"Ariel! It's so nice to see you." Jim's mother said, wrapping her arms around the thin framed redhead that had stolen her son's heart. "How are you, darling?"

"Doing… quite well, Mrs. Hawkins." Ariel laughed, her cheeks turning red and her blue eyes sparkling. She then blinked, twice, and as if to come to her senses said, "Oh, please come in! How rude of me not to let you in! Um… Jim! Jim, your mom is here!"

Mrs. Hawkins entered the house, sniffing the air. Her brows furrowed and she yelled, "Jim… if you're serving burned food again, I'll run and get edible food for us to eat!" Ariel giggled, whispering, "That's what I said!" and they heard a frustrated grunt and Jim yell back, "No you won't! It's FINE." over the roar of a fire alarm. Smoke trickled into the living room and Morph came out, black instead of pink. He coughed, smoke being exhaled from his little lungs.

"Thank Montressor I bought pasta." His mother rolled her eyes.

The ladies chatted while the men tried desperately to save the meal. Knowing men (who don't major in the culinary arts) it failed, epically.

"I suppose that Jim has already popped the question?" Mrs. Hawkins asked, nodding towards the ring that adorned Ariel's finger. "Yes… yes he has… and I've, um… obviously accepted. You have quite the man-son- there, and I'm…" Ariel's line of thought halted to a stop, and she lowered her eyes.

Her bangs shielded her eyes, but when she looked up again, tears were streaming down the young girl's face.

"Mrs. Hawkins… when I left with Jim from Atlantica, I thought that he would sweep me off my feet and we'd be married on that very boat. He then went around, courting various women while I slinked in the shadows, watching. I watched him kiss them, hug them… I heard them make love to each other. Or… sex, but they referred to it as 'making love' because that's what they were. He loved every single girl he came in contact with… expect me." She paused, and Mrs. Hawkins held the young girls hand.

"It's okay, Ariel. You can tell me. I'm here for you… we're family now." she reassured.

"And then… he finally looked at me. Everything fell into place like a puzzle… a puzzle that was always meant to be. Now I'm going to get married to the very man who captured my heart. And… and I just wanted to say... thank you. Thank you for letting him be mine. Thank you for giving him this ring and letting it be on my finger. Thank you. "

Sarah hugged Ariel, and the once-mermaid calmed down. "You've been like a daughter to me ever since Jim brought you home. I always knew it would be you. And I'm glad it's you. You don't have to thank me for anything, child. I want to thank you for finally knocking some sense into Jim and showing him love. I want to thank you for being there for him. I want to thank you for saying yes."

Ariel hugged Sarah a little tighter, and this is what the boys saw when they entered with decent-looking/tasting food. The growing family bonded, laughing over old memories and flitting over wedding details. Where would it be? How many people would attend? You know, the small details, but the large ones as well.

The bubbly mother left, the robot turned in for the night, and the morphing blob fell asleep after dessert. Ariel took off her dress and put on one of Jim's shirts, just so she could be a little closer to him. They still hadn't done the deed, but she was in no rush… well, not in one that she would admit. She wanted him, true, but that would come in time. She turned off the lamp that illuminated her room and crawled under her covers. Jim and her were in separate rooms, and she felt awfully alone in such a big room.

Sleep didn't enter her room for hours. She doubted it would. She felt too lonely, and so… cold. The quiet was deafening, and it prickled her skin. Suddenly, her door creaked open. She turned her body to face it, and there was Jim's silhouette. "Hi." She whispered, her voice cracking from lack of use. "Hi." He answered back, rubbing his eyes with a light fist.

"Couldn't sleep?" she asked.

He nodded.

"I'm guessing the same with you?" he asked, & she mimicked his nod.

She waved a hand, beckoning for him to join her in the bed. He crossed the room in four strides and as she scooted away to give him some room he lay right beside her and wrapped an arm around her. She lay there, in the cage he had created, and felt content. Safe.

Loved.

She had always wondered whether she would find love, or if she was too wild and spontaneous for a guy to love her. Oh, she had gotten whistles and hoots and her butt had been grabbed by aplenty, but that was lust. Lust and love where two different definitions, two different feelings in the heart.

