The Little Mermaid: A Final Fantasy VII Edition
Summary: Rebellious 18-year-old mermaid Tifa is fascinated with life on land. On one of her visits to the surface, which is forbidden by her controlling father, King Brian, she falls for a human prince, Cloud. Determined to be with her new lover, Tifa makes a dangerous deal with the Sea Witch Scarlet to become a human for three days. But when plans go awry for the star-crossed lovers, the Sea King must make the ultimate sacrifice for his daughter.
Story by Hans Christian Andersen
The Little Mermaid ~ Disney
Final Fantasy VII and its characters ~ Square Enix
Happy Mermay Month!
There once lived a young prince who loved nothing more than the wide-open ocean. In fact, Prince Cloud Strife loved the ocean so much that he even spent birthdays aboard one of the royal sailing ships.
"Isn't this great?" said the Prince on one such 18th birthday. "The salty sea air. The wind blowing in your face. What a perfect day to be at sea!"
Nearby, a gangly older man leaned over the railing. "Oh yes," he replied with a groan, with his face green from seasickness. "Delightful."
Cloud chuckled. Old Reeve Tuesti had been his adviser for years, but he had never developed his sea legs.
"A fine strong wind and a following sea!" called a sailor. "King Brian must be in a friendly mood."
"King Brian?" Cloud asked.
"The ruler of the merpeople," explained another sailor named Cid Highwind. "I thought every good sailor knew about him.
"Hmph!" said Reeve. "Cloud, pay no attention to this nautical nonsense."
"But it isn't nonsense," said Cid, shaking a fish in Reeve's face. "It's the truth! I'm telling you, they live down in the depths of the ocean."
Reeve and Cid faced off until the sailor suddenly dropped the fish.
Cloud had heard this argument many times before. The sailors were convinced that merpeople, who were said to be half-fish and half-human, existed. Reeve was certain that they did not. As for Cloud, well, he simply didn't know.
If he could have seen the bottom of the ocean, he would have known that fathoms below lay the bustling kingdom of Costa del Sol, where merpeople and other sea creatures lived under the rule of King Brian Lockhart.
And on this very day, the entire kingdom had gathered to see the Sea King's daughters perform in a concert...
King Brian arrived in a golden chariot pulled by orcas. He was followed by the royal court composer, Red. The small crab rode in a seashell pulled by two goldfish.
"This will be the finest concert I've ever conducted," Red told the Sea King. "Your daughters will be spectacular!"
"Especially my little Tifa," King Brian replied. The Sea King loved all his daughters, but when it came to singing, Tifa outshone her sisters.
"If only she'd show up for rehearsals once in a while," Red grumbled to himself.
As the musicians began to play, a curtain of bubbles parted, and three huge clamshells opened onstage. They revealed six mermaids - Tara, Tabitha, Teresa, Tania, Tessa and Tamara - all daughters of King Brian Lockhart.
The mermaids sang sweetly as they swam around. Soon, another giant clamshell swirled onto the stage, where it slowly opened to reveal...no one. The shell was empty!
The sisters stopped singing. Red dropped his baton. King Brian rose from his seat, furiously clutching his trident. Where could Tifa be?
Meanwhile, Tifa was gliding through the water at top speed, carrying an empty sack.
She stopped at an old shipwreck. Through a porthole, she could see the dark interior. To Tifa, it was the most beautiful sight in the sea: a glimpse of something from the world above.
It was King Brian's strictest rule that no merperson go to the surface. But Tifa couldn't resist. Whenever she could, she sneaked up to look around. She'd even made friends with a seagull named Wedge.
She was especially curious about the land creatures called humans. King Brian said they were dangerous and not to be trusted. But Tifa couldn't understand how humans could be terrible and still create all the beautiful things she found.
"Isn't it fantastic?" she said, peering inside the ship.
"Yeah, sure," answered a baby dolphin named Denzel. He was Tifa's best friend. But unlike Tifa, he thought shipwrecks were spooky.
"I'm going inside," Tifa told Denzel. "You can just stay here and look for sharks."
"Sharks?!" Denzel squeaked. "Tifa, wait for me!!"
He followed her through the porthole and toward a break in the ceiling. They both wriggled through the opening to reach the deck. There, on a pile of broken boards, lay a dented fork. Tifa gasped with delight and swam over to it.
"Have you ever seen anything so wonderful in your entire life?" she said with a sigh.
"Cool!" cried Denzel. "What is it?"
