A/N: I apologize for the late update. Life got a little hectic and took me away from my writing time. But hopefully I will have more time this week to update more often. Again, thank you for the reviews and the reads. Enjoy this next chapter! :)

Disclaimer: I don't own The Little Mermaid

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Meanwhile, Ariel was making haste. She swam quickly through the cool, dark ocean with a fervent determination. Nothing could deter her from her mission. She was going to find the pirate ship and save her husband no matter who or what stood in her way.

Just an hour before, Ariel had run into Flounder. Now she had company. Her friend refused to leave her side, and had insisted he could be of help.

So the two of them set off with a purpose. It was nearing evening now, and although they had yet to come upon the pirate ship, Ariel knew they had made good progress.

They stopped to take a break in the shelter of a grotto. Ariel sank down into the sand, relieved to rest her aching arms and fin. Flounder floated languidly besides her.

"'This is just like old times, Ariel," Flounder remarked, smiling his goofy smile. "An adventure, huh?"

Ariel gave a dainty shrug. "I suppose." She was too worried about Eric to feel her friend's enthusiasm. "We should continue on soon. I would like to find the ship before the sun sets."

Flounder nodded. "Okay. If you say so, Ariel." He hesitated, but then spoke up again. "Shouldn't we ask your father to help? I mean, pirates are dangerous . . . "

Ariel sighed. "I don't want Daddy involved," she admitted quietly. "I understand that pirates are dangerous, and for that reason I don't want anyone else involved in my troubles."

"But you involved me," Flounder pointed out.

"You insisted on coming." To soften her words, Ariel poked him teasingly on his chest. "I couldn't do this without you, Flounder. Thank you for coming."

Flounder nodded. "Sure thing, Ariel. Anything for you."

"It's getting late. Shall we continue?"

Together, the two of them left the grotto and continued their swim. Ariel headed for the surface to get a better view of the surrounding waters. As she poked her head out of the water, she noted that the sun was beginning to set. It casted rays of oranges, reds and pinks over the still water. It was a magnificent sight, one that usually sent awe coursing through her.

But not tonight.

Ariel was too worried to appreciate the beauty of nature, and instead focused her attention on scanning the horizon.

She gasped. "There!"

Flounder poked his head out of the water. "What?" he asked.

Ariel pointed to the ship in the distant. It was too far away to see the flag, but she knew it was the pirates by the feeling she felt in her heart. Eric was near. She just hoped he was unharmed.

"Oh, I see," Flounder said in excitement. "We found it."

Ariel dove under water and set a moderate pace through the sea. She anticipated in finding Eric, but she wanted to reserve her energy. To have to stop to rest again would hinder her and Flounder's progress.

Several hours later, when darkness had descended and the sky was blanketed with millions of twinkling stars, Ariel resurfaced. They had reached the ship, and she had broken out of the water close enough to touch the rough, wooden sides. Flounder surfaced besides her, panting from exertion.

"Is this it?" he whispered breathily.

Ariel paused to listen. Over the sounds of gently lapping water rose a lively sailor tune being played from a flute. Laughter rang out, sounding rough and calloused from years on the sea. Boots tapped along to the music. Someone shouted several crude words, then there was a grunt as a fist collided with a jaw and the victim landed on the deck with a heavy thump.

Ariel shuttered. "Yes, this is it." She wondered how she was going to find Eric. The thought of crossing any of the seamen above wasn't something she wanted to do, especially now that they had been consuming heavy amounts of rum. A man who had had his fill of drink was an unpredictable one who could get as mean as a shark.

"I think that perhaps I should sneak aboard," Ariel whispered to her friend.

Flounder's eyes went wide. "What? No! You—" Ariel slapped a hand over his mouth, hushing him.

"Shh. I'll be alright. You stay here and keep watch."

"What are you gonna do once you find the prince?" Flounder asked in a near whisper. "We can't swim all the way back with him, can we?"

Ariel mentally groaned. She had been in such a haste to get to Eric, worried that he'd be harmed, that she hadn't thought of how she was going to get him home once she rescued him.

Flounder was right; he was human, and he didn't have the stamina to swim long distances. And she didn't have the strength to help him swim, no matter if she was adept at making her way through the ocean currents.

Sighing, Ariel decided not to worry yet. "I suppose I'll just plan as I go. When the time comes, perhaps I'll think of something."

"Okay. What happens if you get caught?"

So many questions she hadn't thought of. Suddenly frustrated, Ariel twisted a lock of her hair around her finger and pulled at it in agitation. "If I get caught, I want you to go home. I don't need you to be in danger, either."

