The sea was calm, as the sun shone above the ocean floor. Ayane was excited as she looked up, towards that mysterious and yellow ball in the sky that humans loved dearly. It was an odd thought to the mermaid princess, she could almost feel the sea breeze from the human world against her skin. Part of her felt a tingling sensation from within her heart, she was nervous, a little excited, and kind of disgusted at the idea of seeing the human world. However, today was her cousin's birthday, one of the granddaughters of King Triton, the princess, Melody! Ayane could only wonder what would happen once she met her cousin as she slipped on her priceless jewelry and earrings; she had to look like a princess that was as beautiful as the sea itself. Quickly Ayane grabbed and attached several bands, rings, and beautiful treasures, as well as her mother's old purple shell crown, to hold her hair together.
The moment Ayane felt like she was at her best in order to make her appearance feel fit for a queen, well a future queen who would gracefully command and protect the seven seas. She quickly swam out of her bedroom, through the room where her Aunts Aquata, and Adella were freshening up for the morning. Ayane gave them a quick wave as the princess began to race down the levels of the castle, darting through the hallways and floors of the majestic palace. The young, fifteen-year-old blonde mermaid could almost feel the warm air of the surface world against her skin. It would be like a treat, given the princess never went above the surface world compared to her sister Ebony, who couldn't get enough of the salty air, and odd sights. Ayane was more comfortable with her life under the sea, and the simple yet vast pleasures it brought her, knowing that one day she would be the queen of the sea like her mother and aunts.
She could almost picture the smiles she would receive, the gentle waves of her subjects, it was the idea of bright smiles as they lived, and swam peacefully through the kingdom. It was more than enough to make her contemptuous of the lifestyle that her kingdom and its people were more important than those silly humans that lived above. Sure, she was willing to spend time with her cousin under the sea, where she belonged with her parents, while dealing with her sisters insufferable lifestyle, however she had to be reasonable, the sea was her life, her birthright, and her goal—to give her fellow friends a happy and peaceful life free from the war's, heartlessness and woes of the past. She wanted to be a ruler like her parents, and aunts, those who fight to protect, share in laughter, love, beauty, and the belief that you can make a difference with the right viewpoint. The only question now was where was Ebony, and when would they meet Princess Melody?
—--
Ebony smiled as the indigo-tailed mermaid could feel herself getting faster. She had been pushing herself to the limits, knowing that currently her mother and the other princesses of the sea were clearly faster than the best of her speed. Heck, she wasn't even able to make a dent at trying to rival the unbridled delight of her Aunt Ariel, knowing that the stories from merfolk around the kingdom were no joke. Oh, how She wished to be as fast as them one day. Sadly, she could tell that her time studying, and the pounds of jewelry that her sister Ayane forced upon her, were clearly slowing her down to a speed that felt like an actual princess bound to duty and honor.
Ebony hated the idea of sounding like an actual princess, akin to the likes of the surface dwellers above living in that eyesore of a castle. She could feel a cheeky laugh rise from her chest, knowing that her aunts were more active and fast even when they had to go in public and deal with the crowds, and that was adding to the family's love to eat up as much attention as possible like the rulers, they were. But nevertheless, she was grinning ear to ear, bolting through the palace, until she spotted the familiar outline of her parents.
She could only grin as she swam as fast as possible until she embraced her parents in the tightest hug possible. Both Ayane and her loved their parents; their mother was Princess Andrina, one of the seven daughters of Triton, and her father was the castle royal knight, Sora Seabloom, the strongest and kindest merman she had ever known under the sea! Out of the whole kingdom, her family were the only ones that made her feel connected to who she used to be as a mermaid. Nevertheless, soon times would change, and so would the injustice that was brought upon her family's happiness.
"What's the rush, Sweetie? Shark got your tail; you look like you're excited for something big. Did Aunt Arista get more new jewelry for you to try, or did you finally find that special seahorse you wanted?" Sora said, patting his daughter on the head and flashing her and his beloved wife a grin, only for Andrina to give her husband a long and passionate kiss on the lips.
