The next morning there was a loud barking noise coming from the beach. It took a little while for the sound the break into Eric's consciousness, but he jumped when Ariel flew out of bed and onto the balcony. She gripped the rail and leaned to see a seal on the beach. A group of children surrounded it, laughing as it barked in fear. They knew no better, probably didn't realize it was completely terrified, but Ariel threw on her clothing and sprinted out the door before Eric could understand what was happening.
Barefoot, Ariel didn't care who saw her and she flew down the steps. Grim sputtered indignantly as she almost knocked him down and continued on.
When she reached the beach she shouted "Stop!"
The kids didn't hear her at first, and didn't look up until she ran into the middle of the group and blocked the little creature from them.
"Stop! Can't you tell it's terrified!?" she demanded.
They backed away, unsure why she was so upset. The town loved their future queen and the kids shuffled away, feeling guilty. She crouched down trying to calm the seal down.
Eric caught up to her a few moments later. "Ariel? What happened?"
The look in the little creature's eyes told her more than she wanted to know. Even with the children halfway across the beach it still looked frightened and she knew it was trying to tell her something. Gently patting it, she nodded and it scampered away.
"Ariel?" he tried again. She looked up at him, blue eyes serious and frightened.
"It was trying to warn me."
Eric looked confused, "The seal?"
She nodded, "I used to be able to understand them, but now…"
She sighed, standing. Her gaze flickered out over the waves.
"What was it warning you about, your father?"
"It's the only thing that makes sense." she confirmed. "He's coming for us."
The wedding was a week away. When they first set the date it seemed so soon with everything humans did to prepare for celebrations. Now it felt like it couldn't come fast enough. Eric gripped her hand. "Can't you just avoid the water?"
She scoffed, "I'm proof that there are powers strong enough to bridge the gap between the land and sea."
His jaw clenched while he thought. "Well we'll prepare for anything. I want you with a guard at all times until we figure out what to do. We can-"
He continued on and on about how he planned to prevent thing, but Ariel tuned it all out. Humans wouldn't be able to stop her father. She just hoped whatever power she possessed that had been strong enough to let them be together would be strong enough to protect them too.