Lily was relieved to have gotten away from the palace after the day she had, which ended with her being on the receiving end of her sisters' displeasure about the concert, and she and Aurora were now heading towards their secret grotto, where they stored all the human treasures that they had collected on their adventures.

It was where Lily felt most at home, since it gave her the privacy that she didn't have at the palace since she shared a room with all of her sisters and where she could keep her treasures safe and only she and Aurora knew about the grotto and they had managed to keep it a secret.

But now, someone else was about to find out about it and it was the little pale red crab who had followed them and was now resting on a rock, trying to catch her breath as Lily pushed the boulder that covered the entrance and she and Aurora slipped inside, which did not go unnoticed by Senna, as the familiar flash of Lily's pink tail caught her eye.

'What is that girl up to?' Senna said, swimming towards the grotto just as the boulder was closing in, 'is she deliberately making my job more difficult than it already is?'

Charging towards the fast-shrinking gap, Senna only just managed to get in but her claw was trapped by the boulder.

The little crab grunted and struggled to free it, muttering several words that a crab of her status was not supposed to know before she finally got her claw free but that made her tumble down onto the ground.

She then landed behind a ragdoll, which was one of the many human artefacts that Lily had in her grotto and that made Senna gasp at seeing the things that the queen hated the most and what her daughter had been collecting behind her back.

'Blooming heck, I'm crab cakes when the queen hears about this!' Senna muttered as she stayed hidden behind the ragdoll, watching Lily as she placed the cricket bat, ball and rugby ball on one of the stone and coral shelves that made up the grotto and held all her treasures.

From antiques that she had found in shipwrecks before her time to modern day items that humans had dropped into the ocean or left on the surface, they were in Lily's collection and although she liked them all, her most favourite was an antique porcelain statue of two people, a red-haired woman and a black-haired man dancing together.

It also played a lovely musical tune when the key was turned, which was still possible in spite of its age and being underwater and Lily gently picked up the statue and turned the key, hearing the lovely melody play while she looked wistfully at the words engraved on the base,

Part of your world.

She then sighed sadly as she put the statue down and lay down on a rock that had a candelabra lying near it, with a spoon and knife in two of its three holders and she twiddled the fork in her hands.

Aurora looked at her friend with worried blue eyes, as she saw her looking sadly at the fork with the tune from the statue still playing around the grotto.

Something was bothering her and she knew it, it had something to do with being told off by her mother.

'Lily, what's wrong?' Aurora asked, swimming over to Lily as she placed the fork in the middle of the candelabra,

'Why are you so sad? We've gathered so many great treasures today and Sandy explained them to you and we had a great adventure, well, apart from nearly being shark food and your mum telling you off..'

'Lily,' she then said, as Lily looked up at her, 'why does your mum hate humans so much? Is it because she's afraid of them? Or is it…because of your dad?'

'Yes, Aurora, it is,' said Lily, 'Mum hates humans because..they took Daddy away from her when I was little. I remember it well, they were so in love and she smiled a lot and she was really happy, we all were.

Even Fern was happy, she wasn't always moody and withdrawn like she is now and I adored Daddy since we were so alike and everyone had said that I was the coral of his eye. Everything was fine until..'

'What happened to him, Lily?' Aurora said. Lily blinked back a few tears, as the memory of the terrible day came back to her and said,

'When I was five years old, me, Mum, Daddy and my sisters were up on the surface with some of the merfolk, watching the sunset and playing music to celebrate my parents' wedding anniversary.

Daddy gave Mum a music box which is one of her most precious possessions and still has it with her and he also rode me and my sisters on his back in the water and tossed me up and down, catching me playfully.

I remember it being one of the best days of my life until all of a sudden, a ship appeared and these humans that called themselves 'pirates' came and stole all of the instruments and treasures we had.

They then tried to catch us with their nets but Mum and Daddy told us to go back down so that we could be safe, which they did but just when I was going to, I got my tail caught on a rock and I couldn't pull it out just as the pirates were coming.'

Lily took a deep breath as she continued speaking,

'I was screaming and struggling to get myself free and Daddy came back and freed me just in time and he told me to go back to Mum and my sisters so that we could be safe and not to worry about him, as long as I could get away.

I didn't want to leave him, but he insisted and told me he loved me before I dove back in.

I hoped that he would be following me when I was in the water but the ship rammed into the rock where he was and..he wasn't able to escape in time,' Lily said, as tears fell down her face and Aurora nuzzled herself against her, also saddened by the tale.

'I'm so sorry, Lily,' she whispered.