"Daddy, Aunt Arista was taking me next week to get jewelry, and Aunty Alana was going to help me find a new horse after the jewelry. Today is the day me and Ayane are going to meet Melody and take her swimming through the ocean as a birthday present. So we'd probably be back late. Although I'd give the best parents under the sea the love and hugs they deserve." Ebony said, flashing her parents' signature grins, as Andrina laughed, looking down at her daughter. It was funny to look at her little princess; it had felt like yesterday when she had seen her husband's grin when he had arrived from another world and into her arms. He had given her the best treasure of all: a loving family that sparkled like the most priceless of treasures, a pair of loving daughters that were as caring and beautiful, a princess whose heart was just as strong as her love of the sea. Andrina looked at her darling husband once more. Oh, oh, how she loved him. Sora was special—the merman from another world who gave her the same taste of adventure that her sister Ariel had.
But for now, they just wanted to enjoy their lives—the peaceful life to raise their daughters and help rule the overwhelming kingdom with her sisters, maybe even the rare activity like watching the sea turtles swim, and allowing others to go exploring the vastness of their kingdom even if it meant losing a few of the things they loved so much in life, but always made sure to love their children with each day. It was crazy to think that soon Ariel had gotten her chance to find happiness, exploring and loving the land and sea, in contempt of the fact that she was drawn to both sides of the world. Andrina knew that her husband and she were different from the passionate redhead; they belonged to the sea, and its beauty was more worth it than anything the land above had to offer.
They could only hope that Ayane, and Ebony felt the same, only watching the Humans from afar while the merfolk and humans were at peace. It was not a marriage of love, but of saving the human prince's life and defeating Ursula. All that mattered at the moment was the friendship between land and sea; however, if that meant one day the war would bloom, and the threat of losing another of their underwater homes to those who desired to be of the land, they would fight to protect their kingdom as they were of King Triton's blood, and would always have the sea's best interests in mind.
"Sweetie, I hope you, Melody, and your sister have a wonderful time. Just be careful if any humans try to do anything funny, but in all seriousness, have a good time, make sure to show Melody more of what the sea has to offer, and if you see Ariel by the concert hall, tell her that she needs to come over for dinner more often; surely she and Gabriella can afford to have dinner or go for a family swim sporadically; just because they live beneath us doesn't mean they can't afford to be with family." Andrina said, letting go of her daughter and back into the arms of her husband as she smiled at her daughter. Ebony quickly nodded and embraced her parents with one last hug as she swam off quickly to find Ayane, leaving the merfolk alone in the giant hall of the castle.
"She's growing up so fast; maybe we should have a little more fun since the day is young; we all need a day off from royalty occasionally; we can go. Seahorse riding, my beloved. I heard my sister Adella's husband has opened up a new shop and has some new horses just waiting to be ridden. We can drag Attina and Alana with us; it'll be fun." Andrina let out, swimming up a little to reach her husband's neck as she embraced herself in Sora's muscular stature.
"Only, if afterward we can find that one seaweed pasta place that you liked so much, I've been craving more of it since my parents took Ayane out there for her birthday last year. Besides, I know you've been more romantic lately, so I figured I'd give my princess something to enjoy before things get better later." Sora said, smirking, as he gripped his wife, gently rubbing her hair, as the delight of later sent them racing off to get to what was hopefully a good day full of passion and happiness.
—--
Ayane could feel the weight of her jewelry holding her back from racing to find Ebony. She had seen the outline of her sister racing away from the palace, and was entering the kingdom, doing her best to find her sister through the waves of merfolk and fish celebrating her arrival. She offered them a few grins and waves, but knew that she had to find her sister, knowing that the black-haired mermaid was more stubborn than her when it came to adventures and the surface world.
