"Any plans today, Mel?" Eric asked, grinning in amusement when the teen drowsily looked up at him, hiding a yawn behind her hand.
"Not really," she said, twirling her fork on her plate with her other hand. "I've got a math test after breakfast. If there's no storm later, I'll probably go for a swim before dinner."
"Your math test is postponed to next week, sweetheart," Ariel said nonchalantly, giving her daughter a sidelong glance. "Mr. Phineas sent a messenger before breakfast. His daughter had the baby last night and he's going to be out of town visiting for the next few days."
"Really?" Melody asked, eyes growing wide and mouth curling in excitement. Then, tentatively, making sure, she wondered, "Does that mean…I have the morning off?"
Ariel flicked her eyes to her husband, who caught her gaze. One eyebrow went up in a questioning look, and Ariel shook her head so slightly that if he hadn't known her, he would have written it off. She didn't have anything for Melody to do this morning. It was his call.
"You can have the morning off," he said, his grin widening when she sat up straighter in her chair, eyes gleaming with excitement. His grin dipped slightly when he remembered that he was still the parent here, and there were limits to Melody's newfound freedom. "But only the morning. You still have afternoon classes."
"That's alright," she assured him, already rolling through the infinite possibilities a morning off could bring. "I'll be back in time for my lessons."
"Back in time for lunch," Ariel corrected. Melody made a face; she smiled demurely. "You can't focus on an empty stomach."
Melody huffed in annoyance, turning to her father for support. "That's an extra hour I could have! Dad!"
"Listen to your mother," he responded, absently, now focused on the other teen at the table. Her attendance at meals was getting better, although, not that it seemed to matter, because she hardly spoke during this time.
"Mom this is so unfair!" Melody declared, torn between upset that her freedom had been curbed and excited to have an empty morning. "I can eat something on the way to my lessons!"
Ariel pursed her lips. The girl did have a point, she could eat quickly before her lessons started, giving her more time to, most likely, go for a swim. "Promise to get back at least ten minutes before your afternoon starts?"
Melody perked up. She wasn't used to winning battles so easily, and nodded so hard her head would have fallen off were it not attached to her neck. "Absolutely!"
"Alright then," Ariel acquiesced, much to her daughter's delight. She looked out the windows, brows creasing, before turning to her husband to ask if it was supposed to be cloudy all day.
But Eric was watching the redheaded teen to his left. Ariel's own blue eyes now focused on the other teen, and she suppressed a sigh. The girl was pushing around the breakfast on her plate. She never seemed to have much of an appetite. Her body was slumped in the chair. It wasn't exactly an appropriate position for a princess, but at least her feet were on the floor. That was a start, right?
"What are your plans today…?" Eric probed, like Ariel, purposely leaving the girl's name out. He worried for a moment that she wouldn't answer, but she must have felt the heat of his stare for she looked up for a moment.
She mumbled, "Don't know."
The teen had given up halfway through her Spanish essay from two nights ago, unable to recall a translation for the word "lightsaber". In fact, she had given up on doing any of her homework. Melody had been right the other day when she said there was no way to know what her teachers could have assigned by now. Besides, she didn't even have most of her textbooks.
"If you weren't here, what would you be doing?" Ariel asked gently, attempting to pull the girl into a conversation.
"It's a weekday?" Marcie's eyes trailed over to Ariel now, pushing her glasses further up her nose. Ariel nodded quickly; the teenager's lips twisted into a frown. Day eight. "I'd be at school."
"Oh."
An uncomfortable silence fell upon the family. Marcie was beginning to realize that it happened a lot when she was around. She knew it was because they were afraid she'd snap at them. Or maybe Melody was right and they thought she was sulking. The thought of it made the teen feel crummy.
"Sorry," Marcie mumbled, sighing, twirling the fork around her plate, focusing on its movements.
From the corner of her eye, she saw Eric sit up straighter, startled. "For what?"
"I know I've been a pain in the—" she stopped short, mostly trying to determine if the noun she wanted to use was considered a swear word. She decided it probably was and went for the safer version. "…neck."
"You haven't been a pain," Eric was quick to say, almost in a knee-jerk reaction sort of way. "There's nothing to be sorry about."
Ariel stumbled her own words, declaring with surprise, "None of this is easy, for any of us."
"Hasn't bothered me too much," Melody spoke up frankly, earning her a sour look from both her parents. She wasn't wrong though; the girl could be a pain, but at least it kept her parents distracted.
"Yeah, but…" Marcie sighed, finally pushing the almost full plate of food away from her. She understood that they were being polite, but she knew her presence made things more strained. "I dunno. I'm sorry, I know you've been working on getting me back home. I just…I miss school."
Marcie bit her lip. Her cheeks colored in embarrassment. She knew she wasn't telling the whole truth. Missing school was only a fraction of the wild feelings tangled up inside her; she feared she would never be who they wanted, she dreaded never getting over missing home, she wasn't sure why sadness had taken over for her anger.
She had to lie, though, she reasoned. She couldn't face them if she admitted she was afraid of being a huge disappointment. She had to protect their feelings.
"It's only been a week," Ariel recovered, assuredly. "We appreciate that you're trying."
"If anything we want you to feel like you belong," Eric followed up, glancing over at his wife.
"And it's okay to not be okay," Ariel said eagerly, trying to tap into how she felt as a young bride at sixteen. No, it wasn't the same, that was for sure, but it was the closest she could get to understanding the girl. "And we're here if you want to talk to us about it."
Marcie played with the charm on her wrist, her fingers gently tugging at it. She frowned down at the table. Yes, it was better to keep to herself for now, at least until she got back to Amherst. At least if she was home there were no expectations for her talk about her feelings.
"Yeah, alright," the teenager answered at length, still not looking up, her voice hollow. "How far are you guys in trying to get me back?"
"We're still working on it," Ariel promised, steeling herself to sound upbeat. "Any day now."
"Why is it taking so long, Mom?" Melody wondered, puzzled over the idea. "Can't you just send her back to her country in a carriage? Or a ship?"
Behind her glasses, Marcie's eyes widened a fraction of an inch. Melody didn't know she had come through the In-Between. Melody thought she was from here. What was the big deal? Why were they hiding this?