Flounder didn't seem to like that idea. He flapped his fins anxiously until they were a blur of blue and yellow. "If you get caught, I'm going to King Triton," he decided. When Ariel started to shake her head, he hurried on. "If you tell me not to, I'll go anyway. I'll worry sick if I don't . . . "

Ariel decided not to argue with him. Instead, she gave him a pat of reassurance on the head. "I'll be just fine."

Flounder muttered something unintelligible under his breath as Ariel swam for the latter etched on the side of the boat. She began her climb up, and by the time she had reached the top, her tail had vanished. In place were her legs.

And she was naked.

"Another thing I didn't think about in my haste," she muttered in disgust. Drawing up her legs to her chest, she shivered. Now that she was no longer a mermaid, her body wasn't adjusting well to the chilly night air. Goosebumps rose up along her body where the wind brushed against her skin.

Not deterred, Ariel ignored her nude state and peeked through the small opening that acted as a drain for water to pass through.

Pirates! So many of them that her head started to spin.

Ariel gulped the sea air into her lungs. She was suddenly feeling nauseated. All the warnings her father had given her, all the stories she'd heard of these barbaric men, made her suddenly realize the danger she was in. Would the pirates kill her given the chance? Would they ravish her until she was broken, her spirit torn and lifeless?

Ariel clenched her fist. She couldn't allow these thoughts to deter her from finding her husband and rescuing him from these vile men. She had to be brave although her heart raced in her chest, pounding so loud she feared it would give her presence away.

She took another deep breath of air into her lungs.

It was now or never.

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Eric wanted nothing more but to close his eyes. He was riddled with exhaustion and he could barely stand. But to escape into the clutches of sleep would be to let his guard down, and that was something he couldn't afford to do.

He needed to live.

Eric wrapped his arms around the rusty metal of the brig, leaning his full weight against it, willing himself to stay awake. The rough, tarnished wall of his prison pressed into his skin. It offered pain enough to keep his mind focused on the hurt rather than the sleep his body so desperately craved.

In the darkness, where he had yet to hear anything but the unpleasant sound of rats scampering across the soiled floor, was the barely audible creaking of a door being opened on its hinges. Eric glanced up. He expected to see one of his captors coming down to torment him with nasty jibes, but the form coming tentatively through the darkness was too small.

"Eric?"

Eric's senses became wide-awake. "Ariel?"

A familiar red head emerged out of the dark, groping through the dim lighting. When she saw him her eyes misted with tears of relief.

Eric was both shocked and elated to see her. But then he realized she had not a stitch of clothing on, save for the seashells shielding her breast, and he nearly lost it.

"My God, woman," Eric growled. "Do you have a death wish?" He tore off his shirt and attempted to tug it over her head. Ariel accommodated him by pulling it on. He was satisfied to find that it fell past her knees, covering most of her body.

Then he had other questions, other concerns, and they were enough to completely overwhelm him.

"What are you doing here? More importantly, how did you get here?" Eric asked, reaching through the bars to take her small hands in his large ones.

Ariel smiled at him. "I willed myself to become a mermaid again," she whispered excitedly. "I wanted to come rescue you from those vile men."

"Love, you could get hurt if you are caught. These men are dangerous."

"I understand that. But I couldn't leave you at their hands, Eric." Her bottom lip trembled. "I can't live without you. How long would it have taken for your men to find you? By then it could have been too late."

Eric rubbed his thumbs over Ariel's knuckles. He liked the feel of her soft skin under the callused pads of his fingers. "I know this is going to be difficult, but I need you to leave," he murmured. "You aren't safe here."

Ariel shook her head. "I'm not leaving you." A single tear slid down her cheek, and Eric gently wiped it away with his knuckles.

"Don't cry, love. I promise you that everything will be alright. You have my word."

"I still refuse to leave you," Ariel said, defiantly. "I would trade my voice again in a heartbeat if it meant remaining by your side. Don't push me away."

Eric mentally swore. Ariel just didn't seem to understand the danger she was in, and it didn't seem as if his words were going to get through to her. If the pirates found out there was a woman aboard . . .

"Ariel, I want you to listen carefully," Eric said hastily, squeezing her hands to gain her full attention. "I want you to go get help. Lead my men to me. That's the only way I will be able to become free again."

"But these men will hurt you," Ariel cried out.

"Trust me when I say that they won't." Eric suddenly remembered the key, and slid the chain from around his neck. He held it out to her. "Take this, Ariel. Keep it safe for me. If it gets into the wrong hands . . . "

Ariel eyed the key with interest. She took it from him, fingering the intricate designs on the hilt. "It's beautiful. What does it go to?"