"I don't know," Tifa said, "but I bet Wedge will." She put the fork into her bag.
Rrrrrrrommmmm! Denzel jumped at the strange sound. "What was that?" he asked. "Did you hear something.
Tifa didn't answer. She was examining a pipe she'd found. "Hmm, I wonder what this is?"
Denzel turned to see a pair of yellow eyes glaring at him through a window.
"A shark!!!" he shrieked. "Tifa, swim!!"
Crrraaasssh! With a mighty heave, the shark burst through the window, with his jaws gaping wide.
Tifa quickly threw the pipe into her sack and raced with Denzel toward an exit. Suddenly, she felt herself pulled backward. She looked down in horror. Her bag was stuck on a plank! Just inches ahead of the shark, she yanked the bag free and swam for her life.
Tifa and Denzel rushed towards the ship's mast. They looked around nervously. Had they lost him? Suddenly, the shark crashed through the side of the ship!
Luckily for Tifa and Denzel, the shark was so focused on catching them that he failed to notice the old rusty anchor up ahead. Tifa and Denzel easily fit through it. But when the shark tried to follow, his thick neck got stuck in the iron ring. While he thrashed about, enraged, Denzel and Tifa swam safely away.
"Take that, you big bully!!!" Denzel taunted.
Moments later, Tifa and Denzel popped above the water's surface. They were greeted by Wedge, who was singing loudly.
Wedge wasn't the brightest of birds, but he had a big heart, and he always sounded as if he knew what he was talking about.
"Look what we found!" Tifa cried, holding out the sack.
"Human stuff, huh?" said Wedge. He pulled the fork out of Tifa's bag. "Wow! It's a dinglehopper! Humans use these little babies to straighten out their hair."
Wedge demonstrated by combing his feathers. Then he took out the pipe.
"This is wonderful! A banded, bulbous snarfblatt. Humans used to sit around and stare at each other all day. It got very boring, so they invented this snarfblatt to make fine music. Allow me." He took a deep breath and blew into the pipe. Seaweed and water gushed out the top.
"It's stuck," Wedge said with a groan.
Music. The word suddenly made Tifa remember her own concert. "Oh my gosh!!" she cried. " The concert! I've got to go! My father is going to kill me!!"
Meanwhile, in a cold dark corner of the ocean, someone had been watching Tifa carefully. It was Scarlet the Sea Witch, and she was intent on destroying King Brian Lockhart.
She stared fixedly at the image of Tifa in her glowing crystal ball. Scarlet's pet eels, Kadaj and Yazoo, hovered nearby, ready to do her bidding.
"Yes, hurry home, Princess," Scarlet said in a mocking tone. "We wouldn't want to miss Daddy's celebration now, would we?"
Scarlet thought of the good old days when she too had lived at the palace, before King Brian banished her from Costa del Sol. Since then, she had thought of nothing but revenge.
"Banished and practically starving!!" she raged. "While he and his flimsy fish folk celebrate! Well, I'll give them something to celebrate soon enough," she said with a loud cackle. "Kadaj! Yazoo! Keep an extra-close watch on this pretty little daughter of his. She will be the key to Brian's undoing!"
In her father's throne room, Tifa listened, head bowed, while King Brian scolded her.
"I just don't know what we're going to do with you, young lady," he bellowed. "As a result of your careless behavior, the entire celebration was-"
Suddenly, his flowing black beard parted. Red peered out and yelled, "Ruined! Completely destroyed! That concert was to be the pinnacle of my distinguished career. Now, thanks to you, I am the laughingstock of the entire kingdom!!!"
"It wasn't her fault!" Denzel cried, swimming to Tifa's defense. "This shark chased us! And then we were safe. Then this seagull came and-"
"Seagull?" King Brian's face reddened. "You went up to the surface again?!" he exclaimed. "How many times must we go through this?! You could have been seen by one of those barbarians, by one of those humans! Do you think I want to see my youngest daughter snared by some fish-eater's hook?!"
"I'm eighteen years old!" Tifa argued. "I'm not a child!!"
But it was no use. The Sea King was furious. "Don't you take that tone of voice with me, young lady! As long as you live under my ocean, you'll obey my rules," he said, waving his mighty trident.
"But if you would just listen!!" Tifa protested.
"Not another word!!" King Brian shot back. "I am never, ever to hear of you going to the surface again. Is that clear?!"
Tifa could feel her eyes fill with tears. She turned and swam out of the throne room, with Denzel close behind.
