Disclaimer: I don't own the Little Mermaid, I just love it to death. But all the characters you don't recognize, are ones that I made up. Enjoy.

Oh, so if I put bold, it means that it changes from Arianna to Ariel or vice versa, if it's not, it's just a different scene :)

Ch 1- Under the Sea

As usual Ariel was late for her lesson. Sebastian knew she was off wondering some new shipwreck she had probably found, but she was supposed to be practicing for the upcoming concert her father was holding to celebrate his seven wonderful daughters. Her father hoped this time she would make it on time, since she had missed the last one.

Ariel, was wondering a shipwreck, but was quickly growing bored since she had found a couple new things that she would ask Scuttle about immediately; she was waiting for Cephan, who was still digging around in the shipwreck.

“Cephan, are you ready yet? I’m going to be killed for missing my lesson.” She called to the merman who was making her late.

“Just a minute, I’m almost done.” He replied, digging through the umpteenth pile of human stuff. “A ha! Found it!”

Ariel rolled her eyes, he said that about everything he found. “Come on, Cephan….today would be nice and not the next wave cycle.”

“Ok, I’m done. Don’t get your scales in a twist.” He replied, swimming ahead of her, while Flounder, her flounder friend, swum alongside her.

“Ariel, your father is going to kill you!” he said, worrying about her father more than the crab who was in charge of the recital.

“Not if he never finds out he was late, besides if Sebastian tells him, I’ll have to threaten that crab with the time that I caught him reading sheet music he had found in the Museum. “

“I thought Sebastian didn’t like human stuff?” Flounder asked.

“It’s music, Sebastian likes anything that has a music note on it.” She replied.

“Ariel, are you coming? You’re slower than kelp!” he teased. Cephan had been her friend for as long as she could remember. They had done everything together and in tide school they had always been teased that they would someday marry each other and live happily ever after…yeah right, Ariel had always thought. She never liked Cephan in that way and she wished for more than a merman to marry…she had heard the stories of humans and hoped that one day she would be able to go to the surface and find a human who would love her…

Arianna walked along the shoreline of the beach lost in her thoughts. “Arianna!”

She turned around, “Eric, what are you doing out here? Aren’t you supposed to be writing out invitations or practicing the latest dance step?” she teased.

“No, Mom wanted me to come looking for you.” He replied. Eric was her older brother, but only by two years. He was eighteen, and required by law to marry someone by his nineteenth birthday, which wasn’t far away. Arianna had always thought that it was unfair for him to be forced to marry someone before he would even go to university, but since he was heir to the throne, he would probably not be attending university; it was she who would get that privilege and every other one that Eric wouldn’t get.

“Arianna? Are you okay?” Eric asked, tapping her on the shoulder.

“Yeah, I’m fine. You said Mom wanted me?” she replied.

“Yeah, she’s in the ballroom.” Arianna knew that if her mom was in the ballroom then it had to be something containing her future…again.

Ariel arrived at the rehearsal to find it just ending. “Perfect timing.” Cephan whispered to her as Sebastian swam up to her.

“Where have you been, young lady?” he asked.

“Oh, just exploring, as usual.” She said, hoping to play it off like she’d forgotten, but she knew Sebastian would know better.

“Sure, dis’ is your second to last rehearsal before the concert. Miss the next one and I’ll have to tell your father.”

“Aw, Sebastian, don’t tell her father!” Flounder said, swimming up to Ariel’s side.

“Don’t you tell me who I can and can’t tell!” Sebastian said. “Go warm up and I’ll practice with you privately and tell your father I was giving you private lessons instead.”

Ariel hugged the crab, much to his dismay. “Thanks, Sebastian! I owe you!” she said, swimming to her room to put her things down.

“Well, that went well.” Cephan said, joining her since he lived in the palace as well.

She pushed him and swam faster. He caught up within seconds and grabbed her. She squealed and tried to wriggle out of his grasp. “I don’t think so.” He replied, tickling her. She couldn’t stop laughing. “Cephan,” she tried to say but couldn’t due to losing breath. He stopped long enough to let her catch her breath. He started to tickle her again.

“Ariel!” a voice boomed.

Cephan immediately stopped tickling her. “Yes Daddy?” she said, looking up at her father. King Triton was not a person to mess with. He was rarely in a bad mood, but when he was, stay clear, and if you were human, there was a storm like no other on land to show you how angry he was.

“I’d like to talk to you…alone.” He said.

“Yes Daddy.” She said. She turned towards Cephan. “I’ll meet up with you later.”

“Ok, see you later King T.” he said, swimming off. Cephan was the one boy King Triton could handle and he was the only one who could call him ‘King T’ anyone else would have been sent to the end of the sea if they ever called him anything other than King Triton or Your Majesty. The King hoped, even wished, that Ariel would eventually marry Cephan, he would be glad if she ever found any merman to love, he wasn’t getting any younger and Ariel, despite the fact that she was sixteen, she would only get older, meaning the King wanted to see grandchildren before he departed the throne.

In the mer-world, merfolk didn’t ever die. They abdicated the throne, or title of head of the family; that was why the mer-people were always happy and lively never depressed or lonely.

Arianna found her mother in the ballroom like her brother said. “Mom?” she said, seeing her mother standing in the middle of the ballroom…with another person next to her.

Lovely, my mother has found me another suitor, when will she realize that half of the people she brings me are stuck up snobs or people who are only marrying me for my money…she sighed as she reached her mother and the man next to her.

She curtsied to her mother, who was first mother but above all queen of the country, and then to the man beside her, whoever the heck he may be.

“Arianna, I would like you to me Lord Dauntor.” He mother said, gesturing towards the man beside her.