"I was planning on going down to the docks, today, to see how repairs on Catalina are coming along," Eric said, clearing his throat awkwardly, hurriedly changing the subject. He looked over at Marcie, who had clearly caught onto the fact that Melody was being kept in the dark. "You could join, if you wanted. It won't take long."
Marcie's head shot up. She seemed surprised at the idea. "Me?"
"It might be good to get out, clear your head," Eric suggested, trying to make it sound nonchalant. "Maybe there'll even be an interesting ship that pulls into port today."
"Catalina's the one that got attacked by pirates, right, Dad?" Melody asked, successfully being put off from the conversation. When her father nodded, she looked across the table at Marcie, explaining, "Pirates are bad. They attack ships and sometimes take people as prisoner. And they've got this flag that looks like—"
"Alright Melody, you don't have to scare her with the details," Ariel cut in, before Melody could further her stories. She frowned lightly, looking at her husband and asking, "Is it a good idea for her to be around all those repairs? There's a lot of heavy tools… …"
"I can handle heavy tools. Me and Matt rebuilt the old barn!" Marcie bristled, sitting up for the first time. Then, as an afterthought, she conceded, "Okay, Adam and Caity might have helped a little bit—but it was mostly me and Matt."
"'Matt and I', honey," Ariel corrected absently, still not completely convinced. "Especially with the Autumn Festival this weekend, the village is going to be crowded. That means more people who will..." the woman's gaze flipped to the girl's red hair, before looking at her husband again, "…notice her."
Self-consciously, Marcie tucked a piece of thick red hair behind an ear. She had always gotten a lot of attention for her hair. Redheads were unusual enough, but she'd never met someone with hair as vibrant as hers. Until, of course, she met Ariel.
"We're going straight to the marina," Eric answered, raising a brow against his wife's concern. Surely, she would have known that. "Besides, the docks are always busy, no one pays much attention unless their ship is halfway out to sea."
Ariel twisted the napkin in her lap with her good hand, leaving her bandaged arm on the table. It was clear that she was worried. It dawned on Eric that this would be the teen's first trip out of the palace since returning. It was a daunting idea to think about what could happen out there in the real world. He felt his pulse quicken. What if she got lost? What if she disappeared again? What if—!
"I can put my hood up," Marcie offered, pulling the pink jacket's hood over her head to show them. "Then no one sees my hair? I'm good at not standing out, and no one knows me anyway."
"She's got a point, Mom," Melody said, coming to the teen's defense after having stolen a look at the clock. This discussion was cutting into her now available morning. "And itis just the docks. It's not like she'll be in the center of the village."
"Maybe," Eric hesitated, warily looking back at the redheaded teen. A thousand scenarios of what could go wrong went through his mind. "Maybe your mother is right, Catalina is in the final stages of repair and with all that construction going on…"
"She called me a freak," Matt said, clearly bothered, swinging upside down from what used to be a hayloft. The old barn creaked and rattled at his movements, but stayed standing.
"What did she say, exactly?" Emma asked, sitting crossed legged on the couch. The cushions did not match and or really fit, but it was comfortable enough.
"She said 'I'm not your mom, you little freak'," Marcie supplied, pushing up her glasses as she looked over at Emma. She was curled up in her favorite loveseat, one she had rescued from the side of a road, stuffing coming out from the back. Thoughtfully, she clicked her pen, returning to the textbook in her lap, saying, "I was there. It was pretty bad."
"I didn't mean to call her Mom," Matt said, sighing and sitting right side up. His legs dangled in the air. "It's like calling a teacher Mom. It just…happened."
"Did you tell your Dad?" Emma demanded. Matt shook his head. "Did you tell Caity?"
"I don't wanna tattle," Matt returned, making a face. He caught Emma's gaze, and worriedly tugged at his baseball cap, pulling the brim lower over his face. "Do you guys think I'm a freak?"
"No," Emma answered succinctly. "You can't help the way you look. Cheryl isn't a stepmom, she's a step-monster."
"Yeah, but," he struggled to find the right words for a moment, before giving up and saying, "It's a big birthmark. Caity said she remembers Mom crying when she asked what was on my face."
"Caity's such a liar," Marcie snorted from her seat. Matt lifted his head slightly, exposing the port-wine stain that swooped from under his right eye and spread throughout most of his cheek. "I bet that never even happened."
"You think?" Matt asked, pushing his cap up, to look at the redheaded pre-teen.
"Yup," Marcie said with a decisive nod, her eyes trailing towards him. The way he looked had never made much of a difference to her, it never detracted from the person he was. "She was four when you were born, I bet she made it up to make you feel bad."
Emma twisted her lips in thought. "Your birthmark is like Marcie's red hair and like my freckles. Sure, you notice 'em at first, but then you're like, whatever."
"Besides," Marcie said, chewing on her bottom lip, a bit of mischief lighting up in her face. "When you left, I told Cheryl she looked like a cow."
Marcie knew who Eric was referring to when he said, 'your mother'. It came off so easily. She'd never had a mother, not after Emily died, and it's not like she had a great example from her friends. She wasn't sure how to feel about this development.
"Oh, yeah, okay," Marcie said, pulling the hood off, her shoulders dropping. Unhappiness rippled through her tone, but she didn't voice it aloud.
"No, you should go," Ariel said decisively, ripping her eyes away from the crestfallen girl. "It would be good to get out."
It broke her heart to see the girl upset. Clearly this was the first thing in a while that made her excited. It was against all of her better judgment, but what was she supposed to do, keep the teenager locked in the palace for the rest of her life? Although the idea wasn't the worst she'd ever had…
"Are you sure?" Eric pressed, searching Ariel's face for a clue as to why the sudden change. She nodded.
"It'll be a change of scenery," she said, shrugging lightly. It took everything in her not to go back on her word. When was the last time the girl even went outside? "I wish I could go too, but I've got another committee meeting after breakfast."
"Alright, fine," Eric said. He trusted Ariel's feelings more than his own, even though he was still mentally kicking himself for bringing up the idea in the first place. He turned to the teen, asking, "Do you want to go to the marina with me this morning?"