King Brian sighed. "Do you think I was too hard on her?" he asked Red.
"Definitely not!" the crab replied. "Why, if Tifa were my daughter, I'd show her who was boss. Hm. Teenagers. They think they know everything. You give them an inch, and they swim all over you." He snapped his claw. "I'd keep her under tight control!"
King Brian sat back. "You're absolutely right, Red. Tifa needs constant supervision."
"Constant!" agreed Red.
"Someone to watch over her," the Sea King continued, to keep her out of trouble. And you are just the crab to do it!"
Red froze. That was not what he'd had in mind. He was the court composer, not a babysitter. But he knew that when the Sea King asked him to do something, he had to do it.
Muttering, Red swam away from the Sea King's chamber and out into the sea. He soon spotted Tifa and Denzel. They were looking around suspiciously as if they didn't want to be followed.
Naturally, Red raced after them. They swam all the way to a rock wall with a large boulder in front of it. He watched as Tifa heaved the boulder aside. Then he gasped. Inside was an enormous grotto.
Hiding in the shadows, Red followed Tifa and Denzel inside. He looked around in wonder. The walls were covered with shelflike crags filled with small objects - vases, plates, books, clocks, candlesticks, eyeglasses and even a harp. Red had never seen such things before, but he knew they must be from the human world.
"Oh Denzel," Tifa said gloomily, "if only I could make Father understand. I don't see how a world that makes such wonderful things could be so bad."
Up above, humans walked and skipped and ran and danced. How she wished she could be a part of that world!
Red was listening so intently, he backed into a mug and sent it crashing to the floor.
"Red!!" Tifa cried.
Crawling out from a tangle of knickknacks, Red waved his claw. "If your father knew about this place, he'd-"
Just then, a shadow passed over them.
"What do you suppose that is?" Tifa murmured, with her eyes darting to the small opening at the top of the grotto. Instantly, she began to swim away, with Denzel at her tail.
"Tifa!!" shrieked Red. He couldn't believe they were heading for the surface again!
When they reached the top, they discovered a huge ship anchored nearby. Colorful fireworks fired from the ship's deck lit up the night sky. Tifa swam closer to get a better look.
Peeking through an opening in the side of the ship, she glimpsed the crew singing and dancing. 'What fantastic things their legs are!' she thought. Barbarians? Was that what her father had called humans? They sure didn't look that way to Tifa.
One man in particular caught Tifa's eyes. She listened with delight as he laughed and played a jaunty tune on his fife. With his spiky blonde hair and blue eyes, he was different from the rest. He was beautiful!
Just then, an older human shouted, "Silence! Silence!" He stood beside a tall object that was covered with a canvas sheet. "It is now my honor and privilege to present our esteemed Prince Cloud with a very special, very expensive, very large 19th birthday present."
"Hurrah!!" shouted the sailors.
"Ah, Reeve," Cloud said, blushing, "you ol' beanpole, you shouldn't have!"
Proudly, Reeve pulled off the canvas sheet, revealing a statue of Cloud.
The sailors applauded, but Cloud couldn't help but frown. The face on the statue looked like his, but the conquering pose - that was nothing like him.
"Gee, Reeve, it's uh...it's really something," Cloud said.
"Of course, I had hope it would be a wedding present but..." Reeve sighed. "The entire kingdom of Nibelheim wants to see you happily settled down with the right girl."
"Oh, she's out there somewhere," Cloud said, gazing out to the sea. "Believe me, when I find her, I'll know. Without a doubt, it'll just hit me, like lightning."
Booooooom! As if the sky was listening a thunderclap sounded, and lightning bathed the ship in a silver glow.
"Hurricane coming!!" a sailor shouted as rain began to fall. "Stand fast. Secure the rigging!!"
A huge wave rose over the ship, crashing down on Tifa's head. She tried to hold on but it was impossible. Head over tail, she plunged into the sea. Struggling against the current, she fought her way back to the surface. At that moment, a bolt of lightning struck the ship's mast. Instantly, the mainsail went up in flames.
Tifa could see Cloud at the wheel, trying to guide the ship away from a sharp rock outcropping. But the wind and the current were too strong. Crash! The ship's hull slammed into the rocks. Sailors slid across the deck, and Cloud lost his balance. He hurtled into Reeve and they both fell overboard.
"Hang on, Reeve!!" Cloud shouted, pulling his friend into a rowboat. Then the barking of his dog Umbra, drew his eyes back to the ship. The ship was aflame and Umbra was trapped!!!