Arianna curtsied, only because she was supposed to appear to be polite, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lord Dauntor. Despite the fact that I’ve said this to at least fifteen other Lords, Dukes and even a king, so don’t push your luck, Arianna thought sourly. Her mother had been presenting her with suitors for about a solid year now, and it was getting old fast, she didn’t like a single one of them.

He bowed to her. “The pleasure is all mine.” He replied, smiling. Arianna couldn’t help but notice this lord was at least close to her in age.

She dared to ask him a question, “If you don’t mine me asking, how old are you, my Lord?” she asked.

“I don’t mind at all, I’m twenty.” He replied.

Well, at least he was younger than the rest of the suitors my mother has brought. “Oh, good. Everyone else my mother has brought has been twice or thrice my age.” She said, clasping a hand over her mouth at her mother’s expression. “I mean..”

He laughed, and a genuine laugh, not forced like everyone else had when she asked them a question. “That’s no problem at all.” He said, “My father has done that to me, except every girl has been at least young enough to be a sister to me.”

It was her turn to laugh, and then instantly turn red. She could actually get to know this Lord Dauntor, maybe he would be one that she could see herself marrying.

“Well, I have errands to attend to.” Her mother stated, “I’ll see you two later for dinner, you are staying Lord Dauntor, are you not?”

“Of course, Your Majesty.” He replied, with a short bow which left him and Arianna alone, in the ballroom.

Well, this is awkward, Arianna thought. Her mother had never left her with a suitor before, maybe it was sign or something, Arianna waved it away.

“Are you okay?” Lord Dauntor asked.

“Oh, no I’m fine. Just thinking, that’s all, my Lord.” She added.

“Call me Phillip.” He asked.

“Oh,” she said, a little stunned, “Okay, Phillip.” She said, feeling a little weird actually saying his first name. This was a first for her, calling a lord or duke by their first name..

“So,” Phillip started, “what exactly do you do for fun around here?”

“Oh, um, I usually just walk on the beach and try to imagine myself as a normal person.” She responded.

“That’s sounds like fun, do you mind joining me for a walk then?” he said, offering his arm.

She took it hesitantly, What could she lose? Besides another pointless suitor? She led the way to the beach.

Finally, Ariel thought after her two hours of private rehearsal with Sebastian. He was tougher in private than he was with the rest of the students. Every note was supposed to be the perfect pitch and if you messed up, you couldn’t exactly blame it on another student. She searched for Flounder but when she couldn’t find Flounder or Cephan, she knew something was up with the two of them.

“Cephan? Flounder?” she called out. She looked all around and couldn’t find them anywhere. She even asked their moms if they knew where they were; they couldn’t say where they were.

Deciding that she would try to find them later, she swam to her secret grotto that only Flounder and her knew about. Pushing the rock aside, she swam into her serenity. It was the only place to go when she was stressed or just needed to be alone, except today…

“SURPRISE!!” Flounder and Cephan yelled, throwing kelpfetti at her.

“What’s the occasion you two?” she asked.

The two friends looked at each other, “You mean you don’t know what today is?” Flounder asked.

Ariel had no idea what they were talking about. “It’s your birthday, silly fish!” Cephan said, pulling a present from behind his back.

Ariel had been so caught up with rehearsals and finding human things that she had forgotten that today was her seventeenth birthday! How could I forget my own birthday? She thought, Only stupid people would forget their own birthdays. But her sisters and her father hadn’t said anything to her that day and she had seen them all multiple times, maybe they had forgotten too..

She hugged both of her friends. “Thanks you guys. You are the best. And to think, I had forgotten my own birthday, what’s next?” She laughed.

“Open your present.” Cephan said, handing her a gift wrapped in kelpweed.

She opened it. It was a locket. She opened the locket and in it was a picture of Flounder, herself and Cephan when they had gone to the faire and took a couple of funny pictures.

“Aww. You guys are so cute.” She said, giving them both a huge hug. “Let’s go back to Atlantica and see what the rest of my family is up to.” She grabbed their fin and arm and the trio headed to Atlantica.

“So, where exactly are you from?” Arianna asked Phillip. She’d never quite get over that name.

“My father is a Duke in Cornwalth but I grew up in Grendorsea.” He replied.

“Oh, I have friends in Cornwalth.” She mused.

“Are they noble?” he asked.

“No, I went to a school up in North Cornwalth and they were there as well, normal commoners as the nobles would say.” Nobles, like everyone knew, were not supposed to be seen with commoners. But Arianna had attended the school of Secretia and meet a couple of girls who she liked, and not just for the fact that they were commoners. It was more of an added bonus because the girls were very easy to get along with instead of the normal people she hung out with: rich, stuck-up snob children; she was getting quite bored with them.

“Oh, that’s great. I have normal friends as well, though my dad doesn’t want me to ever spend time with them.” Phillip said.

“Friends from school?” Arianna asked.

“No, just children of the servants.” He responded.

“Well, at least we have some things in common.” She said, stopping to gaze out at the horizon.

“What are you thinking about?” he asked.

“What it would be like to live under the sea instead of above it. What it must be like to those who do and not have to worry about anything in the world.”

He smiled. “What do you mean ‘those who live under it’?”

“Don’t you know that mermaids live under the waves, in Atlantica?” she said.

“No, I’ve never heard that story.” He said.

“Oh, well a bunch of the sailors say that under the sea is a whole kingdom of mer-people, all ruled under by King Triton. No one really believes them except for me and my brother.”

“Eric, I presume?” he said.

“Yeah. He is supposed to be married by the end of this year, who knows if he’ll find the right girl or not?”

“What about you, have you found that special someone yet?” he said, looking down at her.

She looked up into his eyes and smiled. “Maybe.” She said, before he leaned down and kissed her.