Marcie looked at him, hopeful eyes widening at him behind her glasses, her voice wondering quietly as she asked, "Can I? I won't be any trouble, I swear."
Eric felt his heart fill; she reminded him of Ariel when she'd first arrived on land, so amazed by the most common of things. "I'll meet you in the entrance hall in fifteen minutes."
"Does that mean breakfast is over, Dad?" Melody asked impatiently, squirming in her seat. Every minute spent at the table was another minute she was not in the sea. "At least, can I be excused?"
"You're both excused," Ariel said, as Melody wasted no time in pushing back her chair with a scraping noise. Her mother winced. "Be back before your lessons!"
Melody was already halfway out of the dining hall. Marcie shook her head, silently slipping out of her own seat. What could that other girl have that was so important? Going swimming again? Marcie wondered how that didn't get boring.
Her gaze travelled to Eric for a moment; neither him nor Ariel made any move to get out of their seats. That meant they wanted a private conversation without her or Melody around. Interesting.
"I'll meet ya there?" Marcie said, catching Eric's eye for a moment, before looking away. She didn't want to show how much she was looking forward to getting out.
She heard the smile in his voice when he replied, "I'll be there soon."
Ariel wasn't lying when she said the village would be crowded. It was much, much more packed that Marcie remembered it being. The crisp fall air had a level of excitement to it too, stands being set up in different places, decorations going up in all corners. Bits of conversations whipped past, but no one seemed to be paying much attention to the girl with a pink hood covering her hair, or the dark-haired man navigating the open-air carriage beside her.
Marcie's eyes had become round as saucers when she saw how large the gates of the palace were up close, when they were being opened specifically for this outing. Other than that, she had been staring out the side, a thousand thoughts running through her mind, but none she felt were worthy to say aloud.
For his part, when Eric wasn't watching where he was going, he tried to catch glimpses of the girl. She'd only asked, out in the palace courtyard, what he would be driving. When Eric had nodded towards the carriage, pulled by a horse, she had pressed her lips together. It was hard not to see her face slip, as though she had expected some other form of transportation. After that, she'd been quiet.
He cleared his throat, and she looked over at him, blinking slowly. "The Autumn Festival is this weekend, that's why everything is…a little all over the place."
Marcie's face scrunched up in confusion. "Is that your version of Halloween?"
"Halloween?" Eric rolled his tongue over the unfamiliar word, stealing a glance at the girl, who stared at him expectantly. "Is that a festival as well?"
"It's a holiday," Marcie answered, frowning. "It's this weekend. You get dressed up in costumes, and little kids go door to door for candy at night. Everyone else goes to parties."
"You go to parties?" Eric asked, as though the notion was wild. He tried to imagine the redhead in a ballroom, surrounded by fancily dressed people, and couldn't see it.
Marcie's wistful eyes sharpened into ice-blue shards. "'Course I do, I'm not weird. Halloween is my best friend Em's birthday. Last year a bunch of us snuck into Kit Donner's party. She was a senior; my brother was so mad."
"Because you snuck in uninvited?" Eric guessed, puzzled by the idea.
"No, he was mad because he didn't want his kid sister around," Marcie snorted, though there was a triumphant smile across her face. "Could've been worse though—when Caity saw Matt there, she tried to grab him, but only ripped his mask. That means this year he's gotta buy a new one."
"What was your costume?" Eric wondered, attempting to glean more details from the girl. It was against Ariel's better judgment to let her go, that she had made clear, but she'd also said it might be nice for him to get to know the teen.
His beautiful, vivacious wife had such a natural rapport with everyone, even the girl, to a certain extent. Between threatening to imprison her and getting into a yelling match with her, Eric's relationship with the girl hadn't exactly blossomed. They weren't enemies, but he'd also hardly call them friends. They did make great acquaintances, as Ariel had dryly pointed out after breakfast.
"Zombie," Marcie answered swiftly, before adding, "I've always been a zombie."
Eric tried to think of something intelligent or funny to respond with, but gritted his teeth in frustration when none came to mind. Why was this so hard? "Why a zombie?"
"Because it's always easy and super creepy," Marcie replied, shrugging. "And that's the point of Halloween, to be spooky. It's not fun to be cutesy. Or sexy."
Eric whipped his head over to the teenager so fast that she leaned slightly away, staring at him warily. His eyes were wide and panicked as he coughed, "Sexy?"
"What?" Marcie asked, her eyes moving behind her glasses, clearly anxious. "What's wrong with what I said?"
"You're," he stumbled over the right words, everything in his head screaming that this girl, his daughter, would even be aware of such an idea. His turned back to the road, stubbornly replying, "You're too young to be thinking of such things."
"I'm not a little kid, I'm fourteen," she pointed out. "And I said it wasn't fun to dress up like that anyway. I'd get too cold."
"Well," he wracked his still panicked brain, the fatherly sense having kicked in. "Okay then."
Marcie regarded him quizzically, not quite sure what to make of the reaction. Eventually, she shrugged it off, instead asking, "Do you think I'll be home by Halloween?"
Eric jerked, the question catching him off-guard. "What?"
"I haven't missed Em's birthday since she moved to town," Marcie explained, her fingers nervously tugging at her bracelet charm. "We never miss each other's birthdays."
"I don't know," he lied, grimacing. "We're still working through all the details."
"…oh." Was all Marcie said, the sound disappointing, as she looked away from him. Struggling to remain nonchalant, she then inquired, "How come you guys haven't told Melody about where I'm from?"
Eric was starting to regret opening a conversation. Nothing seemed to be working out in his favor here. He took in a deep breath. "It's complicated. Right now, the best plan of action is to keep that information as limited as possible."
"Why?"
"No one has gone through in hundreds of years," Eric said, using a hand to push his dark hair back. He looked at the girl sideways, searching for the right words as he said, "It sounds..."
"Crazy?" Marcie supplied. She looked back at him, in time to see him nod. "Yeah. Welcome to my world."
"I'm sorry," Eric apologized, prefacing the next question. "I know we've been through this already, but you're absolutely sure you found yourself knocked over in the woods, outside the village? There's no other possible way you came to the palace, nothing else you can remember?"