Cloud dived into the sea and swam back to the burning ship. As he hoisted himself aboard, he could see the fire spreading rapidly toward the deck where the fireworks and gunpowder were stored. In minutes, the ship would explode!
Cloud scooped Umbra up in his arms and raced back toward the railing. Suddenly, his foot broke through a plank. He was stuck! He heaved Umbra over the railing into the safety of the lifeboat. Before Cloud could free his foot, the fire reached the explosives. As Tifa and the sailors watched in horror, the ship burst into a smoky ball of flames.
For a moment, Tifa's heart stopped. Then she spotted a limp figure clinging to a piece of driftwood. It was Cloud. As she watched, he slipped off the wood and sank beneath the water. She swam quickly and pulled him to the surface.
Struggling against the wind and waves, Tifa carried him to shore, where she lay beside on the sand until the storm died away.
In time, Wedge joined her.
"Is he...dead?" Tifa asked, staring down at Cloud's motionless body.
Wedge lifted Cloud's barefoot and put it to his ear. "I can't make out a heartbeat."
"No, look, he's breathing!!" Tifa cried. She smiled with relief and began to sing softly.
What would I give
To live where you are?
What would I pay
To stay here beside you?
What would I do to see you
Smiling at me?
Where would we walk?
Where would we run?
If we could stay all day in the sun
Just you and me
And I could be
Part of your world.
Red and Denzel arrived just in time to see Cloud open his eyes and look at Tifa. Through his daze, he couldn't see very clearly. But he could hear her enchanting song.
"Arf! Arf!" Suddenly, Umbra came bounding over a sand dune, heading straight for his master.
"Cloud!!" Reeve called out.
With a splash, Tifa dived into the water and swam to a rock, just out of Cloud's sight.
Still dizzy, Cloud shook his head. "A girl rescued me," he mumbled. "She...she was singing. She had the most beautiful voice!"
Reeve hoisted Cloud to his feet. "I think you've swallow a bit too much seawater," he said.
From her perch, Tifa watched Reeve lead the Prince back to his palace. She made a wish right then and there: someday, she would find a way to be a part of Cloud's world.
Meanwhile, Scarlet the Sea Witch was watching the whole scene and making a vow too. She would use Tifa's love to get back at King Brian once and for all!
Back at King Brian's undersea palace, Tifa's sisters could tell right away that Tifa was in love. Of course, they all thought she'd fallen for a merman. Only Red and Denzel knew the truth - and Red was worred sick. If King Brian found out that Tifa loved a human boy, the entire kingdom would pay the price.
"He loves me, he loves me not..." Tifa said dreamily as she plucked petals from a sea flower. "He loves me! I knew it!!"
"Tifa!! Will you get your head out of the clouds and back in the water where it belongs?!!" Red scolded. But no sooner had he spoken than he realized Tifa was gone.
"Ohhhh," he groaned in frustration, "somebody's got to nail that girl's fins to the floor!!!"
Just then, a seahorse messenger appeared. King Brian Lockhart wanted to see Red.
"He knows!!" The little crab gasped.
"I'm concerned about Tifa," the Sea King said as Red entered the throne room. "Have you noticed she's been acting peculiar lately?"
"Peculiar?" Red asked with a nervous smile.
"You know," said King Brian, "daydreaming, singing to herself...?"
"Oh, ooh, well, I-" Red stammered.
The Sea King raised an eyebrow. "You've been keeping something from me. About Tifa? In love? Hmm?"
At that, Red fell to his knees. "I tried to stop her!!" he wailed between chattering teeth. "She wouldn't listen! I told her to stay away from humans!!!!!!"
King Brian sat upright. "Humans?!" he bellowed. "What about humans?!" He'd only been teasing Red. He'd heard talk of Tifa being in love, and had naturally assumed it was with a merman.
The Sea King lifted Red to eye level. The crab had a lot of explaining to do!
In the meantime, Denzel had a surprise waiting for Tifa in the secret grotto where the Little Mermaid kept her human treasures. It was the statue of Prince Cloud! Denzel had found it after the shipwreck.
"Oh Denzel, you're the best!!" Tifa exclaimed. "It looks just like him!!" 'If only it were him,' she thought.
Her happiness was interrupted by the sudden appearance of her father and Red.
"Daddy!!" Tifa cried as the Sea King swam out from the shadows. His face was tight with rage.