"Hopefully she isn't swimming back to the concert hall again, I doubt I listen to Sebastian rambling about music and instruments compared to Aunt Ariel, and Aquata. Ah, why can't they have Aunt Aquata teach more often? It makes things more bearable. Hmm? Maybe if I swim higher, I can find her, she's probably trying to avoid me all together and spend the day with Melody in secret!" Ayane said, swimming higher into the ocean, realizing that her sister didn't even try to abandon her, as the purple tailed girl was moving slow enough to catch up and what made it easier to rush after her even was with all the jewelry weighing the princess down.
Ebony could feel herself seamlessly swimming up higher and higher to the surface. She had wished that her father had come with her, gone were the days when they had felt like family. Mother, trapped in the prison of a castle, chained with her aunts to rule over the kingdom, was only allotted freedom every few days, the burden of her grandfather's rule had polluted the value of their kingdom, and had given the impossible task to fix the damage he caused. The worst were her father, Aunt Pearl, and Ayane. The first one that was brutally affected had once been a human, many years ago, he was considered a king of the sea, but he clearly wasn't happy about the idea compared to the story of his youth, when him and mother fought heartless, battled the Sharkanians, and the lobster mobsters, or the grand trips and childish fights with her aunts. Her Aunt Pearl fared better, but only by the opportunity of moving to Eel-ectric City, and opening her own shop alongside her grandparents to be away from the curtain that grandfather placed on her side of the family. Finally was Ayane, where the blond was so stubborn in her belief that being the next queen of the sea would solve their problems, it was a foolish idea, that would fail, if seven well right rulers already could help then how would she surpass them?
"Hey, Ebony! What do you think Melody will be like? You've been up to the surface more than me. How should I go about this? I don't want to allow my opinion of the above world and our kingdom to affect whatever relationship with Melody is formed, nor make Father mad if he still has any previous feelings for the world that he once walked on with feet instead of the wonderful fins that offer endless happiness." Ayane declared, as the black haired teen looked behind her with a nervous look on her face, sighing that Ayane had caught up with her so easily as the two mermaids looked at the edge of the water, the darkest part before light, the veil that separated all and yet was just another layer in life. The young blond stared at her sister, wondering what was going through her head, as the black haired mermaid was silent. Ebony was nearly like a clean slate, barely any jewelry to grab onto, no big goofy grin to laugh with unless it was by their parents, she was as cool as seaweed, and it was time like these when Ayane wished her sister would open up her mind and tell her what she thought of the world.
—--
Ebony could feel anger rising as she knew that the moment they revealed themselves to the people above, she was not only one of the many princesses ascending, but the only mermaid who had visited the surface world above ever since her Aunt Ariel and Gabriella stopping gazing up at the human world. So it was up to her as always to be the source of knowledge for her kingdom. Sure she never had to socialize with the human's above nor think about the idea of gazing at the lifestyle and difference between humans and merfolk.
She had only ever come up to see her Aunt Ariel reminiscing about the time she foolish gained aid from a sea witch and almost doomed the ocean and herself. Now she was forced to be involved with a little family swim, as a birthday present to Ariel's little Melody for her twelfth birthday. It was bittersweet in the moment and in others she hated the idea of babysitting a twelve year old girl who would have been fine under the watch of Ayane, and the rest of her aunt's back in the palace. Sure it was hypothetical to think of grandfather's old days of controlling people, but she had other plans in mind, why should she play sister, when she wanted to know how to play god.
Besides, she didn't know what Melody was like beyond the fact that she was Aunty Ariel's daughter, a fellow princess of the sea like them, and that was about it. She didn't know how Melody would react to Ayane's more happier nature, or her being serious? Sure they may have met before or the younger mermaid was told stories about them from their aunt's and the kingdom? Even though they lived in an era of peace and their families were very connected to the point of living with each other, excepting the fact that knowing every little detail of a persons life was a meaningless endeavor.