Marcie's shoulders dropped. "I've got nothin'. If there was anything, anything else I could tell you guys that would get me home quicker, trust me, I'd say it."
"Right," Eric answered, sighing. That's what Ariel had said a few days before too, he remembered. He wracked his mind again, trying to find another conversation topic.
Luckily, he didn't have to think too hard, because the girl suddenly straightened up, leaning forward in the carriage. "Is that a boat?"
Eric followed her gaze; the marina was right ahead. He smiled. "It's a ship."
"It's humongous!" Marcie exclaimed, gaping as they came upon it.
"Catalina is bigger, I promise," Eric replied, slowing the carriage to a stop in front of a hitching post. A few other horses were tied to it already, signaling to him that it was a fairly typical business day on the docks. "That one looks like an Arendelle ship."
Marcie scrutinized him. "What's a Arendelle?"
"A kingdom," Eric answered, easily stepping out of the carriage and walking round to the horse. "It's not too far from here. They're good trading partners."
"What'cha trade?" Marcie wondered, jumping down herself. Eric's brows raised; it was a question he hadn't been expecting the teenager to ask.
"Arendelle is known for fine lumber and textiles. We build ships with that lumber and sell them. The textiles are usually traded for our agriculture; they have a colder climate that's conducive to heavier material but not as varied farming." He explained, tying the horse to the post. "I know, it's boring."
"No, it's not," Marcie answered, and Eric looked behind him, caught off-guard. Her tone wasn't polite, it was earnest. "That's how farmers make a living. What's the price fluctuation per year?"
"I'm…sorry?" Eric questioned, looking wildly confused.
"For crops," Marcie clarified, looking at him expectantly. "What's the price fluctuation on the weight harvested, per year?"
"I'd…have to check?" Eric replied, brows knitting together. "How do you know so much about farming?"
"I'm from a farming town," Marcie answered easily, with tilting her head to the side, studying him. "Fall harvest is the big one. Nowadays you can harvest more because of machines, but Matt's dad still makes us go through afterwards, to make sure nothing was missed."
"Makes you go through what?" Eric asked slowly, trying to piece together the girl's statements.
"You know, all of it," Marcie shrugged. "Corn, soybeans, sometimes wheat, depending if the year before was good. Sometimes the machines don't pick up everything, so then we gotta do it by hand, before and after school, for like a solid three weeks. Always forget how big Matt's farm is till it's harvest season."
"But if it's your friend Matt's farm, why do you have to help with the farming?" Eric asked, puzzled by the idea.
"'Cause Matt's dad says since I'm always hanging around the farm, I might as well be doing chores," Marcie replied, nonchalantly.
Eric raised a brow. "That seems like hard work."
"I don't mind," Marcie said, a sense of pride and accomplishment in her voice. "Feels good to work hard and see what comes out of it."
"That's..." Eric reached for a word, struggling between impressed and uneasy. It was a good lesson for life, but a part of him wondered if the girl was too young to have learned it. It seemed like an awful lot of responsibility to put on a child. "Let's go see how the repairs on Catalina are going."
Marcie followed him as he walked, past neat rows where ships were docked, watching as things were loaded on and off ships. She noticed all kinds of people, some boarding ships, some way up high fixing ropes, and others who seemed to be swapping stories. It seemed like for them, it was another average day.
The one thing that stuck out to the girl was that all the ships looked like they belonged in her history book. In fact, increasingly Marcie was coming to the realization that this world was like a mirror of Earth's past. Eric and Ariel said that the In-Between had been closed off hundreds of years before, hadn't they? Had Earth continued to move along, and this world stayed put?
"Your majesty!" A hurried voice called out, footsteps slapping against the dock. Marcie was shoved past, and she sent a dirty look in the man's direction, though he paid no mind. Wheezing, the man managed to match Eric's pace, trying to bow and walk at the same time. "Your majesty, I didn't know you were coming today!"
"I did send a note, Horatio," Eric answered, seemingly amused by the shorter man. "I always let the dockmaster know when I'm coming."
"I don't remember receiving a note!" The man, Horatio, cried out, although, as if on second thought, he shoved his hands into his pockets, and pulled out multiple crumpled pieces of paper. "Maybe it's one of these?"
"Maybe," Eric replied, grinning. "But since you're already here, why don't I tell you what it says?"
"Good idea, your majesty," Horatio answered, seemingly relieved, shoving the crumpled papers back into his pockets. Marcie noticed that he seemed unkempt; his shirt was off by a button, his collar half folded, and his thinning gray hair poked out from multiple directions. "Are you going out today? The sea's as good as I've ever seen it, been that way all week."
"I'm afraid I'm not sailing today," Eric returned, though Marcie sensed a reluctance in his voice as she trailed the two men. "Catalina is in the final stages of repairs. I wanted to see her and talk to Captain Sayers before she's back out to sea."
"Well, I can say she's looking almost as good as new," Horatio said, before asking, "I'm guessing the Queen isn't with you? I think I would have seen you earlier if she had been. Her red hair is hard to miss."
"Ariel's at the palace, finishing up some last-minute Autumn Festival things," Eric replied breezily.
"And the Princess?"
"Out for a swim," Eric's grin turned into a fond smile, his voice filled with warmth.
"And…" Here Horatio stumbled over his words, wary and hesitant. His voice was barely above a whisper when he asked, "…the other Princess?"
Marcie watched as the smile faded from Eric's face. Instead, he stiffened, his body language becoming serious. Gone was the cheeriness when he discussed Ariel or Melody; instead, he nodded his head back over his shoulder, saying nothing.
Marcie wrapped her arms tightly around her. A heaviness settled in her chest. She hadn't asked to come, he had offered. He didn't have to act so on guard when the topic of her came up.
Horatio turned back for a moment, puzzled, his eyes sweeping behind him. They swept right over Marcie, not registering the girl at all. Turning back to the King, he said, "Are you sure she hasn't wandered off?"
"Horatio, I can hear her behind us," Eric replied, raising a brow towards the man. "Pink hood?"
"Pink…?" This time, the dockmaster really scanned behind them, and his eyes connected with Marcie's. He gasped. "Princess!"
