Jim looked out at the horizon, spotting the dark clouds. With some apprehension, he watched as the ship set sail, cruising steadily out into open sea. At least they weren't going out too far from land, he reasoned. Besides, there's always Eric's "mermaids" if they need help. He chuckled quietly to himself. That prince was one of the more eccentric people he'd met on Earth. He was all right though.
Jim turned from the window, and went into the spare room in his tiny, yet comfortable home. Inside were the ruins of his ship. Day after day, he worked on putting it back together, and though Earth didn't have technology advanced enough to remake it perfectly, it was coming along fairly well.
Half way through the night Jim was shaken from his project by the sound of rain splattering his window. He paused, and gazed out at the sea. To his horror, although not so much surprise (it is bad luck to say things like that you know, Eric) the sea was heaving and rolling beneath the feeble boat. Lightning flashed, and the sail caught fire. Unconsciously, Jim gripped the window sill, watching as the mast caught fire, and fell, splintering the boat's wooden deck. A lone figure stood on the deck. With the aid of his Interstellar Space Academy standard telescope, he managed to discover that the figure was Eric. It was not one of his happier realisations.
Soon, the fire was licking over the remains of the deck, and Jim saw it creeping towards the gunpowder.
The explosion illuminated the whole scene in sharp relief, and Jim grimaced as the figure crumpled, and fell into the ocean.
Jim hesitated a moment, then pushed his door open, grabbing his coat as he went, and stepped out into the pounding rain. It was true that Eric was one of the only good friends he had gained during his time on Earth, Jim not being all that good at befriending people. But Eric had persisted to the point of being a nuisance, and now Jim felt a pang at the thought of him drowning. So he began to look for Eric along the coastline, hoping to find him washed up on a beach.
It was light when he finally began to make his way back to his home on the shore. Jim stepped onto the small cove near where he lived, and froze. Eric's words came flooding back to him, completely forgotten during the events of the previous night.
'It really puts a sailors mind at ease knowing that someone is looking out for them in case they fall into the ocean and need to be rescued'
Jim backed away, until he was hidden by the bushes, not wanting to disturb the two. Eric was lying on the sand, shoeless and unconscious. But, though Jim was glad his friend was alive, he wasn't focusing on the Prince.
There was a girl lying next to him. She gently traced Eric's cheek, her fins furling and unfurling. Yeah, fins. She had the head and torso of a teenage girl, long bright red hair, brighter than Jim had ever seen, and green-blue eyes, and the tail of a fish, scaly, shimmering, green. Jim took a step forward, there was a rustling sound, she looked around, and in a second, the only thing telling him that he hadn't imagined it all were the ripples she had left behind after her dive. Then Eric stirred, and Jim shook his head. Now was the time to help the Prince to the castle, not wonder after mysterious mer people. He walked over to Eric, and helped him up.
"Jim…"
"Come on, let's get you to the castle"
"Jim, there was a girl. A mermaid. She saved me, Jim, just like I told you"
Jim faltered.
"Y-yeah. You were right. Now come on, there'll be people wondering where you are"
A/N: HI DEAR READERS!
So this is my new Ariel x Jim fanfic. Uh. People reading this who are also reading the Peter Pan and Wendy fanfic that I am writing, 'High School', it is on hold. Sorry! It's nearly finished though, and as soon as I can I'll finish it. Um. Yeah. Reviews are always nice!
