Eric woke one evening to find he was alone in his bed. Rubbing the sleep out of his eyes he noticed the balcony doors stood open and the moonlight flooded around Ariel as she leaned over the railing. Silent he walked forward and snaked and arm around her waist. She sighed and leaned back against his bare chest.
"Can't sleep?" he asked, burying his nose in her hair.
"Hmmm," she mumbled, "just thinking."
"About your sister?"
"Yes," she nodded.
Her usually perky mood was replaced with a thoughtful melancholy he sometimes saw. Eric couldn't imagine what it must be like for her to go through so much. "Do you want to talk about it?"
Ariel was silent for a few more moments before asking, "Am I a bad person?"
He looked down at her in surprise, "Why would you think that?"
Her eyes searched the sea as she said, "Because I just left everything behind. I mean, my family and I had our problems, but… they think I'm dead… and I think it's better that way."
"It doesn't make you a bad person, Ariel. It means that you were ready to move on. That's normal."
"Is it?" she turned and looked at him, "I have no doubt my own father would kill me if he saw me right now. Is that normal?"
His grip tightened, "That won't happen."
She sighed, "He's coming for me. The waves bring him closer."
Eric watched the silvery beams dance on her fire red hair and was reminded of the first time he'd ever seen her. She looked sad and beautiful. There was a deeper side to her that he loved and feared.
"It'll be okay." he insisted. As she continued to watch the water he sighed as well, "sometimes at night you talk about your old home. Most of it makes no sense to me, but I can't help thinking that you miss it."
Ariel shook her head, "They're just ghosts, shadows of things that once were."
Leaning his forehead on to hers, Eric cupped her face and closed his eyes, "I love you."
Burying her face in his neck she held him tightly and said, "I love you too."
"Will you come back to bed?"
She didn't protest as he led her by the arm. Once she was safe in his arms all her other thoughts faded away until she finally slept. This time, instead of the sea, she dreamed of the first time she'd seen the Princes face and what she might have done to be with him even if he hadn't kissed her that morning.