And so the time passed. She performed for her visitors by day, and in the evening, she would talk with Christopher. And as the days went by, Ariel felt her feelings for him growing. She began worrying—she didn't want to be torn between the land and the sea, her family and her heart. But let's put her worries aside until they come to a head. After all, in the following month, only two days stood out enough to be worth telling.
The first was when Christopher brought Cassia with him, about three weeks after his first visit to Ariel. Cassia was small, made smaller by her enormous, black, swirling skirts. Her skin was sallow and her eyes rimmed with red, as if she spent every private moment in tears. Ariel immediately pitied her. And from what she could tell at first glance, Cassia was no more attracted to Christopher than he was to her.
She gawked at Ariel, her wonder almost childlike. Ariel pulled herself out of the water and sat on the wide, curving edge of the tank. The wall of this area only reached waist-high, due to the floor sloping upward, and so by sitting there, she was just about even with anyone who came by.
"And Cassia," Christopher said as they approached, "are you listening to me? This is very important. Do not tell anyone that we went to see the mermaid. Now, don't be afraid of her, okay? She's very nice. Her name is Ari, and she'll be happy to meet you."
Cassia nodded silently, still staring.
Christopher began talking to Ariel, but all she noticed was Cassia's expressions. She looked in awe at first, but in the space of an instant, her awe turned to fear.
"Christopher, I don't think we should be here," she said.
"But ye have only just arrived!" Ariel objected.
Cassia looked scared. "Please, let's leave."
Christopher leaned over to whisper to Ariel. "Since the death of her parents, she hasn't been the same. She's prone to panic attacks and worries."
It was a hard choice to make—after all, Christopher was Ariel's only friend at the time, and she saw him too little. But she knew what she should do, what the right thing to do was. "Then ye ought to go, if it'll make her feel better. But come see me tomorrow."
"I always do, Ari. See you tomorrow."
"Good-bye," she said, and held out her hand for his usual farewell gift... but this time was slightly different. (Oh, don't go starting a riot yet. He only hugged her. Kissing isn't an essential part of a fairy tale, you know!)
"Christopher, we need to leave," Cassia insisted, anxiously shifting her weight from one foot to the other.
Ariel pulled away from the hug, looked over at Cassia, and gave her a playful smile. "Now, why're ye jumpin' around like that? If ye need to relieve yourself, there's a powder room down that passageway and to the left."
Cassia looked exasperated, and much more animated than she had been before. "No! Please, can we just leave?"
Ariel smiled at Christopher. "Ye'd best be going. If ye don't, your lady m—MMPH?!"
(Okay, I lied. It's 100% an essential part of a fairy tale. So sue me.)
Cassia cried out in dismay upon seeing their embrace. "Why don't you ever listen to me? Why did you—oh, Christopher, your mother's been watching us these past five minutes, and she does frighten me so!"
He stumbled backwards with a gasp, and frantically looked around. Sure enough, a woman was standing at the far end of the garden walk, arms crossed.
"Go now," Ariel whispered, still a bit dazed.
Christopher grabbed Cassia's hand and ran, stumbling along the stone pathways.
The woman strode after them, not chasing, but pursuing. She stopped by Ariel's tank and gazed into the water. Ariel, frozen with fear, sunk beneath the surface.
The Queen smiled a chilling smile and strode on.
Christopher did not come the next day, nor the day after that. But on the third evening, he appeared, and with a guest. She had beautiful tanned skin and long black hair, and for a second Ariel wondered who she was. But then she walked up to the side of the pool, close enough for Ariel to see her face.
"Ari," Christopher said, as calmly as if the last visit had never happened—something Ariel could not pretend. "This is Anastasia. Anastasia, this is Ari. But I believe you've already met."
With a happy sob, Ariel flew into her sister's arms.
"We were so worried," Anastasia told her sister through tears of her own, "We thought they had killed you. We had no idea you were a prisoner. I am so, so sorry we didn't come sooner. Dear sister, forgive us."
Ariel pulled away, looking her older sibling in the face. "Annie, I never held anything against ye. Where are the others?"
"Back on the ship. We're at the dock. If you want, we can get you out of here, right now! We can go home!"
Ariel looked away.
Anastasia frowned. "Ari, you have to come with us."
"I know." Ariel thought deeply for a moment, then sighed. "One more day. I want one more day here. Then I'll leave."
"Be at the docks by sundown tomorrow," Anastasia sternly informed her, "Don't be late."
Ariel nodded. "I'll be there."
Anastasia stepped back. "I can't stay much longer. I don't want anyone to see me. But you be sure to—"
"Yeah, yeah, be at the docks by sundown."
Anastasia left, and Ariel turned to Christopher.
He crossed his arms. "So, why does she have legs and you have a tail? I recall you saying that sirens shapeshift, not mermaids. You haven't been a siren this whole time, have you?"
She hesitated, stammering for an answer, but he just smiled, and she realized he'd been teasing. Reaching up, he placed a hand on her cheek.
"You could have told me you weren't a mermaid."
"Ye could have told me ye were a prince," she whispered, pushing his hand away.
He smiled. "We all have our secrets, don't we?"
"I'm leaving. Ye know that. Now's not the time to get further attached. We may never see each other again."
"But we will," he said.
"No," she said, "you're just making this harder, Christopher. Good-bye, and thank ye."
She paused, then slid a golden ring off her finger and pressed it into his hands. It was intricately designed, with a mermaid pattern pressed clearly into it. Every girl in her family wore one—an identifying mark for the Mermaid's crew.
"If ye ever must set out to sea, wear this. I swear to ye, Christopher, no harm will come to ye by our hand."
She turned around and began to swim away.
"Ari! Ari, wait!" Christopher called, "Ari!"
"WHAT?!" she snapped, afraid to turn around and reveal the sadness in her eyes.
And then Christopher spoke four words that changed everything: "I'm coming with you."
YOU ARE READING
The Little Maid: Tail Not Included
FantasyThis is not the true story. Indeed, it's unlikely we will ever know the true story; it has been lost to time. But this is certainly closer than the stories you have heard before. The story I am going to tell is about a family of pirates, a boy of no...