Ebony knew that she'd never truly see eye to eye with the blond mermaid that she had called her sister. Ayane always was headstrong in her opinion that the sea was the perfect place, and that nothing was needed from the surface world, while Ebony was more willing to see and explore new things. It was always odd to the black-haired mermaid, how a human boy could throw away his humanity and the idea of returning to see the potential endless wonders of the land and stars above. Was the love he had for his princess really that powerful, or did her grandparents have a hand in the matter? She wanted answers, and the only way to get those answers was the little journey she was about to embrace as she dragged her family into a new and bizarre situation.
—--
Ayane could feel the weight of her jewelry holding her back from racing to find Ebony. She had seen the outline of her sister racing away from the palace, and was entering the kingdom, doing her best to find her sister through the waves of merfolk and fish celebrating her arrival. She offered them a few grins and waves, but knew that she had to find her sister, knowing that the black-haired mermaid was more stubborn than her when it came to adventures and the surface world.
"Hopefully she isn't swimming back to the concert hall again, I doubt I'll listen to Sebastian rambling about music and instruments compared to Aunt Ariel, and Aquata. Ah, why can't they have Aunt Aquata teach more often? It makes things more bearable. Hmm? Maybe if I swim higher, I can find her, she's probably trying to avoid me all together and spend the day with Melody in secret!" Ayane said, swimming higher into the ocean, realizing that her sister didn't even try to abandon her, as the purple-tailed girl was moving slow enough to catch up, and what made it easier to rush after her even was with all the jewelry weighing the princess down.
Ebony could feel herself seamlessly swimming up higher and higher to the surface. She had wished that her father had come with her, gone were the days when they had felt like family. Mother, trapped in the prison of a castle, chained with her aunts to rule over the kingdom, was only allotted freedom every few days, the burden of her grandfather's rule had polluted the value of their kingdom, and had given her the impossible task to fix the damage he caused. The worst were her father, Aunt Pearl, and Ayane. The first one that was brutally affected had once been a human, many years ago, he was considered a king of the sea, but he clearly wasn't happy about the idea compared to the story of his youth, when he and his mother fought heartless, battled the Sharkanians, and the lobster mobsters, or the grand trips and childish fights with her aunts. Her Aunt Pearl fared better, but only by the opportunity of moving to Eel-ectric City, and opening her own shop alongside her grandparents to be away from the curtain that grandfather placed on her side of the family. Finally was Ayane, where the blond was so stubborn in her belief that being the next queen of the sea would solve their problems; it was a foolish idea, that would fail, if seven well right rulers already could help then how would she surpass them?
"Hey, Ebony! What do you think Melody will be like? You've been up to the surface more than me. How should I go about this? I don't want to allow my opinion of the above world and our kingdom to affect whatever relationship with Melody is formed, nor make Father mad if he still has any previous feelings for the world that he once walked on with feet instead of the wonderful fins that offer endless happiness." Ayane declared, as the black-haired teen looked behind her with a nervous look on her face, sighing that Ayane had caught up with her so easily as the two mermaids looked at the edge of the water, the darkest part before light, the veil that separated all and yet was just another layer in life. The young blond stared at her sister, wondering what was going through her head, as the black-haired mermaid was silent. Ebony was nearly like a clean slate, barely any jewelry to grab onto, no big goofy grin to laugh with unless it was by their parents, she was as cool as seaweed, and it was time like these when Ayane wished her sister would open up her mind and tell her what she thought of the world.
—--
Ebony could feel anger rising as she knew that the moment they revealed themselves to the people above, she was not only one of the many princesses ascending, but the only mermaid who had visited the surface world above ever since her Aunt Ariel and Gabriella stopped gazing up at the human world. So it was up to her as always to be the source of knowledge for her kingdom. Sure, she never had to socialize with the human's above nor think about the idea of gazing at the lifestyle and difference between humans and merfolk.
