderful care of you. And do try not to cause her too much trouble. If she ever needs you go to her and help her. And be nice to Rumpel. He's not so bad anymore."

Midnight huffs again, and then Robyn pats her neck before stepping forward and hugging her tightly. "I will miss you my friend. And I promise that I will return for you someday."

She sends her horse away with a swat to the rear, and then quickly decides that her cloak will not be something she can have with her. On a boat surrounded by curious pirates and sailors, the identity of her true sex will be found out sooner rather than later, and then she may even be branded a liar and an unfaithful crew member. No, it would be best if they saw her for the woman she is already. Removing it, she discreetly hangs it on a hook at a nearby shop, and then stops in another store to buy some new clothes to replace the forest-ridden ones she's worn for so long.

Tucking her hair into the new cap she bought, she hurries up to the docks and stands by one of the posts like several others are. She knows that as a woman she won't really be wanted as much, but at least maybe someone will take her to swab decks. No one else probably wants to swab decks, but at this point, Robyn will do whatever it takes to get away from here.

"Hey!" Robyn turns to see Blake walking towards the harbor, and boy does he look mad. Turning back to the ships, she closes her eyes and prays that whoever she ends up with won't be too terribly mad at her. Taking off, she picks one large ship that no one else appears to be boarding at the moment.

The black wood is beautiful she supposes, in a dark sort of way, though it is covered by lots of dust, dirt, and grime as well. If, or when, they discover her, she would offer to swab the decks, polish any silver, and do anything to not be cast overboard. And maybe, just maybe, there would be some hope for her there. Everyone catches a break at some point. She prays that this time she will finally catch hers.

Though as she takes to hiding in the lower level of the ship, filled with boxes of supplies, food, and rum, she recalls all of her luck, and how she usually ends up being someone else's lucky break. Knowing her own luck, her break coming at this point is still very slim. But she has to hope. She has to try. She's already given up her family, her kingdom, any semblance of a normal happy life, and now even her horse, the only thing she'd managed to keep after all this time.

At this point, what else has she to lose?

Chapter 5! Woohoo! Chapter 6 to come soon.