Marcie raised a hand, awkwardly moving her fingers in a wave. Her smile was weak. "Uh…hi."
"I didn't even see you there, Princess!" The man cried, stopping in his tracks, and attempting to bow to Marcie.
The girl blinked, appearing lost at what to respond to the movement. The Chef had done that once as well, she remembered. And Melody had even curtseyed one time! These people had an odd way of greeting one another.
Eventually, she decided to respond with, "It's okay. I'm good at not standing out."
"It's been years, your highness! For you to return, it's an outright phenomenon!" The dockmaster practically gushed, causing Marcie's weak smile to turn into a look of wariness. "Especially after what happened in Corona, we all expected you to return soon too, but when you didn't we thought it may never happen! And now here you are, your highness! Back again! It's incredible isn't it? Imagine that! A Princess who disappeared returns, it's the stuff of stories!"
"Um…" Marcie chewed her bottom lip, becoming increasingly uncomfortable with the amount of attention. People were starting to look up, squinting, as though trying to understand what was going on.
"Do you know what happened when you disappeared?" Came the next question, breathless and not stopping for the rest to tumble out. "Where did you go, Princess? What have you been doing for fourteen years? How did you manage to find your way back to—"
"Easy, Horatio," Eric put his hand on the man's shoulder, finally stepping in. The curious glances were becoming whispers, and this was not the place to divulge sensitive answers to the man's questions. "It's her first time in town, and we're only here to check on Catalina. We don't want to make a fuss."
"Sorry, your majesty, didn't realize you were trying to blend in," the dockmaster apologized, a bit rueful as he realized he had gone overboard. He turned to Marcie, winking as he said, "Out on an errand with your father, eh?"
The girl stared at him with wide eyes, like a deer caught in headlights.
Eric grimaced. Clearly, from the girl's reaction, the day of bonding was going downhill fast. He took in a breath, dropping his hand from the other man's shoulder. "We're going to see how the repairs are coming along. Nice to see you, Horatio."
"That's a good idea, your majesty," Horatio answered, bowing, and nodding towards Marcie, smiling widely, having not considered the girl's reaction. "A pleasure to meet you, your highness."
"Um…see you around. I guess." Marcie answered, pulling her hood tighter around her, and darting past the man.
Eric waited for her to catch up, and then began walking. He slowed his pace to match hers, eyeing her, trying to determine her mood. He tried to speak once or twice, then thought better of it, and closed his mouth again. If this had been Melody, he would have made some joke, she would have laughed—he loved to make his daughter laugh. But the mood was heavy, instead, and Marcie seemed all too willing to stay silent as well. Some things were too difficult to get past.
After walking past many ships, boats, and dinghy's, and maneuvering their way through many people, they finally made it to the end of the marina. It was surprisingly calmer here, despite the large ship, and Marcie took notice of one of the flags flying up high. She glanced down at her bracelet, confirming that it was the same pattern. On the side of the ship, the word Catalina, freshly painted on new wood could be found.
"Captain Sayers?" Eric called up, his near-shout startling the girl beside him. She jerked in surprise, looking up at him, before looking away when he didn't catch her eye.
"Aye!" A voice responded back, and Marcie watched as a man leaned over the side of the ship, peering below. "Your majesty! Come to see the old girl before she pushes off next week?"
"A week?" Eric laughed, shaking his head. "I thought you still had three!"
"I'd be out tomorrow if this damned crew would get their act together!" Presumably, Captain Sayers, responded back, but there was a joking nature in his voice.
"Repairs going well, then?" Eric asked, though his voice had lowered now that Captain Sayers walked down the plank towards them.
"A few minor patch-ups remain, but she's floating, which is something," Captain Sayers returned, pride in his tone as he came up to Eric, stepping onto dry land. He bowed shortly, before standing up tall. His uniform was unbuttoned, and his beard had specs of gray in it. "It'll take a lot more than a few cannonballs to take this tough ol' gal down, though."
"I'm glad to hear you're keeping positive," Eric said, his eyes scanning the ship, before coming back to the captain. "How's the crew? Still intact, after all this time in port?"
"Almost," Captain Sayers said, thoughtfully. "We've lost two great midshipmen."
"To what?"
"Marriage, as it happens," came the response, to which Eric laughed again. "Although, between you and I, your majesty, one of 'em had the father catch him and 'er doing the waltz between sheets after he—"
"Er, Captain," Eric cut him off quickly, his ears reddening, pointedly looking at the girl, who seemed interested in the story.
"Ah, didn't even notice you there," he bowed slightly, before looking curiously at the girl, and guessing, "Princess?"
"It's okay," Marcie said, brushing past the title, now a little more prepared at the odd response she was receiving. "I'm good at not standing out."
Eric frowned, briefly. That was the third time today she had repeated that statement. Something about how nonchalant it came off bothered him. Was the girl used to being overlooked? Was that why she was so quiet? He wondered if there was a way to get her out of her shell.
"Anyway," Captain Sayers continued on, disregarded the girl's presence, "So the lad gets caught with this girl, and it's because he started to—"
"Captain!" Eric said, more urgently, cutting the man off again.
"What?" Captain Sayers wondered, brow pulling together. Eric gave another pointed look towards the girl, then gave the captain an incredulous face. Captain Sayers rolled his eyes, waving it off. "She hasn't got any idea what I'm talking about."
Marcie blinked. She was in high school. She understood the nature of the joke. But being written off was better than being ogled, and at the very least maybe she could use this as leverage to wander around. After all, it wasn't every day she got to see a real ship.
"Can I check this boat out?" She wondered, looking over at Eric.
He seemed startled at the question, even as Captain Sayers deadpanned, "She's a ship."
"There's a difference?" Marcie asked, puzzled. She thought the terms were interchangeable.
Before Captain Sayers could, rightfully, be outraged, Eric answered the girl with, "Go ahead, but try to stay out of the way of the repairs."
Marcie brightened. "Cool, thanks!"
She tugged at her hood again, making sure her hair was covered, and raced up the ramp. Her sneakers were steady upon the damp wood, but before she reached the deck, she heard Captain Sayers say, a bit too loudly, "What kind of landlubber is that girl?"