Senna was misty-eyed herself when she heard about that terrible day from her hiding place as she had been good friends with Holley and knew how devastating his death was to Daisy, her family and the kingdom.

'So that's why she hates humans,' Aurora said, 'because they took your father, your mother's husband and the king of Aquaria away from you, your family and the kingdom. That must have horrible and sad for her.'

'It was,' Lily said, 'and that's why we're not allowed to go to the surface or have anything to do with humans since Daddy died. But she just doesn't see things the way I do, I know that not all humans are bad.

How can they be when they make these wonderful things?' she said, swimming up to a shelf and picking up a coin pouch which had the words 'Caution, I'm actually a mermaid,' on the front and a picture of two mermaids at the back.

'Like this thing,' she said, showing the pouch to Aurora, who giggled when she read the words.

'That's really funny, Lily!' she said, 'and also really handy to have around if any mean and scary creatures try to get us!'

'Yes, that is possible and humans must really love merpeople if they have us on some of their things, so why would their wonderful world be so bad?' Lily said.

The music from the statue then stopped and Lily wound up the key again, as she sang with the beautiful voice that she was famous for and what the kingdom had been denied at the concert, and what came from her heart,

'Look at this stuff, isn't it neat?' she sang as she swam around the grotto, running her finger across her treasures, 'Wouldn't you think my collection's complete?

Wouldn't you think I'm the girl..the girl who has everything?

Look at this trove, treasures untold

How many wonders can one cavern hold?

Looking around here you'd think, 'Sure, she's got everything!'

'You sure do!' Aurora giggled as Lily floated above the ground and held some of the items in her hands,

'I've got gadgets and gizmos aplenty,' she sang, 'I've got whozits and whatzits galore,'

She then picked up a box and opened it, which had a large amount of keychains with various human things dangling from the bottom and showed them to Aurora, who seemed very interested in one that had a donut on it.

'You want thingabobs? I've got twenty!' Lily sang.

'Ooooh, look at that one, Lily!' Aurora said, 'It's a donut!'

'Yes, but I don't think it's edible, Aurora,' Lily laughed, 'and besides, it's not the seaweed ones you love so much, it's one that humans seem to like, not that I've tried one but I'm sure it's just as good as seaweed.'

'Nothing is as good as a seaweed donut,' said Aurora, pouting as Lily chuckled at her and closed the box, placing it back where it came from and sang again, her voice as lovely as ever but more wistful,

'But who cares?' she sang, 'No big deal, I want more!' and she looked up at the ceiling of the grotto, at the surface to the world she wanted to be a part of.

'I wanna be where the people are,' she sang wistfully,

'I wanna see, see them dancing!' and floated down to the statue that was still playing the tune that seemed to be going with the song and twirled it around, looking at the two people's feet,

'Walking around on those…what do you call them?' Lily sang, as Aurora wiggled her tail fin and she smiled at her friend.

'Oh, feet!' Lily said, giggling.

'Flipping your fins, you don't get too far,' she then sang, swimming around the grotto,

Legs are required for jumping, dancing.

Strolling along down a..what's that word again?

Street

I want to go where the people go

All the wonderful places Sandy told me about

Blissbane, Seednay and Melly Burn

They have so much there to see and learn

Swimming up to the ceiling where a light from the surface was shining down into the grotto, Lily sang,

Up where they walk, up where they run

Up where they stay all day in the sun!

Wandering free, wish I could be

Part of that world.

Lily floated back down to the ground and lay on the sandy floor, as Senna was swimming around, having heard her singing and wanted to put a stop to all this nonsense only to get trapped in a beer mug and for it to roll down onto the ground.

'What would I give if I could live out of these waters?' Lily sang, as she lay down and closed her eyes, singing even more beautifully and her desires clearer than ever,

What would I pay, to spend a day warm on the sand?

Betcha on land, they understand

Bet they don't get reprimanded by mothers

I'm a bright young woman and I'm sick of swimming

And I'm ready to stand!

Lily pushed herself off the ground and swam over to a shelf that contained books, pulled one out and opened it to show Aurora, who looked at it with confusion and interest.

'I'm ready to know what the people know,' Lily sang, now practically shouting every word her incredible and beautiful singing voice produced,

'I want to ask them my questions and get their answers!'

In her book, she pointed to a picture of a bushfire, which she had never heard of and wanted to know more about and sang,

Like what is a fire and why does it..what's the word? Burn?

When's it my turn?

Wouldn't I love.. love to explore that shore up above?

Lily's voice softened and swam down to the rock she was lying on before and sat on it as Aurora came floating by her, as she sang the last few words of her song,

Out of the sea, wish I..could be

Part of that world.