"I consider myself a reasonable merman," he began. "I set certain rules and I expect those rules to be obeyed. Is it true you rescued a human from drowning?" he demanded.
"Daddy, I had to!!" Tifa protested. She moved closer to her beloved statue.
"Contact between the human world and the merworld is strictly forbidden. Tifa, you know that! Everybody knows that!!!" the Sea King shouted.
"He would have died!" Tifa cried.
"One less human to worry about!" King Brian said coldly.
"You don't even know him!" said Tifa, frustrated.
"Know him? I don't have to know him! They're all the same! Spineless, savage, harpooning fish eaters, incapable of any feeling...!"
"Daddy, I love him!!!" Tifa confessed.
The words hit King Brian like a fist. "Have you lost your senses completely?! He's a human. You're a mermaid!!!"
"I don't care!!!" she cried.
"So help me, Tifa Lockhart," the Sea King said with a growl. "I am going to get through to you, and if this is the only way, then so be it!!!"
With that, King Brian lifted his trident and pointed it at Tifa's treasure-filled shelves.
Wham! A beam of yellow light shot from the trident and smashed a candelabra.
Wham! A ceramic globe exploded into bits.
Wham! Wham! Wham! One by one, King Brian destroyed Tifa's precious objects.
"No!! Stop!!!!!!" she pleaded.
But the Sea King's eyes were now focused on Prince Cloud's statue. He pointed his trident at it and...Ccrraaack!! The sculpture exploded into a million tiny pieces.
Tifa put her head down and began to cry. Sadly the Sea King swam away, leaving Denzel and Red to try and comfort her.
"Just go away," she sobbed.
Reluctantly, the two friends obeyed. They did not notice Kadaj and Yazoo approaching the Princess.
"Poor sweet child," said Kadaj with a hiss. "She has a very serious problem."
"If only there was something we coud do," Yazoo said.
Tifa glanced up. She had never seen the two eels before.
"Who are you?" she asked.
"Don't be scared.We represent someone-"
"Someone who can make all your dreams come true," said the eels at the same time.
"Just imagine you and your prince," added Kadaj, "together forever."
Yazoo nodded. "Scarlet has great powers."
"The Sea Witch?" Tifa was filled with disgust. "I couldn't possibly! Get out of here!! Leave me alone!!!"
"Suit yourself," said Kadaj.
"It was only a suggestion," added Yazoo. They turned to swim away.
Tifa gazed at the shattered pieces of her collection. Her grotto was now a junk pile because of her father. He thought humans were savages, but who was really the savage one?
She sighed. Of course, she knew better than to trust Scarlet. But would it hurt to just listen?
"Wait!!" The word flew out of Tifa's mouth before she could think.
As she followed the eels, Tifa passed Denzel and Red on a rock ledge.
"Tifa!!" Red gasped. "Where are you going? What are you doing with these riffraffs?"
"I'm going to see Scarlet," she replied.
"She's a demon! She's a monster!!" Red cried.
But Tifa was too angry to listen. "Why don't you go tell my father?! You're good at that!!!" she snapped. And she continued to swim away. There was nothing Red and Denzel could do but follow.
By the time she reached Scarlet's lair, however, Tifa became more hesitant. The entrance, something cold and slimy grabbed her wrist and yanked her down. Tifa found herself admist several shivering sad-eyed creatures. They moaned and gazed at her with terrified eyes. Gasping in horror, Tifa pulled herself loose.
"Come in, come in, my child. We mustn't lurk in doorways. It's rude. One might question your upbringing," Scarlet called with a grin.
Tifa swam back in fear.
Scarlet slid across the seafloor toward a vanity table. She admired herself in the mirror as she painted her lips bright red.
"Now then," she began, "you're here because you have a thing for this human. Not that I blame you. He is quite a catch, isn't he? Well, Angelfish, the solution to your problem is simple. The only way to get what you want is to become a human yourself."
"Can you really do that? Can you change me into a human?" Tifa asked.
"My dear, sweet child," said Scarlet, "it's what I live for. To help unfortunate merfolk like yourself." Scarlet glanced at the shriveled souls huddled by the entrance. "Poor souls with no one else to turn to."
Tifa's mouth fell open. Those horrible-looking creatures were once ordinary merfolk!
"Now, here is the deal," Scarlet said, pulling Tifa close. "I will make you a potion that will turn you into a human for three days. If he kisses you before sunset on the third day, you'll remain human permanently. But if he doesn't, you turn back into a mermaid - and you belong to me!"