I don't think landlubber is a good thing, Marcie thought. She was also sure Eric agreed so quickly because he wanted to get rid of her. That was alright. She wanted to get rid of her babysitter too.
On board the ship, Marcie realized quickly that while it looked big down on the ground, it was even bigger on top. Poles jutted out from the middle of the ship, sails tied to them, and people were hard at work everywhere she looked. Tools were thrown haphazardly everywhere, and barrels had been turned to their sides, empty. It was a mess, but there was an excitement in the air and in all the activity.
"Benny! Get your sorry rear end up 'ere with that rope!" A voice called from above, and Marcie looked up, seeing two men standing in a wooden box on one of the wooden poles. It looked like a small, open treehouse on a ship.
"I already told you, I'm not doing that!" Another voice responded, younger, and more nervous. There was a chorus of laughter and whistles that followed, and Marcie found herself drawn to the small crowd. "I'm not climbing up!"
"Give'm a break, boys!" Someone called up, mirth in their voice. "If you never come down, you'll never have to tell Captain how you united the ship's masts' netting!"
"Benny, if you don't come up here, I swear I'm going to—" the rest of the man's statement was lost to a chorus of seagulls flying by, but the angry intent behind his words made Marcie assume it was not good.
"I'm not going up," Benny, Marcie assumed, repeated, nervously. He looked to be just a bit older than her, and at least two inches taller. "I'm not good with heights, I'm not."
"Well, you're the smallest of the crew," a man reasoned, snickering, poking poor Benny in the ribs. "No one else can climb up, not with carrying the netting. The rope'll break right off, and so'll our necks."
"I'm not climbing up," Benny said again, his hands going into his pockets, then out, then back in. He looked absolutely petrified. "I'm not doing it."
"It's all fun now, but what'll Captain say when no one can get the netting back up, and his first mate can't come down?" Someone else chortled, clearly having too much fun at the boy's expense.
"Someone's gotta do it, Benny!" Another man responded, laughing, pushing Benny from behind towards a long rope. Marcie followed its length upwards, seeing that it came from the treehouse above. On the side, what she assumed to be the untied netting was spread out across the deck. "Buck up, lad! If you fall, at least you can say it was for King and country!"
"I can do it," Marcie said suddenly, surprising herself. All heads swiveled in the girl's direction, and she felt her face heat up at the stares. She looked down at her shoes, mumbling, "I'm not scared of heights."
There was silence from the crew for a long moment, before Benny's voice broke out with, "You will?"
Marcie kept her gaze down at her shoes. She had felt bad for the boy, and figured volunteering wouldn't cause much of a fuss. She had obviously been wrong. "I've climbed worse ropes going up the barn."
"Now wait just a minute, lass," a man stepped forward, his large belly hanging down from the bottom of his stained shirt. Marcie looked at him, pressing her bracelet charm into her thumb. "No one's allowed on this ship unless they 'ave Captain's permission, especially not to be messing with 'er riggings."
"Ah, lay off, Vic," someone said, the same man who had been pushing Benny earlier. "Captain's not even 'ere right now, I watched 'im walk off. And if Benny's willing to let himself get shown up by a girl, I say let 'im! Wager she won't make it up halfway anyhow."
"I'll take that wager!" Someone else called out, a buzz now falling amongst the crew gathered. "Two coppers?"
"I'm in!" Another voice responded, and coins were thrown onto the deck. More followed as other voices chorused their enthusiasm for a surefire gamble.
"Capt's not gonna like it, but…" The man who had confronted her reached into his pocket, wriggling around for a moment, before throwing two coins of his own. "Far be for me to stand in the way of a good bet."
"Benny, go get the netting!" A voice called out, as Marcie's arm was taken from the side of the group, to the front and center. "Lass—you got a name?—it's very simple. You just got to climb up to the crow's nest, and deliver some rope. Easy enough, right?"
"Right?" Marcie responded, unsurely, as Benny ambled over, dragging the rope behind him. Instantly, the girl realized why they had all been so quick to take that bet against her—the netting was heavy.
She looked up at the crow's nest, then down at the net, and wondered how she had gotten herself entangled into this mess. There was no way she could carry that up while climbing, it would weigh her down!
"Thanks for this," Benny whispered, as he handed her the netting. Her arms dropped under the weight; the crew laughed. Most of it was still on the floor. His eyes spoke volumes with gratitude. "I think if I go up, I'll pass right out."
Marcie bit her lip. She had volunteered, now it was time to figure it out. She couldn't back out now. Casually, she acknowledged the boy with a simple, "It's cool."
She looked down at the netting in her hands, too heavy to put over her shoulder, and then at the rope itself, which was too thin to bear the weight of the netting completely. That's why they had to send someone up with it, because the netting probably weighed as much as three of these men. The rope would tear apart at seams under the full weight.
Unless...
An idea sparked in Marcie's head. Quickly, she put her head through one of the holes of the netting at the very top, pushing her glasses up her nose afterwards as she settled it under her arm. Then, going to the rope, she grabbed the bottom of the netting, looping it through and tying it in a secure knot. Finally, she grabbed onto the rope, tugged it once to make sure it was secure, and started to climb.
As she went up, and heard the calls and whistles beneath her, the net swung out beneath. However, just as she had expected, its weight was far less because it wasn't completely on her, it was shared with the rope. So as she climbed, so did the netting, up and up and up.
The whistles and laughter died out as she went higher. She started to hear frenzied shouts, but ignored them, especially the ones that called for her to get down. The wind was in her face, her hood fell down, and she could have cared less. For just a moment, there were no problems, no princess, no family, no Earth—only a girl and the sky.
And for the briefest of moments, she felt happy.
As she reached the crow's nest, four hands shot out at her, and when she climbed up further, those hands grabbed her and pulled her into the box. She pulled the netting from over her head, letting it drop to the floor of the tight box, and stared triumphantly, expectantly at the two men.
Who were staring at her.
No, not her, at her head.
Gob-smacked.
She reached up, feeling for her hair, pushing it back over her ears. She patted the top of her head, and found nothing wrong. She adjusted her glasses, which were also alright. Half the netting still was over the side of the crow's nest, but these men didn't seem to be able to move and grab it.
