DISCLAIMER: WE DO NOT own any of the chars from TLM. They belong to Disney. I do however own Andrina's special name for Ariel.
Enjoy!
A/N: Here is the next chapter! I hope everyone likes it!
"I Remember Music"
Chapter 2-Aquata's Promise
Meanwhile, back at the palace, Sebastian had gathered Ariel's six sisters in the living room to tell them the bad news.
He didn't know how to break it to them, but he knew they had to know what was going on.
"Girls, I have something I need to tell you." Sebastian began. "It's not going to be easy, but you need to know."
As the eldest, Aquata knew right away that the news wasn't good. She sat up straighter and gave Sebastian an anxious look.
"What is it?" She asked. "Is Father okay?"
Sebastian nodded.
"Oh yes, Aquata. You're Fada is fine."
Attina spoke up just then. She gazed around the room and realized one of her sisters was missing.
"Hey! Where's Ariel? Shouldn't she be here too?"
Arista scoffed from her place on the couch.
"She's probably exploring again and lost track of time."
Sebastian shook his head. He ignored Arista's comment as did all of her sisters. They knew how Arista could be sometimes.
"Actually, Ariel is who I need to talk to you about." Sebastian began. He prayed he would be able to tell them what had happened without anymore interruptions.
"Is she in trouble again?" Andrina asked. Her voice was full of concern, but Adella just giggled.
"Ariel's always in trouble!" She commented. "That's nothing new."
Attina burst into a fit of giggles as did Adella and Arista.
Aquata and Andrina were the only ones not laughing as well as Alana.
"Is Ariel okay?" Alana asked. She hadn't spoken until now.
"I wish I could say yes, but I'm afraid she's not." Sebastian replied.
"I knew it!" Arista piped up. "She got herself in trouble again, didn't she?"
"ARISTA BE QUIET!" Her five sisters chorused in unison.
Arista was taken aback, but did as she was told. She normally didn't listen to her sisters, but something told her it was best to do so this time.
Sebastian cleared his throat in an attempt to regain control of the situation.
"Like I said, I'm afraid Ariel isn't okay."
"What do you mean?" Aquata asked. She was worried now. "Please, tell us what happened. We have to know."
"Ariel's been in an accident." Sebastian said. "Your Fada took her to the hospital and they're taking care of her now. He told me he would send…" But the rest of his sentence was drowned out by six female voices asking questions all at once."What kind of accident?" Aquata asked.
"Can we see her?" Andrina wanted to know.
"Is she hurt badly?" Alana inquired anxiously.
Sebastian felt helpless. He couldn't answer any of their questions, but he knew who could.
"Come with me." He commanded. "We'll go see your Fada and he can give you the answers you're looking for. He's down there with Ariel now." With that, he led the way out of the palace living room, Ariel's sisters following him anxiously.
Meanwhile, back at the hospital, Triton was waiting anxiously for Ariel to awaken. He prayed and hoped she would be okay. He knew the accident was partially his fault. If only he had listened to Ariel, then this never would have happened.
As Triton gazed down at his youngest daughter's still form, he sighed.
"Ariel, I'm so sorry." He said, sincerely. "I'm so sorry for everything. This is all my fault. I love you so much, dear. I just want you to get better. You have to open your eyes again. Please."
A few minutes later, the King glanced up to see the rest of his family coming towards him. He gave Sebastian a look, but the crab just shook his head.
Triton nodded in understanding. He then turned his attention back to his six remaining daughters. He could tell they were concerned and in Andrina's case, very anxious.
"Father, what happened?" Aquata asked. She was the first one to speak up. "Sebastian told us Ariel was in an accident, but he wouldn't give us any details. Is she going to be okay?"
Triton nodded and Aquata breathed a sigh of relief. She reached her hand out cautiously towards her sister's unconscious form, but stopped uncertainly.
"You can touch her," Arainia assured her as she came in to check on the youngest mer-princess. "It's okay. You won't hurt her. In fact, physical contact by her loved ones will help Ariel recover faster."
"Really?" Alana asked. She had never heard that before.
Arainia smiled at the young mergirl.
"Yes. That goes for all of you. You won't hurt her. And talking to Ariel will help her too. Even if you just tell her about your day, it will help her wake up faster."
"Ya-you mean she can hear us?" Andrina asked tearfully. She was worse off of all her sisters. She and Ariel were very close and she felt as though she was losing her best friend.
Arainia gave Andrina a sympathetic look.
"Yes, sweetheart. It's okay." She then asked in a gentle tone, "Are you and Ariel close?"
Andrina nodded as a few tears coursed down her cheeks.
Triton saw this and took his second eldest into his arms. He had a feeling Andrina was going to take Ariel's accident the worst besides Aquata. This was because Andrina and Ariel were practically inseparable.
"Shh," Triton soothed. He hugged Andrina close and stroked her hair. "Ariel will be all right. She's strong. We'll get our Ariel back."
Andrina tried to believe her father's words, but it was hard. She loved Ariel so much and she didn't know what she would do if anything ever happened to her.
