Fic [The Little Mermaid]: The Span of a Year - Eric/Ariel
Title: The Span of a Year
Rating: G
Word Count: 461
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Summary: For the prompt "changing of the seasons" @ Comment fic on livejournal. Eric and Ariel learn through the seasons over a span of a year.
When the leafs begin to change, Eric laughs as Ariel gazes in wonder at their altered color. She sticks a few into her hair, running inside to use their bedroom mirror. He agrees with her that they almost match.
As the leafs give way to bare branches and cold winds, he finds a different kind of chill running up his spine. Ariel has barely gotten used to really dressing up, much less bundling up for a cold weather she barely understands. But she merely shakes her head at his worried face, and throws on another shawl. It's more reassurance for him than warmth for her.
The reassurance seems for naught when he wakes up one morning to the sound of her coughing relentlessly. Grimsby sends for the doctor while Eric calls for tea to soothe her throat. It's the first day since their honeymoon that she has not risen from bed to greet the sun.
He finds his hands rubbing his face tiredly three days later. It's stress and exasperation and relief that she's getting better. Eric knows he isn't the sort of man prone to pessimism, but the back of his mind has been nagging him with warnings of influenza and pneumonia, all the things that he has no idea if a mermaid-turned-human can withstand.
A week later, Ariel tells him she wants to go outside. He helps her wrap herself up in four coats and they venture out together. Seeing her cooped up has been just as bad as seeing her ill. Ariel needs freedom more than she needs her health.
That tension that's been knotting his back since the first snowfall is released when she lobs her first snowball into his face. Eric lets go of his fear and retaliates.
When the first buds of Spring peak out form their white blankets, Ariel insists they throw a party. Eric is surprised at first, but delighted as she outlines her plans. It isn't a royal party, really. It's an almost childlike setup of plates and cups and musical instruments to which only those closest, be they servant or sea creature, are invited.
They sail constantly with the advent of Summer. He teaches her how to swim like a human and she instructs him in how to play the flute like a fish. It's revelry and music and warmth... so much warmth. From the sun, from the cook-fires, from the laughter, from her.
He treasures these things up in his memory as the leafs change color again. He uses them to keep his love and himself warm as the winds blow harder.
They add layers of blankets to their bed, learning from the past. They nestle together under piles of wool, whispering their anticipations of what each new season brings.
f.i.n.
Rating: G
Word Count: 461
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Summary: For the prompt "changing of the seasons" @ Comment fic on livejournal. Eric and Ariel learn through the seasons over a span of a year.
When the leafs begin to change, Eric laughs as Ariel gazes in wonder at their altered color. She sticks a few into her hair, running inside to use their bedroom mirror. He agrees with her that they almost match.
As the leafs give way to bare branches and cold winds, he finds a different kind of chill running up his spine. Ariel has barely gotten used to really dressing up, much less bundling up for a cold weather she barely understands. But she merely shakes her head at his worried face, and throws on another shawl. It's more reassurance for him than warmth for her.
The reassurance seems for naught when he wakes up one morning to the sound of her coughing relentlessly. Grimsby sends for the doctor while Eric calls for tea to soothe her throat. It's the first day since their honeymoon that she has not risen from bed to greet the sun.
He finds his hands rubbing his face tiredly three days later. It's stress and exasperation and relief that she's getting better. Eric knows he isn't the sort of man prone to pessimism, but the back of his mind has been nagging him with warnings of influenza and pneumonia, all the things that he has no idea if a mermaid-turned-human can withstand.
A week later, Ariel tells him she wants to go outside. He helps her wrap herself up in four coats and they venture out together. Seeing her cooped up has been just as bad as seeing her ill. Ariel needs freedom more than she needs her health.
That tension that's been knotting his back since the first snowfall is released when she lobs her first snowball into his face. Eric lets go of his fear and retaliates.
When the first buds of Spring peak out form their white blankets, Ariel insists they throw a party. Eric is surprised at first, but delighted as she outlines her plans. It isn't a royal party, really. It's an almost childlike setup of plates and cups and musical instruments to which only those closest, be they servant or sea creature, are invited.
They sail constantly with the advent of Summer. He teaches her how to swim like a human and she instructs him in how to play the flute like a fish. It's revelry and music and warmth... so much warmth. From the sun, from the cook-fires, from the laughter, from her.
He treasures these things up in his memory as the leafs change color again. He uses them to keep his love and himself warm as the winds blow harder.
They add layers of blankets to their bed, learning from the past. They nestle together under piles of wool, whispering their anticipations of what each new season brings.
f.i.n.