AN: Don't own OUAT or any of that blah blah blah. Again, another unbeta'd chapter. I hope you guys don't mind but I tend to drag things out a bit, I have never been a fan of the types of stories that have them meeting and being budy budy in the first chapter. You'll have to bear through it, to really get to the good stuff ;).

Phew, three long chapters in three days. I am *really* feeling this pairing in muse. I need to be careful or I might spoil you guys rotten. Enjoy XOXO.

Posted: 08/17/13

Part of His World

By Morgansgurl

Ariel had refused to come out of the enclosed cave for the better part of two days, her mind kept wondering to all the scenarios of what could have happened. If she had been caught, there was no telling what would have become of her, and frankly, she didn't want to find out.

There was something there though, something she couldn't quite place or describe about that pirate ship and her crew that was calling to her. A few times she had to talk herself down from venturing out again, even made it to exit once or twice before turning back. Certainly there was an element of fear, what if they were hunting for her this very second? Then there was the exhilaration of it all.

People! Breathing, talking, walking, living people.

It was like she had taken a drink and quenched a thirst she hadn't even realized she had. She wanted more. Needed more. It was like having the shroud pulled away from eyes and now she could see. How could she turn away from that?

Once night had come again upon the end of her second day of her self sequester she made the purposeful and determined choice to at least see if the ship was even still there. For all she knew she was hiding with no need to, for all she knew they could have been well on their way to other far off lands yesterday.

Something about that thought tore at her heart, anxiousness gripping her tightly.

She wasn't ready to let them go just yet, for this to end just yet. She didn't even know what this was exactly that she was clinging to.

Coming to the surface she let out a heavy sigh of relief as she spotted what she was hoping to find. Still anchored in the same spot. Still there. She was so glad they hadn't left yet. `What on earth will I do when they finally set sail?` she wondered sullenly. They were well on their way, the second smaller sail was patched and up, and the larger one had been taken down, it was only a matter of days before they rigged it back up and were on their way. What then?

Would she be able to let them go? Would she even have a choice?

The thoughts mulling around in her mind were depressing. Feelings were a liability she realized, but maybe that was just her new found cynicism. When she had been with Eric feelings were amazing, wonderful, beautiful things, she could hardly remember how that had felt just that it had been. This was an entirely different situation though, and no reasonable comparison could be made between the two.

She dove forward and made her way closer towards the Jolly Roger, wanting to hear the same peaceful lullaby as before. The simple sounds of the ocean working to create a natural melody that soothed her soul. Same as the first time she was careful, perhaps more so with the incident of the other day still in the forefront of her mind.

Making her way to the stern she looked up again, her eyes searching for the familiar elegantly etched letters. It was like greeting an old friend you hadn't seen in a long time. Her fondness had seemed to multiply without her consent.

An eerie calm washed over her as she bobbed up and down in the water, reacting easily on the surface, her arms stroking softly back and forth, spreading her fingers to allow the water to stream through them easily in a soothing motion. The ends of her long red hair fanning out around her shoulders. Her fin keeping a relaxed steady rhythm as it kept her upper half above the gentle waves.

Her eyes were drawn towards a soft glow coming from one of the many grand windows higher up on the ship, most likely the Captains Quarters given how grand and gothic-ly elegant the protruding windows with some stained glass art looked. The soft flicker of light mesmerized her, and she could just imagine the Captain having a restless night, hunched over multiple maps spread about a large oak desk, his only companion the light of a few candles casting shadows about an empty room too large and too empty.

In her preoccupied serenity, her guard had dropped again, like a foolish girl. She never felt or heard the other two bodies gracefully surface just behind her. Never saw their wicked hungry smiles and devilish eyes until it was too late, until she heard the most alluring voices fill the otherwise silent night air with such tempting song in perfect sync. From there everything seemed too happened so slow and too fast all at once.

"Looking out from underneath,
Fractured moonlight on the sea
Reflections still look the same to me,
As before I went under."

The other island mermaids. Word must have travelled around by now about the new visitors, it wasn't like they kept their arrival a big secret. Neverland was considerably large, but word of mouth could travel fast anywhere, and it had been more then a week since their arrival, just long enough to travel the circumference of the land. How naive she was to think they wouldn't come out of sheer curiosity and the possibility of a feed.

It was like their song had sucked the very breath out of her.

The words were soft at first, barely audible, and Ariel had to fight the natural instinct to join them.

"And it's peaceful in the deep,
Cause either way you cannot breathe,
No need to pray, no need to speak
now I am under, Oh."

She could feel the panic start to well up inside and work its way to the surface as their words steadily grew louder and more audible, the power of their song floating across the breeze like a feather, tickling its intended targets.

Shaking herself from her initial shock she turned on the other mermaids, her razor sharp fangs filling her mouth, hissing in clear warning. It was a classic territorial warning that they couldn't mistake.

The blond one broke her song for a second to chuckle, looking highly amused. The brunette cocked one eyebrow but never ceased her song. A mischievous glint in both their eyes.

"And it's breaking over me,
A thousand miles down to the sea bed,
Found the place to rest my head."

"Leave!" She stressed at them through a vicious hiss, baring her row of fangs. Her hands fisting up tightly, her claws digging into her skin.

"Silly Ariel," the blond tsked, while the brunette bared her own row of dangerous teeth back. Ariel didn't know who they were or their names, but she wasn't the least surprised they knew her. She was infamous in her world. "You should be with us not against us." She sing-song'ed, her tone mocking and condescending.