"What?" She asked, confused. "Hat hair?"
"Capt is going to kill us," one man whispered, horrified, and dropping into a low bow, nearly bumping into Marcie's nose in the process. "Princess Harmony."
The other man did the same, mumbling out a horrified, "Your highness."
"Oh, um..." Is this what Ariel had meant this morning about standing out? Suddenly, it was like they didn't know how to act around her, like if she was some sort of celebrity.
She looked over the side from the crow's nest and saw a crowd had gathered at the dock. A big crowd. They looked tiny from where she was up here, and most of their voices were impossible to understand, except one.
In the crowd, set apart slightly from the rest, was Eric. Even though she couldn't see his face, she could see his arms crossed, and felt a wave of dread when he cupped his hands and called up, half frantic, half furious, "Harmony! Get down now!"
Marcie felt herself drain of color. Was that the first time he called her…well, anything? He seemed angry. She rubbed one of her upper arms, worriedly looking below.
The longer you wait, the worse it gets, her mind reminded her. She knew she had no choice. She had to face him.
"The mast net is tied back up, your highness," one of the men in the crow's nest said, and Marcie turned back to look at the men, realizing they had pulled the rest of the net up while she was watching the crowd. "It'll be easier than using the rope to go down."
"Huh?" The girl looked over her shoulder, and saw that indeed, the netting was back in what she guessed was its normal place. It did seem easier than climbing a rope back down and potentially burning her hands. "Oh. I guess I'll go down it then."
The girl swung one leg over the crow's nest, securing it below on the net, and then its twin. Reaching down, she caught the net in her hand and started to descend it slowly, slower than she had gone up the single rope, in fact. The two men peered over the crow's nest, watching her, alert and ready to jump down if the princess got into trouble.
But for everyone holding their breath, it was seamless for Marcie to go down. She took her time only to avoid the punishment that awaited her. Her moment of happiness had ended. Marcie was back in a reality she had no way of escaping.
The second she got low enough, she jumped down onto the deck. She landed with a 'thud', and cautiously surveyed the sailors. Most were bowing, murmuring things like "princess" and "your highness", their caps removed. Five minutes ago, she had been some girl who had snuck onboard and they had taken bets against her not making it up. Now they were acting like if she had turned into a completely different person.
Her shoulders sagged. Even Benny wouldn't make eye contact with her, his face as red as her hair. The coins still littered the deck.
She took in a deep breath. Self-consciously, she pulled the hood back over her head, feeling her heartbeat in her ears at each step. She walked to the ship ramp, and below, first saw Captain Sayers, who looked intrigued rather than irritated. Then she saw the large crowd that had gathered, who all looked amazed and confounded. Then she noticed Eric, standing there, arms still crossed, expecting her and eyes blazing.
Eric was mad.
Really, really mad.
Her breath quickened. She dug her nails into the palm of her hand, trying to focus on walking steadily. Maybe he'd let her off with something mild, maybe it wouldn't be so bad, maybe—
"Whoa!" Not focused on where she was stepping, her Converse slid on the ramp, and she lost her balance, falling sideways into the water.
Eric peered over into the water, brows raised, waiting for the girl to reappear. He wasn't concerned. In fact, he was still pretty angry that she had decided to climb up to the crow's nest, with the netting attached to her, in such a foolhardy move. He could have cared less about the commotion he had caused when he had realized what she was doing. If she had fallen from that height, she could have killed herself!
Thirty seconds passed. She wasn't coming back up. Eric figured she was avoiding him, probably realizing that he was upset about her actions. After all, if the girl was anything like Melody, staying underwater for a few minutes at a time was not a problem. Besides, the marina was deep, no telling if she had swum down by this point.
Without warning, a waterlogged, pink sleeve came shooting out of the water. The girl's face appeared for the briefest of seconds, inhaling the air, and then it was gone again. He could see her legs now, struggling to keep her afloat, and both arms thrashing in an attempt to get above the sea.
Eric didn't think. He'd seen many others in this predicament before and knew what it entailed. He reached down, grabbing the girl's arm, yanking her out of the water in one swift move. Even soaking wet she didn't weigh much, and it was easy enough for him to pull her onto to the dry dock. She shuddered, her glasses miraculously still in tact, falling to the ground. Then she began forcibly coughing up seawater, on her hands and knees.
"You can't swim?" Eric's shock was palpable, and the crowd grew relentless, whispers flying between them as people tried to comprehend the question.
Marcie, in-between coughing bouts, shook her head. She lifted her head, enough to look up at Eric. Behind her glasses, her icy blue eyes looked even more startling. Her voice was broken, small and pleading as she said, "I'm sorry."
Eric looked at her, stunned. Then he reached out, pulling her into a tight, relieved hug.
"It'll be in the papers tomorrow," Eric said, unhappily. He stared at their fireplace morosely, already dressed for bed. He'd been playing the morning over and over in his mind, reliving the heart-stopping fear of seeing the girl fearlessly climbing to the crow's nest, and then the revelation that she couldn't swim.
The opposite side of the same couch he was sitting on, Ariel looked up from the work she had been reviewing, eyeing him. "What will?"
"What happened this morning," Eric responded, thinking hard. "It'll be everywhere come morning. 'Princess Harmony Climbs Up to Crow's Nest; Nearly Drowns After Falling into the Sea'."
"That's too long of a headline," Ariel pointed out, setting the paperwork aside on a low table. She looked at her husband, slightly amused, before adding, "Besides, drowning is an exaggeration. She was barely in the water for a minute."
"And she was struggling to come up to the surface to breathe, Ariel," Eric answered, looking over at her seriously. "She can't swim."
"She's half-mermaid, that's impossible," Ariel reminded, lightly, shrugging. "She was probably shocked from falling into the water."
"She's also half-human," Eric countered, raising his brow at his wife. "What was it she told us? The ocean is a thousand miles away from her village?"
"Maybe she lived far from the sea," Ariel acquiesced, accepting the statement, "But I'm sure there were rivers and lakes nearby. Fresh water isn't the same, but we could barely keep Melody from jumping out of the coach in Glowerhaven when we passed by a pond. And that was when she was three."