She had only ever come up to see her Aunt Ariel, reminiscing about the time she foolishly gained aid from a sea witch and almost doomed the ocean and herself. Now she was forced to be involved with a little family swim, as a birthday present to Ariel's little Melody for her twelfth birthday. It was bittersweet at the moment, and in others she hated the idea of babysitting a twelve-year-old girl who would have been fine under the watch of Ayane, and the rest of her aunt's back in the palace. Sure, it was hypothetical to think of grandfather's old days of controlling people, but she had other plans in mind, why should she play sister, when she wanted to know how to play god?
Besides, she didn't know what Melody was like beyond the fact that she was Aunty Ariel's daughter, a fellow princess of the sea like them, and that was about it. She didn't know how Melody would react to Ayane's happier nature, or her being serious. Sure, they may have met before, or the younger mermaid was told stories about them from their aunts and the kingdom? Even though they lived in an era of peace and their families were very connected to the point of living with each other, excepting the fact that knowing every little detail of a person's life was a meaningless endeavor.
Ebony knew that she'd never truly see eye to eye with the blond mermaid that she had called her sister. Ayane was always headstrong in her opinion that the sea was the perfect place, and that nothing was needed from the surface world, while Ebony was more willing to see and explore new things. It was always odd to the black-haired mermaid, how a human boy could throw away his humanity and the idea of returning to see the potential endless wonders of the land and stars above. Was the love he had for his princess really that powerful, or did her grandparents have a hand in the matter? She wanted answers, and the only way to get those answers was the little journey she was about to embrace as she dragged her family into a new and bizarre situation.
Even though Ebony knew and loved her life under the sea, time and time again she wondered what would happen if things were different. What would her life have been like if she were a human girl on the island above? The closer they got to Melody, the more the idea of them poking their heads out of the water, allowing the bright sun to gaze down upon them was beginning to feel a little down, different from how the princess viewed it, resting just beyond the water's veil. Her mind began to wander, and the more she began to wonder: Would she have been a world traveler? What would she do, and how would her family react to the idea of a mermaid going to other worlds? Legs or fins, it didn't matter? Ebony just wanted more than simply being a princess.
She could have been fighting heartless and untold evil, but instead her family stayed in the peaceful comfort of her castle, making out the wonders of the sea, swimming like children, and just not caring about anything. Sure, her mother told her to enjoy the beauty of the sea. But Ebony had grown tired of having only one sea to enjoy, the endless hours of singing, listening to that foolish crab rambling about the sea and land like he was telling her stories rather than seeing them was going to keep her satisfied. Today was the day, and she didn't care if the world order broke, she was getting her wish of freedom or power one way or another.
—--
Ayane smiled, blissfully poking at the veil between them and the surface world. She was happy as a mermaid, she was a princess of the sea and the daughter of the key blade. But she had to admit it to herself, seeing the beautiful blue skies above, and the giant sun above beaming down upon her majestic body and jewelry would make her look even more like a queen than a simple princess. Today was the day when she would prove to herself that she wasn't just a little kid who lived the perfect life, she was a princess who was willing to see the world around her. The first step was making sure Melody was happy with being a mermaid, and then simply enjoying the trip.
Nothing was more important and wonderful than life under the sea—the endless swimming, the music and friends, the feeling that one day her reality of ruling over the kingdom with her family—surely the land above and the world's beyond were a temptation that she wanted to know of to a small extent. But her body and heart yielded to the pleasures of the ocean. She had to make sure that the enjoyment of Melody was more sea than the call of the open air, and the debate of humanity. She didn't want to allow her beliefs to affect the kingdoms and the new friendship she would gain with the younger girl. Furthermore, she could see Ebony's eyes drifting away from the glorious sight of her treasures, but it seemed like more, if felt like she had a different reason for wanting to see her cousin as well. But whatever reason, she has seemed more selfish than improving self-confidence and showing family that life under the sea was better.