A few long moments of tense silence thickened between them.

Then with a callous shrug of her shoulders the blond made eye contact with the brunette, an unspoken signal, and they dove under the waves together.

Ariel had a sinking feeling in her heart.

Her fear was vindicated when either one appeared simultaneously on either side of the ship and started up their sirens song again, so sweet and so deadly, this time their voices were louder and clearly heard.

By now more would have joined, if there were more. She was thankful that Neverland wasn't exactly a destination for her kind. Most likely the sisters had done something to be banished.

"And the arms of the ocean are carrying me,
And all this devotion is rushing over me,
And the crashes are heaven, for a sinner like me,
But the arms of the ocean deliver me."

She felt a plethora of mixed and conflicting emotions raging within her when the first sailor jumped overboard to the waiting arms of the sea of the beautiful songstresses. A tightening in the pit of her stomach declared her hunger, the breathlessness her fear.

The next few splashes of others following suit and jumping ship spurred her into action. She lunged out of the water with a ferocious scream, her claws at the ready as she attacked the blond. She could feel her teeth ripping into the mermaids supple flesh, the dark blue blood filling the water as the skin and scales shredded apart

A rush of water past her face, the sting of her own wounds as the bitch drew claws along the hip of her fin and up her back, fangs making attempt on her neck but denied as Ariel wrapped a fistful of her long golden locks into her hand and yanked her back hard, slashing the woman's face with the claws of her other hand.

"Traitor!" the blond screeched venomously . They thrashed in the sea as they fought, like that of a shark and a seal, their blood and flesh mingling together in the water. In the distance though, breaking through the chaos, she could still hear the strained brunette's song, still luring more sailors to the sea and to their waiting deaths.

"Though the pressure's hard to take,
It's the only way I can escape,
It seems a heavy choice to make,
But now I am under, Oh."

Ariel couldn't stop them both simultaneously, and if they doubled up on her she was sure to loose; she could feel her rage and the fear struggling for dominance. She had to do something, anything.

As if fueled by her raw emotions and blind rage she allowed her true huntress instincts take over, all that power focused on the other mermaid. In the next instance the blonds head was detached from her speaking body.

"Adoline!" the brunette screamed, her song finally broken. Ariel watched as she dove through the air like a dolphin towards them. Ariel dropped the pieces of the carcass poised for another fight, but it never came. It was unnatural and unheard of for merfolk to attack their kind with such deadly intent.

The nameless brunette frantically gathered up the parts of her sister. At one time Ariel might have understood the pain she was feeling over the loss. "You," she accused, a few stray tears running down her face, "You!.." but the rest of her words never came as her voice broke. There was a pain and anger there that Ariel almost felt guilty for causing. Emotions might be considered irrelevant but they were still felt. She watched as the brunette dragged away the body of her sister, dipping below the surface.

Now that the threat had dissipated for all involved, her body started to feel as heavy as lead. Taking in a deep breath she winced, there was a deep set of slash marks running down her ribcage that burned with her chest expanded. Like a tidal wave as soon as she felt one wound she could feel them all. The bite on her bicep had to be the worst; she would need to get back to the safety of her cave to really assess the damage.

Mermaids were naturally fast healers, but that didn't mean they could ignore serious wounds. Superficial wounds were nothing, but some of the marks on her tail were deeper than a flesh wound.

She closed her eyes and took in a deep breath, ready to go back under and make the slow painful journey away from these blood stained waters….

Then a heavy net was tossed on top of her, she startled and hissed, wincing and growling in pain and fear as she fought against it. The net was large, and the heavy weights pulled it under her faster than she could dive and escape. This was the thanks she would get for fighting for them, for saving them, for taking a few extra moments to gather her bearings.

Opportunists.

She was already weak so she gave in after only a few minutes. It was a pathetic how easily she had given in. In her world there were legends of fisherman spending days trying to tire and haul in a young mermaid. She didn't have the energy to want to fight; every movement filled her body with stabbing pains.

Ariel didn't want to die. Sometimes though, your body gives up before your mind, and there is nothing that can be done. Maybe she would go to be with Eric she thought briefly as she felt the men hauling up the net and their catch.

Sometimes there were brief moments where she wishes she had been more like her sisters. How she was supposed to have been. Being who she was is what got her here, to this moment. Her life in exchange for a few pirates she didn't even know.

They tossed her onto the deck and she hit hard, a moan of pain leaving her lips as she landed face down, her hands barely able to brace her fall. Her breathing was heavy and erratic as some of her wounds continued to bleed. She kept her eyes closed; not wanting to see what was coming next. Pleading silently to any deity to listen that it be done with quickly.

She had wanted so badly to be around people again. Wished for it. She should have been more careful what she wished for.

"Well, look what we have here boys!" she heard his voice ring out, filled with pride and excitement, as his boot kicked her tail. She bit her lip, not wanting to give the cocky bastard the satisfaction of her pain. Maybe she should have left them to die.

"We got ourselves our very own mermaid, how exciting!"

AN: Well there you go, hate to leave it that way but it felt like a great place to end so I can pick it up next chapter ;).

Just a hint, I LOVE reading your guys reviews, seeing all the favorites and follows. It really makes my day to know people are enjoying this so much.

I hope you guys like it! By the way, if you are curious the song I had the mermaids us was Florence and the Machine – Never let me go. I personally just feel like Jolly Sailor Bold is a bit overused, but that's just a personal opinion.

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