"I know but maybe…." Eric hesitated, drawing out his words, thinking this through. He made a face, instead asking, "She's been here for a week now, right?"
Ariel pursed her lips, and nodded. Eric continued. "Since that second night, have you seen her go to the sea?"
Ariel's brows creased together, hard in thought. She recalled that only a few hours ago, this morning, the girl had been so ecstatic to leave the palace and she had wondered… "I don't think I've even seen her go outside since then."
"And the sea is right there. Melody is out swimming every chance she gets." Eric mused, and Ariel's eyebrows shot up now at the comparison. He wasn't wrong, but it felt odd to compare the two teenagers.
"What are you trying to say?" She wondered, wearily, not sure where his train of thought was heading.
His features turned cautious, and she braced herself, expecting to hear something that would upset her. "I don't think the sea calls to her like it does to Melody, or even you. I think she's a lot more human."
Ariel blinked, then snorted in derision. "That's absolutely impossible."
"Is it, though?" Eric asked, still thoughtful, considering the circumstances that had led to this hypothesis.
"Yes, it is," Ariel snapped. Having a daughter who leaned more into her human roots should have made her ecstatic, relieved. After all, she had chosen to be human rather than mermaid. But rather, it unsettled her, for reasons she could not comprehend. "I think you're looking far too much into a simple accident."
"It's not just her falling into the water and not knowing how to swim," Eric returned, frowning. "It's everything else. When she was climbing to the crow's nest she looked at-ease, even with the weight of the masts' net around her."
"I'm so glad that when our daughter was engaging in a death defying stunt, you had time to notice what she looked like, all the way down on the dock," Ariel answered, her voice sharp, and her tone dry. Almost exasperated, she crossed her arms over her chest, saying, "They're twins, Eric. Half-mermaid, half-human, children of the land and sea. The sea has to call to her like it does to Melody."
"Your sister has identical twins and they're not the same," Eric returned. "All I know is that when Captain Sayers pointed out that she was halfway up to the crow's nest, and I kept yelling at her to get down, she was confident and smiling. Smiling the way Melody does when she jumps into the water. She was terrified when I pulled her out from the sea."
"She would be more confident in the water if she spent more time in it," Ariel responded, stretching out her legs from where she'd been curled up on the couch, saying, "I'll talk to Melody. Maybe she needs a gentle nudge in the right direction."
"Maybe," Eric said, indifferent. It was only a theory based on one moment, after all. "I've been thinking about what she said this morning, too."
"On your drive to the marina?" Ariel wondered, absently running her fingers through her bangs, brushing them back. "Or on your way back to the palace?"
Eric shook his head. "I told you, she wouldn't talk to me on the drive back. I even said I wasn't really mad, I was more concerned that when I saw her climbing she would get hurt."
"Right," Ariel said, sighing. She hadn't seen the teenager when they had come in, but had heard the full story over lunch. "Carlotta says she returned both lunch and dinner trays without taking a bite."
"I'm surprised you didn't go and ask her why she wasn't eating." Eric responded, arching a brow.
Guiltily, Ariel looked away. "I did try."
"And?"
Ariel brought her extended legs back to her, resting her chin on her knees. She focused her gaze on her bandaged hand. The doctor still wouldn't budge on his initial assessment that it takes weeks for her wrist to heal. "She's figured out how to lock the door."
Eric rubbed at his face, wearily, before giving her a painful smile. "That's on being a teenager."
"Isn't it, though?" Ariel asked aloud, her eyes dropping for a moment. She made a face then, and looked back at Eric. "If you weren't thinking about what she said on the drive over, then what were you thinking about?"
"What she mentioned at breakfast," Eric clarified, leaning back on the couch.
Ariel frowned. "About not standing out?"
Eric thought about it for a moment, before nodding. "I was hoping you picked up on that too. She kept mentioning it this morning at the docks."
"I thought it was an odd thing to say, but I didn't really think about it too much," Ariel responded, lightly, honestly. "Her personality is shyer, more reserved; I don't think she's one for a big fuss. That's why all this has been doubly hard."
"Right, well, I've been thinking of ways that might help, you know, to make her feel more comfortable, maybe get her more of her shell," Eric replied, and Ariel's eyebrows shot up again, but she pressed her lips together firmly, waiting for him to tell her his idea. "I think it's a good idea if she starts going to lessons with Melody."
"School?" Ariel blinked, surprised. "You want her to start going to school?"
"I don't think it can hurt," Eric said, running a hand through his still-damp dark hair. "She said so herself at breakfast that she misses it."
"She did say her apology at breakfast was because she missed school," Ariel confirmed, acknowledging that her husband was right. "She's not used to tutors, though."
"She might like schooling better this way," Eric offered, before sighing. "You saw how she jumped at the chance to go to the docks this morning; I think she's bored."
"Bored?" Ariel questioned, perplexed at the statement. She narrowed her eyes at her husband, tilting her head to the side, asking, "How can she be bored? She's got an entire palace that she's barely explored! Plus, the sea is right outside her window!"
"I know," Eric answered. "But I think she's different than you and I, or even Melody. I think Harmony actually likes being in a classroom."
Ariel stiffened. "You're saying her name now?"
"It slipped out when I was trying to get her to come down," Eric explained, gauging her reaction. "I'm tired of calling Harmony…her. It feels impersonal, especially for our daughter."
"I don't think I can say it, yet," Ariel said, chewing on her bottom lip. "Not after so long. Do you think she notices?"
"Maybe," Eric shrugged again. "But she's not exactly calling us 'Mom' and 'Dad' either."
"No, she's not," Ariel admitted, releasing her legs from the tight grip she'd had on them. "If you think her going to lessons will help, that's fine. We can talk to Melody's tutors, see if they'd be willing to teach a new student."
"Let's start that tomorrow, before they read the morning papers," Eric suggested, yawning and covering it with a hand. "It'll give Harmony a good chance before they think she's another handful."
Disclaimer: Ariel, Eric, Melody, and the setting for this story are from The Little Mermaid, which is property of Disney. I own nothing; everything represented from the film(s), tv series, etc. is/are the property of Disney. Other characters are from my own imagination and are not associated with Disney.