The night drifted on. Coral held the knife firmly. Remember, she told herself, for your sisters. Coral paced along the beach. Her sisters were gone, her love married and Ariel no-where to be seen. Coral continued pacing. She heard the party music begin and knew that the wedding party would come down to the beach soon. All she had to do was stab him when he went to sleep, easy, right? Coral took off her shoes and threw them into the ocean. She mentally screamed at the sea-witch to give her voice back but only got the splash of waves and screeching of gulls in return. She wished it was easier. She loved Joseph and wasn't ready to kill him. If she did, wouldn't that make her a bad person? Sure she'd be a mermaid, still unable to speak, but she would still be a bad person. Understanding filled her veins and she made her way to the palace.
Ariel was nervous. She remembered the vision she had of Coral talking to someone in the ocean and was worried that it had something similar to do with her own confusing past. Something told her that this marriage was more than just a mistake for Grace. Eric felt it too. "Ariel, what's up with the ocean?" Eric scanned the waves from the beach, surprisingly not hitting on her. "I don't know. I know what you mean though, I feel it too. What do you think?" Ariel was concerned but amazed that she liked Eric more when he wasn't making cheesy pick-up lines. "I think there is more to this mute girl than meets the eye." He was then swooped away by some overdressed bachelorettes and Ariel was left alone. She scanned the area, un-sure what she was looking for but knowing she was looking for something. It was then she noticed Coral climbing up the sand-banks towards the castle. A ghostly white thing gleamed in her hands a memory flooded back to her.
The marriage was over and Eric was out with some friends. Ariel sat on the dock, looking over the ocean, feeling proud that the couple in love had finally made her dream come true. The sea-witch was gone and her father's kingdom restored. Everything was perfect. She felt the salty sea air ruffle past her ears and heard the sound of footsteps on the wet sand. A man in a suit came from behind her and sat beside her on the docks. "Hello!" Ariel said cheerfully 'Hello, my name is Hans. I write stories you see, and saw you here on the docks. You seem very much like a story book character I was thinking of and thought you had a story to tell me. Come along! You can make it up if you like." Hans smiled warmly and Ariel trusted him. He took out a notepad halfway through her detailed description and when she got to the end he made a very flamboyant full stop. "Thank-you so much! This story isn't as tragic as I was hoping though; I may have to come back. Not for a while though, and you probably will forget me." Ariel protested that she could never forget him and will await his return, trying to convince him that her life will still be story-book perfect when he came back. Two years later Hans did come back, yet another girl was sitting on the dock. The supressed memories never did come back to Ariel until the very night she finally knew what he meant. Everything change, and looking back on her time with Hans now she thought about how innocent and naïve she must have sounded. Her memories stopped there and Ariel was thrown back into the time of the present.
Coral heard the party begin to slow and quickened her footsteps. The beach had never been so long and the castle so far away. A hand grabbed her elbow and swung her around. There Ariel stood. "What are you going to do with that dagger?" her voice was hoarse and demanding, but Coral wouldn't give an answer. She couldn't carry her notepad so she only shook her head, pleased, for she wouldn't have known what to right. Ariel stood fast and wasn't moving. "Please, just listen." Ariel's voice quivered "Whatever you do end up doing remember this, and don't forget, don't regret the things you've done, I regret the things I didn't do when I had the chance." She let go of her elbow then and stood there. Coral ran away, tears streaming down her face. Ariel knew without knowing and that scared her. She ran to the wedding couple's empty bedroom and hid in a closet. All she had to do now was survive the suspense.
The party was coming to a stop. There were drunks passed out on the sand and some women were whining about their passed relationships. The music kept going and the happy couple were dancing to a slow song in the centre of the beach. Gross, Ariel thought to herself, mentally puking. She saw a distressed Eric come towards her and happily turned her attention to him. "I can't find Max. He usually around but this morning he went hay-wire and ran off. I thought he'd be back by now." "Let's go find him then." Ariel turned her back and started whistling and calling for the dog. The two had no clue where he could be until the marriage pair decided to go to bed. Eric and Ariel followed them towards the castle and as soon as the door was opened Max ran out, howling. "What were you doing in there, boy?" Eric scratched the dog but the surprised Joseph decided to faint. Eric hauled him into bed and Grace lay beside him. "It's OK. He was too drunk anyway. Let him sleep." The girl lay her head down and was nearly asleep herself when Ariel closed the door.
Soft snoring was evident; Coral could hear it from behind the closet door. She opened it and re-gripped the dagger. Ok ready? One, two…
The dagger was thrust into the air.