"Hey, Ebony, what's the first thing we should do once we meet Melody? Surely the princess would be by the shore, or maybe she climbed on a boat, to meet us. Clearly, we're important enough for a royal member of the family to not be late, right? Oh, oh, maybe they're having a race with those odd seahorses, or she is running here to meet us?" Ayane let out, looking around for the younger princess, only for Ebony to cover her eyes, and pull her back under the sea, as Ayane's grin got bigger in excitement, as the two girls drifted down to their flower garden that their parents met, gently falling until they were nested in a field of flowers. Ebony looked over at a hill with a pair of arms hiding nervously in the distance. Quickly, the princess covered her sister's arms, nodding for Melody to approach them.
—--
Melody felt a sense of excitement as the young mermaid gazed at her cousins, spotting Ebony for the first time in a year and the newest person she had seen in the sea that wasn't a fish or turtle, but another mermaid who had long blond hair, a purple tail, and shells, and was adored in so much jewelry and riches that she must be a queen with the way she dressed, the way her crown and body glowed as the sun beamed above them. Her eyes lit up gazing at the blond princess who must have been the famous Ayane, that her Aunt Alana told her about, oh how she wished to know what that meant to be so full of glamor and yet humble to the people who'd be ruled. As she watched them, it just made the young princess excited, as her long red hair began to spread around her as she inched near them, stopping a few times to make sure she looked her best, it was still a nervous feeling that her parents told her was temporary, but she was still feeling like a wreck.
What if they weren't ok with her coming late, due to her oversleeping, or the fact that her skin was like her mother's, or that she couldn't speak or hear? The only thing they had in common was being princesses, having fishtails, with hers being a bright, orange tail. It made her wonder if she was better off swimming by herself. She quickly shook her head, her parents trusted her to venture deeper into the sea, and it was up to her to grow as a young mermaid, not someone bound to the fear of a sea witch that never returned. She was going to show everyone in the land and sea that she wasn't just an ordinary girl, but someone who was going to face danger with a smile. Melody raised her hands, the young mermaid smiled, as she removed Ebony's hand from Ayane's eyes, allowing the princess to see her face.
Ayane giggled as the silent princess freed her eyes from the dreadful curse of her sister's hands. She could only let out an infectious grin looking at the young mermaid in front of her, and Ebony. Her eyes widened in excitement, watching the girl's excited yet nervous smiles. Quickly, the blond fixed her jewelry and crown, then proceeded to check out the young Latina, hoping to hear the girls' laughter, and feel the pleasures of the sea, for the matter of being in her presence. However, nothing escaped the orange-tailed mermaid's mouth, only for Ayane to try and tickle the poor teen, as Melody began to gasp for air and the sound of nothing to be realized. Ayane's eyes widened as she looked at the redhead. Did she have the same problems that plagued Aunt Ariel, and Gabriella? Nevertheless, Ayane kept her cheerful grin, knowing she was just going to try harder to make Melody feel comfortable.
"Let me guess, Melody?" Ayane whispered, doing her best to smile for the young girl, getting a nod in return, making Ayane feel a little better.
"So, what do you want to do now? We could go for a swim, check out the kingdom, or go back to the surface world." Ayane said, looking at her sister and Melody, wondering what the day would hold now that they were together.
"Let's go up to the surface world for a bit! I think it'll be exciting to see the place that my mother visited so many years ago." Melody declared, signing rapidly as Ayane, and Ebony smiled, looking at each other for a moment, grabbing hold of Melody's hands, swimming quickly above to the surface world, ready to give the princess a day she wouldn't even forget.
—--
Everything was bright, as a young teenage girl opened her eyes to the sight of a warm, sunny beach that had felt all too familiar. Her head was shaking, and her mouth was dry as she took a second to realize what had happened, knowing that the last thing she knew was running away in order to give Twilight a chance at traveling through time. It only took a few minutes for the realization to hit her, with the dreaded and yet puzzling answer to the ultimate question.
"I've somehow traveled back in time with Twilight." Laputa whispered, gazing up at the sky, as tears began to roll down her face. She was back in time to when she was but a little girl, and now they had a bigger chance at stopping the future from its ruin. The only thing left to do now was for Princess Ayane to raise herself from the deep and bring forth the first real test of salvation.