Reunion || Ariel & Killian
Ariel had known early on he didn't want children, that he detested the very idea of being tied down by a passel of loudmouthed little brats. But she had hoped that, with time, he might have changed his mind, that his heart might have softened to the idea for her sake. That he might have grown to understand her need to be a mother. Sadly, those hopes were usually met a harsh words that lashed at her dreams like a whip, beating down all hope she had of having a family of her own.
She loved him. Far more than she had grown to love her prince. But with how set he was in his views, and how much she longed for a child, she realized that despite that love, they weren’t a good match. And she had slipped away on a quiet night, in spite of his earlier insistence she stay at his side.
That’s not to say she didn’t still harbor some affection for him even after her departure. And it was difficult not to, with how often she saw him. On her daughter’s face. Melody was the spitting image of her father, with thick black hair and the same deep blue pools for eyes. The little one even had her father’s mannerisms, dimpled little hands gesturing wildly whenever she was excited.
From Ariel, she merely inherited her love for music, something the mermaid quickly learned during her child’s first days of life. A simple melody was enough to soothe her, even when she was particularly fussy, and it was for this reason Ariel gave the girl her namesake.
When she had first found out she was expecing, Ariel considered searching for Killian. However the memory of their last fight before her departure always stopped her , his words cruel and sharp echoing in her head and until her heart ached. She had little doubt he had changed his mind in the time since they’d last seen each other, and eventually she decided she didn’t want to expose her daughter to his rejection. And so she shelved all thoughts of searching for him, focusing on caring for her baby as she forgot about the possibility that they might meet again.
That was until this morning. The market was always a busy place, especially on a sunny day like this that seemed to encourage everyone to gather. Normally, Ariel liked to take her daughter out to the market for lunch, and then to the docks to watch the ships before taking her to the beach where she could enjoy the splashing waves along the shore. She usually paid little attention to the other denizens nor the sailors disembarking. So she might have missed seeing him in the crowd had it not been for the familiar boom of his voice berating Smee. A voice she would have dismissed as simply someone who sounded like Killian had it not been for the mention of his boatswain. At that, her head whipped around to the source of the yelling, and her stomach dropped as wide eyes fell on the familiar figure.
Her grip tightened slightly on Melody’s, who was far too invested in a wedge of orange to notice her mother had frozen in place. And when Ariel took too long standing around doing nothing, the toddler looked up, and tugged at her mother’s skirt to call her attention, offering her half the wedge she hadn’t finished. Ariel looked down, her free hand instinctively extended to accept the half-eaten fruit as her mind raced, unsure what to do.
She could go up to him, she thought. Perhaps even introduce him to her daughter. Perhaps he might think differently if he saw her. Perhaps they might have another chance. Her mind quickly changed, however, as Killian turned so that she caught glimpse of a small child in his arms, and her stomach began to knot until a sharp breath left her lips. The little one was only a bit younger than Melody, and there was no mistaking she belonged to Killian, and on seeing the smile that curved his lips as he looked at the little girl in his arms, she felt her heart break.
So it wasn’t that Killian didn’t want children, she thought, the knot in her stomach tightening until she felt herself grow sick. It was that Killian didn’t want children with her. Why else would he have been so against a family only for her to come across him later with a child of his own?
She felt foolish, furious at Killian, yes. But even more so at herself for having spent so much of herself on a man who never loved her as she did him. Clearly whoever he found, he thought was worth making a home with, and the siren had only been a passing fancy. Ariel was hurt, and she could feel the unwelcome and familiar sting of tears that couldn’t be shed no matter how much she tried.
Looking down at Melody, her tongue ran across her lips as she made a decision. Killian hadn’t seen her. And he wasn’t going to if she was quick. He didn’t need to know she lived there. Nor did he have to know about the daughter he didn’t want.
Quickly, Ariel scooped her toddler up in her arms, her bag slipping off her shoulder as Melody’s arms wrapped around her mother’s neck. She gathered the few items that spilled out, leaving the remaining half of an orange on the floor as passerby trampled over it in spite of her daughter’s protestations. A big mistake, she realized, as Melody began crying about the mushed up fruit.
“Sh-sh.” Ariel tried to soothe her, patting her back before offering her the chunk of orange that remained, but Melody was indignant, and swatted it out of her mother’s hand. That was when she felt his eyes on her, and in spite of Smee’s voice just barely reaching her, she recognized her name.
In an instant she was moving through the crowd, her feet carrying her and her daughter out of the square as quickly as possible. He had seen her, possibly only a glimpse. But the fact that Smee also recognized her would have been enough to send him following, surely. And the quicker she got out of there and back to her little hut in the woods, the better. He did