"No, Tif-" Red began to scream. But Kadaj quickly wrapped himself around the crab's mouth, while Yazoo grabbed Denzel.
"Oh, and there is one more thing," the Sea Witch went on. "We haven't discussed the subject of payment."
"But I don't have anything," said Tifa.
Scarlet smiled reassuringly. "I'm not asking much, just a token, really. You'll never even miss it. What I want from you is your voice."
"My...voice?" Tifa couldn't believe her eyes. "But without my voice, how can I-"
"You'll have your looks, your pretty face," said Scarlet, pulling a few potions off a shelf and pouring them into a cauldron. Then with a flick of her wrist, a large golden scroll appeared. "How we got a deal? Life's full of tough choices, isn't it?"
Everything was happening so fast! Tifa was horrified to be making a deal with Scarlet. And yet, it did seem rather simple. Mustering all her courage, she grabbed the pen and signed her name.
Instantly, a terrible, wicked smile spread across Scarlet's face. She waved her arms over the cauldron, and from it, rose two smoky green hands.
"Now sing!!" Scarlet commanded.
Tifa obeyed. As she sang, a bright light began to glow in her throat. The green hands reached toward Tifa and plucked the light from her. Tifa was no longer making any sound, but her voice was still singing. It was inside the light.
Laughing, Scarlet held up a seashell that hung on a cord around her throat and watched as the hand placed the light inside. Then she waved her hand over the cauldron again.
Enormous blasts of smoke shot upward, and a huge red bubble encircled Tifa. There were two flashes of light, then the bubble was gone - and so was Tifa's tail. In its place were two legs.
Tifa tried to swim, but she could not. And she could not breathe! Afraid that she would drown, Red and Denzel broke loose from the eels and dragged Tifa toward the surface.
On the shore, Prince Cloud was out strolling with his faithful dog, Umbra. Ever since the shipwreck, Cloud had thought of nothing but the girl who had saved his life. He had looked everywhere for her, with no success. Reeve was sure she was only in Cloud's imagination, but Cloud knew he could never dream up a voice as sweet as hers.
With his fife, he tried to re-create the lovely, haunting sound. But nothing could compare. He scanned the beach, as he'd done a thousand times before, hoping against hope that she would reappear.
"Where could she be?" Cloud asked as he rubbed Umbra's shaggy head.
Little did he know that just down the beach, Tifa was wondering the same thing about him.
"Well, look what the catfish dragged in!" said Wedge, landing on Tifa's ankle. "Look at you. There's something different. Don't tell me. It's your hairdo! You've been using the dinglehopper, right?"
Tifa shook her head.
"No, huh?" Wedge scratched his head. "I've got to admit. I can't put my foot on it right now, but-"
"She's got legs, you idiot!!" Red cried. "She traded her voice to the Sea Witch and got legs!"
"Tifa's been turned into a human!" Denzel explained. "She has to make the Prince fall in love with her, and he's got to kiss her."
"And she only got three days!!" Red added.
"Well," Wedge said, "if you want to be a human, the first thing you have to do is dress like one."
Wedge pulled a black sail and some rope off an old shipwreck in the sand. Tifa wrapped the sail around her body and tied it in place with the rope.
"You look sensational!" said Wedge.
"Arf! Arf!" Umbra bounded over a dune, directly towards Tifa.
Denzel screamed and dived underwater, Wedge flew off, and Red leaped into a fold in Tifa's dress.
"Umbra!!" Tifa heard Cloud called out. A moment later, he was standing next to her.
"Are you okay, miss?" he asked when he saw Tifa.
Cloud was so handsome, yet so gentle. Tifa wished she could say something. Instead, she blushed and smiled.
"You seem very familiar," Cloud said. Suddenly, he took her hands. "You're the one I've been looking for! What's your name?"
Tifa opened her mouth, but no sound came.
"What is it?" Cloud asked. "You can't speak?"
Sadly, Tifa shook her head.
"Oh, then you couldn't be who I thought." Cloud sighed.
Tifa tried to act out what had happened. She pointed to her throat, made swimming motions, and pretended to pass out.
"Careful!" said Cloud, catching her. "Gee, you must have really been through something. Don't worry, I'll help you. Come on."
Cloud took Tifa to his castle, where his servants fed her and gave her pretty clothes. Soon, everyone was wondering about Tifa Lockhart. Who was this voiceless girl who combed her hair with a fork?