The music from the statue finished playing and Lily twirled it around again, as she sighed, wishing that her dream would soon be a reality and that she would be part of the human world, like the words on the statue.

'One day, Aurora, I will be part of that world,' Lily said, wistfully as she twirled the statue around, 'like the statue says for these humans here.'

'Not if I have anything to do with it!' Senna said, swimming out of the beer mug and towards Lily, wagging her claw in displeasure at her,

'You'll be doing no such thing, young lady, not on my watch!' she said.

'Senna!' Lily said in surprise when she saw the crab in front of her.

She was also annoyed that she seemed to be acting like her babysitter and had stumbled in on her grotto and it would be difficult for her to keep quiet about it, since it was not in Senna's nature to do so.

'What are you doing here? Did you follow me?' Lily then said, frowning at the crab.

'Don't get smart with me, young lady!' Senna scolded, still wagging her claw,

'I followed you here because your mother has assigned me to keep a constant eye on you and to keep you out of trouble at all times and you seem to be making it difficult for me by sneaking off again!

And why in Poseidon's name do you have all these ghastly items in this place?' as she looked at all the treasures on the shelves.

'It's just my collection, that's all,' Lily said innocently like it was no big deal, 'all the treasures that I have collected on my adventures and keep in my grotto and what Mum doesn't know won't hurt her, right?'

'Oh, I see,' Senna said, trying to remain calm,

'Your collection, huh? Your collection of human artefacts…the very things that your mother abhors… and you have been collecting them behind her back… in this secret grotto that she doesn't know about…

IF YOUR MOTHER WERE TO FIND OUT ABOUT THIS, SHE WILL…' she then yelled,

'You won't tell her, will you Senna?' Aurora said, 'because you have a tendency to have loose lips and they have landed you in trouble before!'

'Oh, please Senna, promise me that you won't tell Mum!' Lily pleaded, 'She won't understand, not after everything that we went through today!'

'Oh, Lily, Lily, Lily,' said Senna, shaking her head.

'You poor child, I think that you're still upset about being reprimanded by your mother and sisters and it's messing with your head. You're not thinking straight and the pressure of being a princess is getting to you, so you came here to get away from it all.

Tell you what, I'll take you home and put you into bed and I'll give you some of that coral blossom tea that you love so much. Yes, a good night's sleep and a cup of warm, sweet tea is all you need.

We'll all feel much better in the morning and you'll soon forget about all this nonsense about humans and if you keep behaving yourself, I promise that I won't tell your mother about the grotto and your collection of human things.

She'll be happy, you'll be happy, we're all be happy and I won't be crab cakes!' Senna said, taking Lily's hand to lead her out of the grotto and back to the palace.

But the mermaid was not willing to cooperate and was soon distracted by a large, whale-like shape that was passing by, blocking out the light in the grotto and making a low-rumbling noise.

Lights from the surface were shining like jewels on the water and Lily was soon dazzled by them as well as the dark shape and she was determined to see what it was, while Aurora shook at seeing it.

'Lily, what is that huge thing that is up on the surface and has made everything so dark?' she said, 'and what are those lights that are shining through the water?'

'I don't know, Aurora, but the shape doesn't seem to be a whale since it doesn't have any fins or a tail and isn't making the noises a whale usually makes,' Lily said,

'But I'm going to check it out!' she then said as she started to swim out of the grotto, only for be held back by Senna, who had grabbed her wrist and was urging her to come away from the ceiling.

'Oh no, you're not!' she said, 'the only checking out you're going to be doing is out of this grotto! You're coming home with me this instant and I don't want any silly arguments about it, young lady!'

But Lily ignored her and slipped out of her grasp, and with Aurora following her as she always did, she swam out of the grotto and towards the surface to where the large shape and bright lights were with Senna's protests falling on deaf ears.

'Blooming heck, at the rate I'm going, I'll soon be heading towards an early grave!' she said, sighing heavily as she had no choice but to follow the young mermaid to the surface, which she did very reluctantly.

So there you go, my own version of the song 'Part of Your World' with an extra verse that I added and shorter scenes, as advised by the reviewer theBritCrit, since she felt that the ones in the previous chapter were too long, so I hope that helps the story!

Next chapter, Lily meets Ben for the first time at his party on the yacht and you can imagine how that is going to end!

Read and review and a special shout out to theBritCrit and Dawn to Dusk Makes a Day for their reviews and advice!

I don't own 'Part of Your World,' and the Little Mermaid and extra points if you can guess who the people on the statue are!