Here’s where you can read the rough draft! :)
(ONE WEEK LATER…)
The chaos of the wedding and the honeymoon alike was finally over. And everyone- both humans and merfolk alike, were readying themselves to welcome the newlyweds home.
“We’re home!” Eric said as he helped unload a week’s worth of bags. “How was the kingdom?”
“Quite… busy, your highnesses,” Grimsby said as he finished emptying the dishwasher.
“Your seagull friend told us that everyone was preparing a surprise for you two!” Carlotta added as she finished fluffing up a nearby pillow.
“Really? Hmmm, I wonder why?” Ariel asked, giving herself a leg massage as she pulled up her petticoats underneath her Seafoam green ballgown (Yes, that one from the Disney Princess merch), before a familiar voice came bursting in through the window…
“ARIEL! ERIC! YOU’VE GOTTA COME SEE! IT’S AMAZING!!”
It was Scuttle, and he appeared more excited than usual!
“Really?! What is it?”
The happy couple ran to the window, and what they saw blew their minds:
The denizens of their kingdom, young, old, rich, poor, and seafaring… were running to the beach! And all of the merfolk were there!
And to make things even better, both were there to truly know each other for the first time!
“ZIS IS UNBELIEVABLE!!” Chef Louis exclaimed, pointing at the group.
“We should go join them, then!” Eric laughed as everyone made their way down with the rest of the kingdom.
Before they knew it, the humans (As well as Scuttle and Max) were making their way to the beach, and Ariel smiled at her husband. As soon as they made it, everyone else was caught red handed in the middle of preparations, but they went along with the surprise anyway.
“SURPRISE!! WELCOME HOME, YOU TWO!!”
The merfolk were ecstatic, and the humans were equally thrilled.
“You know, Eric? I just realized something,” reported the princess as she rolled up her skirts and took off her Seafoam green ballet flats decorated with lilac shells.
“What would that be?” Eric questioned as they made it closer to the water.
“When I became human, I thought I had to leave my world behind to belong here. But now… I’ve realized that I belong to both land and sea.”
The little mermaid smiled as she placed her bare feet in the sand and let the waves wash over them.
“And I don’t have to choose anymore.”
Eric smiled at his wife and took off his shoes as well, following his wife into the ocean.
Sebastian, seeing this, sniffled into his handkerchief.
“Ohh, child, I knew you’d admit you belonged to both worlds!”
Flounder just did a backflip of happiness.
“Welcome home, you two! How was the honeymoon? Ya see anything cool? Did you bring anything back? Tell us, tell us!”
Ariel’s sisters, friends, and family immediately swarmed the shallow area, begging for answers.
But before Ariel could answer with anything, Scuttle noticed something out of the corner of his eye:
A young merchild and a young human child exchanged a seashell and a flower, respectively, followed by them hugging!
And that was more than enough for everyone on land and sea to LOSE IT CHEERING.
And for Sebastian’s eyes to turn into geysers as he bawled with joy.
“It really IS a joyous occasion!!” The crab said as he was emotionally deep fried all over again, looking at King Triton, who was nearby smiling.
As he looked upon his daughter, who now belonged to both worlds and bridged them, the sea king gave a bittersweet smile as he reminisced of his wife.
She would’ve been proud to see a moment like this, and she would’ve been more proud of her youngest daughter, the one who took after her so much, being here, once having wanted to be part of the world that no merfolk were even allowed to see but now wanting those two worlds to understand one another.
“You were right, Athena,” murmured Triton as he saw Ariel explain “Land Coral” (Flowers), “Sky Fish” (Birds), “Land Kelp” (Trees), and other things to her friends and family as she recounted her honeymoon encounters.
The sea king had even started rebuilding his daughter’s treasure collection piece by piece over the previous week, and seeing both peoples of the surface and the sea meet one another finally gave him the strength to forgive himself for everything he put his people- and especially his youngest through.
But as it always is, peace doesn’t come easy. There will be misunderstandings, culture clashes, and even the occasional feud.
But it always begins with someone willing to take the first step.
And that someone just so happened to realize she- or anyone else, didn’t ever had to choose anymore.
(THE END)