It was nearing the ending of the first day. Red had followed Tifa to the castle to help out when he could.
"You've only got two more days to get Cloud to fall in love with you," the crab reminded her.
But Tifa wasn't paying attention. She was dreaming of her prince.
Meanwhile, back under the sea, Brian was worried sick about his youngest daughter.
He had searched every cave and coral reef and left no shell unopened. Tifa was nowhere to be found.
"Let no one sleep," he instructed to his royal sea horse messenger, "until she's safe at home."
He hung his head in shame. "Oh, what have I done?"
The next day, Cloud ordered his coach and his horses. "Let me show you my kingdom," he said to Tifa.
Tifa thought it was a beautiful kingdom, but she couldn't tell Cloud.
The Prince, on the other hand, was thinking. 'What a beautiful girl! If only it had been her voice I heard!"
Three days had turned to two. Now, two days were turning to one. But for now, everything was going to be all right. The flames of true love had been kindled in Cloud's heart.
Cloud took her rowing on a peaceful lagoon, surrounded by a curtain of willow trees. It was very romantic - the perfect place to fall in love. Just one thing was missing.
"We got to create the mood," Red said, breaking off a reed to use a baton. He began to conduct the ducks, turtles, fish, and frogs to a soft love song.
"Did you hear something?" Cloud asked. Was it his imagination, or was beautiful music filling the air?
He leaned closer to Tifa and smiled. Their lips were only inches apart.
Denzel and Red watched anxiously. He was going to kiss her! But before the Prince could, the boat was mysteriously tipped over!
"Nice work, boys. That was a close one. Too close! That little tramp!" Scarlet fumed. "Well, she's better than I thought. At this rate, he'll be kissing her by sunset for sure! Well, it's time I took matters into my own hands."
In a puff of magical smoke, she turned from a hideous octopus into a pretty girl - with Tifa's beautiful voice.
"Brian's daughter will soon be mine and then I'll make him writhe. I'll see him wriggle like a worm on a hook!" she cried.
Cloud watched the sunset from the balcony of the palace. Will he ever find the mysterious beauty who had saved him?
"Cloud, if I may say, far better than any dream girl is one of flesh and blood. One warm, and caring, and right before your very eyes," Reeve advised him.
Cloud was about to agree when he heard the sweet melody floating through the night air. It was Scarlet, disguised as Cissnei, with Tifa's beautiful voice coming from the shell around her neck.
Hearing her voice and believing Cissnei must be the one who had saved him from the shipwreck, Cloud fell instantly under the wicked spell and decided to marry her.
"The wedding ship departs at sunset," he ordered Reeve.
"As you wish," Reeve nodded.
Tifa listened sadly, heartbroken. She had lost her true love forever, and now she would never be able to escape Scarlet's evil bargain.
Scarlet was delighted - her plan was working perfectly. She was too busy rejoicing to notice Wedge peeking through a porthole on the wedding ship. He saw her wicked reflection in the mirror, unveiling her true identity.
"The Sea Witch!!" he cried. "I gotta tell Tifa!!!"
On the shore, Tifa looked out a brightly decorated wedding ship - and the setting sun of her final day as a human girl.
All at once, above her, she heard the excited voice of Wedge.
"I saw the watch...I mean, the witch...watching the mirror!" the seagull sputtered. He flapped his wings frantically as Tifa, Denzel and Red struggled to understand him.
"Do you hear what I'm saying?!" He tried again. "The Prince is marrying the Sea Witch in disguise!!!"
Tifa jumped off the dock to rescue Cloud. But with her human arms and legs, she could barely stay afloat. Grabbing onto a floating barrel, she let Denzel pull her towards the wedding ship as fast as he could while Red raced off to get Brian.
But there was so little time left - the sun was about to set on the third day, and all would be lost. They had to stop that wedding!
Wedge tried desperately to interrupt the ceremony.
"Dearly beloved," the minister began as a flock of bluebirds yanked and pulled Cissnei's hair. All of Tifa's friends - the starfish, the pelicans, even the orcas and dolphins - attacked on the segaull's command.
"Get away from me, you slimy..." the witch protested, trying to pry Wedge away from her.
The magic shell that contained Tifa's voice went flying through the air and landed on the deck, just as Tifa reached the ship. It shattered as the sun descended on the golden horizon.
"Cloud?" Tifa spoke at last as her voice returned to her.
"You're the one!" the Prince exclaimed, free from Scarlet's spell. "It was you the whole time."