"My father's journal. A journal that holds many secrets."

She looked up at him, curiosity shining in her eyes. "Are they the kind of secrets that reveal dangerous things? Is that why you want me to have this?"

Eric nodded. "Yes. Guard it with your heart."

Ariel slipped the chain around her neck. She tucked the key under the shirt to conceal it from greedy eyes that meant to seek it and use it for wrong.

Eric realized that she was running out of time, that the pirates could discover her presence if she didn't leave now. "Go," he urged, imploring her with his eyes. "Please."

Ariel hesitated, but a creak from overhead caused her to jump. Her gaze shot back to Eric's, and he could see the fear in her eyes.

"I love you," he murmured.

"I love you, too." Ariel began to retrace her steps, walking backwards. "I'll be back, Eric. I won't rest until you are safe."

Eric nodded. "I know. Now go."

She turned and the darkness swallowed her up. Eric listened to her retreating footsteps, already missing her bright presence but relieved that she was leaving. If something were to happen to her he would never forgive himself.

The scream that suddenly rang out through the darkness caused his heart to skip a beat. He searched the darkness with a wild desperation until his gaze settled on the light pooling in through the open hatch.

A filthy pirate had his hands on Eric's wife, and she was struggling to wiggle free. Eric banged on the enclosure that trapped him.

"Let her go!" he growled, in both anger and fear. "Get your bloody hands off of her!"

The pirate named Luddy gave a nasty grin. "That's fer the cap'n to decide," he drawled out. Then he dragged Ariel up the steps by her wrist, causing her to cry out and Eric to roar with furry.

The trapdoor shut with a bang.

Eric was once more entrapped in darkness.

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Flounder was circling the ship and muttering to himself when he heard a commotion above. Curiosity got the better of him. He rose to the surface and peeked out of the water to see what was happening on deck.

His stomach sank all the way down to the bottom of the ocean.

Jumping jelly fish! Ariel had been caught by the vile pirates!

Flounders first reaction was the panic. But rather than act, he watched in frozen horror as his friend was dragged kicking and screaming across the deck. The pirate holding her captive slapped her. She fell silent, though Flounder could make out the tear tracks on her cheeks.

Flounder didn't know what to do. He could go get the sea king, but Ariel had made herself clear that she didn't want her father involved. She must have had a logical reason behind her wish to keep her father out of this mess. But right now, it seemed King Triton was the only one who could help them.

Flounder was about to make the decision to hightail it back to Atlantica when a familiar Jamaican crab poked his head out of the water.

"Sebastian!" Flounder wailed, happy to see the crab but on the verge of hysterics. "They got Ariel!"

Sebastian gasped, looking faint. "Oh, da sea king is going to kill me!" But he calmed down and decided to take charge, seeing that Flounder was in no condition to do so. "You wait here, my friend. I will go and get Ariel out of dis mess."

The crab swam off, intent on his mission. He arrived on board the deck of the ship just as a mean-looking pirate disappeared with Ariel through a pair of doors. Determined, Sebastian hurried in the direction they went and squeezed under the door.

He found himself in a cabin. Though everything was giant in size to him, he swallowed back his fear. His only concern right now was helping Ariel.

A voice suddenly boomed through the cabin, shaking the walls.

"She be with th' prince, ye say?"

The pirate holding the princess captive in a rough hold nodded his head. "Aye, sir. She was speakin' to him. They was makin' escape plans."

A short man with the jagged scar on his cheek approached Ariel and took her chin roughly in his hand. "What is yer name, lassie?"

Ariel responded by spitting in his face. The pirate captain laughed nastily as he casually dabbed at his face with a handkerchief.

"Feisty, aren't ye?" A dark gleam settled in his eyes and his hand squeezed with more intensity around her chin, causing Ariel to cry out. "If not yer name, then what be yer standin' with th' prince?"

"They was talkin' 'bout love when I caught 'em," the other pirate mused with a shrug. "Lovers, perhaps?"

The captain smiled. "Good. I shall use th' wench as leverage. Luddy, escort her to a cabin and see that none of th' men touch her. My wrath will be th' consequence if she is harmed."

"Aye, sir," Luddy replied.

Sebastian hurried to Ariel. He caught her eye, because when she saw him, she held out her hand. Sebastian jumped inside. He settled in the palm of her hand, knowing it was too late to make their escape now.

He hoped Flounder had enough sense to go fetch King Triton. The sea king was their only hope now.