Chancing a glance at her best friend lying in the hospital bed, Andrina gulped back a sob of fear.
Ariel had a seaIV in her left arm and a few bruises covered her right cheek and upper chest.
Turning her face away from the sight, Andrina buried it in Aquata's shoulder as her eldest sister took her from their father.
"You all can stay tonight," Arainia offered. "But after tonight, I have to insist that only two of you are in here at a time. That's so Ariel won't become overwhelmed when she wakes up."
"We understand." Triton assured her.
Arainia nodded. She checked Ariel's seaIV to make sure it wasn't twisted and then left the room after checking the princess's vitals.
"I'll take the first watch." Aquata offered. "I'm the eldest and it's my job. After all, I…I promised…" Her voice trailed off as she fought hard to control the tears threatening to fall.
Triton nodded. He knew what Aquata was referring to without her having to say anything else.
"You may have the first watch." He told her. "Then the next day Andrina can sit with her. Then the rest of you can have your chance."
Arista was about to protest, but she thought better of it. She was worried about Ariel too, but she knew how close she and Andrina were.
Needless to say, it was a very long night. Triton didn't get much sleep and neither did the others. Andrina and Aquata especially.
Aquata started at every sound she heard, thinking Ariel was waking up in pain. She also made it her job to take care of Andrina.
Her younger sister wasn't getting much sleep due to being worried about Ariel.
Finally near morning, everyone drifted off to sleep. It wasn't a restful one, but it was rest nonetheless.
Somewhere around ten in the morning, Arainia came to check on Ariel. She woke everyone up by accident and Triton suggested that they all leave except for Aquata.
The King remembered the rule and he also had some things to do.
"I'll send word if anything changes, You're Majesty." Arainia promised.
"Thank you." Triton said. "You've been very kind to us."
Arainia nodded.
Andrina had a hard time leaving Ariel, but Triton assured her that she would be staying with her soon.
Once they had left, Aquata sat down beside Ariel's bed and took her little sister's hand.
"Ariel, I…I-I'm…I'm so sorry. I know I didn't cause the accident, but I'm the eldest. I'm supposed to protect you and I didn't' do my job. I'm so sorry!"
Aquata couldn't hold it back any longer. The tears cascaded down her face like a sudden rainstorm.
As the tears continued to flow, Aquata's mind floated back to a conversation she and her mother had just before she died. Thinking about this particular event only made Aquata cry harder…
Aquata grinned as Athena took her into her arms. She loved spending time with her mother. She understood her mother had seven children to take care of, but she liked it when it was just the two of them.
"I like spending time with you." The ten-year-old said, snuggling into her mother for a cuddle.
"Me too, sweetheart." Athena said, sincerely. "Me too."
Silence fell over the two just then.
A few minutes later, Athena broke it.
"Aquata, I need you to promise me something."
"Sure, Mom. Anything." Aquata said earnestly.
Athena smiled lovingly down at her eldest daughter. She knew she could always count on her.
"I need you to promise me that you'll always protect your sisters and look out for them. There may come a day when I'm not here and I need you to take care of your sisters, Ariel especially. She's so young and she needs someone to show her the way. Will you promise me you'll try and do that?"
Aquata nodded. She had no idea what her mother was talking about, but she always listened to her parents.
"Yes." She said. "I promise."
"Aw, that's my girl. I love you and your sisters so much." With that, Athena hugged her eldest close, relishing in the time they got to spend together…
As Aquata's mind floated back to the present, she cried harder. She was sure she had let her mother down and she knew she had definitely let her baby sister down. She had broken her promise and that was the last thing she wanted to do.
"I'm sorry Mom!" Aquata sobbed. "I'm so sorry! I broke my promise! I broke my promise!"
In a nearby corner, Ariel and Athena stood, listening to Aquata's heart wrenching words.
Athena wanted to go over and embrace her eldest and convince her of the truth, but she knew she couldn't. It broke her heart to see her daughters upset, but she knew Aquata would be okay in time.
"Mom?" Ariel's voice broke Athena out of her thoughts.
"Yes, sweetie?"
"Why does Aquata blame herself? It's not her fault."
Athena sighed.
"I know, honey. But she thinks it is. It has to do with something that happened when you were three years old. A year before…well Aquata and I had a conversation and she's feeling guilty for something she didn't do."
Ariel frowned.
"Will she be okay?"
"Yes. Once you're okay, she'll be fine. You're the heart of our family, Ariel. You always were. You brought your family back together after I was gone. It takes a special person to do that."
"What do you mean?" Ariel asked. She was still gazing at Aquata worriedly.
"Your heart." Athena explained. "You love everyone and everything and that shows when you put others before yourself."
Ariel nodded in realization.
"Like Sebastian?" She asked, trying to make a comparison. Her head was still a little sore and thinking too much made it hurt.
"Exactly." Her mother confirmed.
Ariel nodded. She sighed as she too tried to fight the urge to tell Aquata the truth.
"If only I could help her." Ariel said aloud.
"You'll get your chance." Athena assured her.
Ariel nodded as she went back to watching the scene before her…