"Oh Cloud, I wanted to tell you..." Tifa started to say.
"Get away from her!" cried Scarlet. Cloud was about to kiss Tifa - the kiss of true love. But the sun set just seconds before their lips could touch.
"You're too late!!" the evil witch grinned triumphantly. In a flash of light, Tifa turned back into a mermaid and Scarlet became her old ugly self once more.
"So long, lover boy!" Scarlet said grabbing Tifa and dragging her back into the sea.
"Poor princess!" she cooed. "It's not you I'm after. I've got a much bigger fish to fry."
As she spoke, the Sea King appeared before them, ordering the witch ro release his daughter.
"Not a chance, Brian," Scarlet laughed, clinging tightly to Tifa's wrist. "She's mine now."
"We made a deal," she laughed, showing him the scroll that Tifa had signed. "Of course," she suggested, "I've always had an eye for a bargain. The daughter of the great Sea King is a very precious commodity. I might be willing make an exchange for someone even better."
Brian had no choice. He yieled. With a wave of his trident, Brian signed the document and sealed his fate. He, instead of Tifa, would be Scarlet's servant.
"At last!!" Scarlet cried as she grabbed the trident. "It's now mine!!"
Cloud couldn't bare to think of his lover in the clutches of that evil witch. He dived in after her.
"I lost her once. I won't lose her again!!" he said, casting a harpoon into Scarlet's arm, wounding her.
Enraged, The Sea Witch aimed the magic trident at the Prince. At the last moment, Tifa threw Scarlet off balance, and the trident beam hit Scarlet's evil eels.
"Oh, my poor poopsies!!" Scarlet lamented over Yazoo and Kadaj. Then the Sea Witch's tears turned into rage. The fury exploded in her evil heart and so did she, until at last she towered above the surface of the ocean.
"You pitiful fools!" she shrieked. "Now you will feel the power of the Sea Witch!!!"
"Look out!!" Tifa cried out to Cloud. Scarlet's tentacles were everywhere. "Cloud you've gotta get away from here!!"
"No," the Prince vowed, hugging her. "I won't leave you."
"So much for true love. Say goodbye to your sweetheart," Scarlet chuckled, heading right for Cloud. She pointed her trident at the Prince and began to shoot fiery lightning bolts at him.
"Now I am the ruler of all the ocean!!" she declared, stirring up a hurricane. "The waves obey my every whim. The ocean bows to my power!!!"
But the battle wasn't over yet. Cloud was hurled back on board a sunken ship that had resurfaced in the commotion. While the ship was crumbling under the power of the tremendous waves, Cloud steered the jagged bowsprit of the ship through the blinding wind and rain, straight for Scarlet!
The bowsprit pierced right through Scarlet's cold heart - and her spell was instantly broken. The Sea Witch disappeared into the water, and the storm died down. Cloud escaped to the safety of the shore just as the ship sank slowly to the bottom of the sea.
All the poor unfortunate sous Scarlet had tricked into signing her contract, including King Brain, were free at last! With his crown and trident back in place, Brian gazed at his youngest daughter while up on the surface. "She really does love him, doesn't she?" he asked Red.
Red, who was nearby, nodded. "Well, it's like I always say, Your Majesty: 'Children have got to be free to lead their own lives."
"You always say that?" he asked.
Red just chuckle nervously and shrugs.
He sighed. "Then I guess there's just one problem left."
"And what is that, Your Majesty?" Red asked.
"How much I'm going to miss her," the Sea King replied.
Touching his trident to the water, he turned Tifa's tail into human legs once again. As much as he would miss her under the sea, Brian was happy, knowing that Tifa had found true love.
King Brian smiled as Tifa reunite with Prince Cloud.
Red, Denzel, King Brian, all of Tifa's friends and sisters gathered to watch her joyous wedding to Prince Cloud Strife.
Cloud kissed his princess as the humans and merfolk all cheered. At long last, Tifa Lockhart was now part of the human world she loved so dearly - and she would live there with her beloved prince, happily ever after.
The End
Author's Note: Yay! My first attempt! I've been dying to make a Disney story with some of the FF7 characters. I hope everyone will enjoy what I done. So until next time!
In loving Memory of Pat Carroll (May 5, 1927 - July 30, 2022)
Samuel E. Wright (November 20, 1946 - May 24, 2021)
Kenneth Mars (April 4, 1935 - February 12, 2011)
May they rest in peace somehwere under the sea.