She looked up at the now-sleeping form of her soon-to-be-husband and prayed to Montressor or her daddy or whomever controlled such feelings that Jim felt love towards her, and not just lust towards her body.

Maybe it was the way he looked sleeping, peaceful as an angel. He lacked the halo and wings, but he was gorgeous nonetheless. His eyelids were closed, cerulean-hued eyes behind those heavy lids. His mud-colored tresses were a mess, hair sticking in every direction, giving him a boyish look. His lips were in the form of a small flirty smile, as if he knew she was studying his sleeping form and memorizing every scar. A want- no, need- to touch him overcame her, as her fingertips ghosted over his perfectly tanned skin.

After feeding this hunger, she turned back to admire his sleeping face only to be greeted by blazing liquid sky eyes that still had sleep glazing them. In his sleep his arm has fallen beside her, but now his arm re-wrapped itself around her delicate frame, pushing her nose against his well-toned chest. He smelled like exotic spices, summer nights, oil and smoke. And they stayed like so, drinking in each other's scents until they thought they'd go crazy if they didn't act fast enough. Clothing was just another obstacle in the way from bodies making contact, and was ripped off in a whisper, exposing only undergarments.

Entwined in a lover's knot, his pianist fingers flitted across her form, causing her body to erupt into goose bumps were his fingers touched momentarily. Kissing him was heaven, sharing every word they didn't dare to say aloud. She was pinned beneath a mattress and his chest, the depth of his poisoned blue eyes staring at her with dilated pupils.

Oh, was somebody ever in the mood.

Another kiss sent her thoughts from slightly scrambled to completely undecipherable, tongues clashing in wild passion. It tasted of frosty air and fresh snow, clean and pure, although he is not.

His fingers left a trail of poison, burning and tingling at the same thing, sending chills throughout her nerves. Pores opened up, releasing a musky odor into the air, letting it hang like a heavy blanket. Sweat covered their bodies like oil, making it easier to rub up against each other, creating heat between them faster than they could bottle it up. Soft, silken lips whispered over slick skin, her name seeming to flow from his voice like sheer poison. His voice was dark and filled to the brim with unbridled ecstasy, bodies pushing up against each other, a forming bulge begging to be released.

Another swift movement of fingers, and the undergarments vanished, on the floor in a pile with the other mingling clothes. Velvet-clad iron shaft appeared, tall and proud. Free from everything, they shared a passionate kiss, two shades of dark hair interwoven (although hers more fiery), and not stopping until their lungs needed air. She tried to say a key three words as he positioned himself on top of her, but he thrust inwards and covered her lips with his own as they both groaned whispers into each other, her voice hitched in her throat. His legs gave out, body slapping hers with a sharp crack, and his fingers intertwined into her hair. She held him close, pleading with their bodies to allow them to be closer.

Velvet skin slick with sweat shuddered above her as they both reached a plateau far above anything before that shook them to the core. With their energy spent, they lazily floated down from their high. His head was buried in the nook of her neck, so her nose was buried in his spice-scented wavy hair. As he attempted to roll off of her, his bones groaned in protest, not wanting to move another inch. He crawled off, the cool sheets chilling his hot flesh.

And they lay there, him staring at her hair strewn across the crisp white sheets. She stared at the ceiling, eyes closing and flipping through channels to see if anything was going on behind her eyelids. Their thoughts, once clear as mud, had begun to piece themselves together again; he thinking about she being his dawn, she thinking about he was the star of her morning.

He then started to weave a tale, and it wasn't a story, just him talking about… nothing. Nothing, but everything at the very same exact time. About when they met, when they fell in love, the plans for the future they had. It came out like a soft purr, sweet as a Siren's song. And like a Siren's song, it drew her away from safety, tempting her to take a risk and-

Kiss him. She cleverly shut his silver tongue up-her touch demonic compared to his gentleness- by wrapping her arms around his neck and pressing her lips against his.

Ben and Morph where unaware of such events, but once morning came rolling around and neither gal or lad was awake, Ben checked out both rooms. They were in Ariel's, asleep. A sheet was wrapped around them, yet neither had a shirt on. Ben was a smart robot, and could guess that neither had their clothes on underneath those sheets. He let them be, closing the wooden door to the secret safe haven that the couple had created overnight.