Lucian stared at her.
Red hair, familiar blue eyes. A shy, nervous smile... and legs.
Perfectly human legs, standing on the wooden floor of his house like they belonged there.
"H-How?" Lucian finally managed, the word slipping out before he could stop it.
Ariel hesitated, fingers twisting together as if she wasn't quite sure where to look. "Uhmm… can we talk?" she asked softly. "Inside?"
Lucian blinked once, then twice, his brain still scrambling to catch up.
"…Yeah," he said, stepping aside almost on instinct. "Yeah, come in."
Ariel slipped past him, careful and a little stiff, like she was still getting used to walking. Lucian watched her for half a second longer than he should have, then snapped himself back to reality.
He leaned out the door, glancing left, then right.
The street was quiet. No Vikings and no curious neighbors.
Good.
Lucian closed the door and slid the latch into place, the soft click sounding far louder in the sudden silence.
Only then did he turn back to face her.
Ariel stood near the center of the room, hands clasped in front of her, eyes drifting around curiously then landing on the bed.
More specifically, on the items scattered across it.
Her gaze lingered on the red conch. Then the glass bottle with the ghostly ship inside.
"…You've been busy," she said lightly.
Lucian let out a short, breathless laugh. "That's one way to put it."
He ran a hand through his hair, still trying to wrap his head around the obvious question. "Ariel," he said slowly, carefully, "last time I saw you, you very much did not have legs."
She winced. "Right. About that…"
____
The sea breeze brushed against Hiccup's face as he climbed the familiar path toward the cove, a basket of freshly caught fish slung over his shoulder.
"Toothless!" he called out cheerfully. "I got you the good ones this time—no eel, I promise."
As he reached the top of the ridge, Hiccup slowed.
Something was… off.
He stepped forward and looked down into the cove.
Toothless was there but he wasn't lounging or waiting expectantly like usual. Instead, he was running in excited circles, skidding across the sand, jumping, chirping, and darting back and forth like he'd just discovered fireflies.
Hiccup frowned. "What are you doing, bud—"
Then he saw it.
Another dragon stood in the cove.
Sleek, jet-black, wings folded neatly against a powerful body. A Night Fury but bigger.
Much bigger than Toothless.
Its eyes followed Toothless calmly, head tilting slightly as the smaller dragon bounded around it. The air around it felt… heavy, like the calm before a storm.
Hiccup's breath caught.
"Beard of Thor…" he whispered.
His grip tightened on the basket.
"…It's here."
________
(Lucian's Hut)
The two of them sat side by side on the bed, the room dim and quiet again. Simba lay sprawled between them, fast asleep, his small chest rising and falling steadily as Ariel gently rubbed and patted his head. The tiny lion let out a soft, contented rumble in response.
Lucian exhaled slowly.
"Let me get this straight," he said, breaking the silence. "You made a deal with the sea witch… am I right?"
Ariel nodded.
"And that deal," Lucian continued, standing up as he spoke, "gives you the ability to turn your tail into legs or legs back into a tail whenever you want."
"Yes," Ariel said softly.
"She also gave me knowledge about the Tideborns," Ariel added after a moment.
Lucian paused mid-step. "…Right. That too."
He started pacing, running a hand through his hair. "And all of this for a part of your voice. No other condition. No hidden clause about needing to do something or else you're cursed."
"Uh-huh," Ariel said.
Lucian stopped.
"…That doesn't make sense."
In the story he remembered, Ariel only went to the sea witch when she was pushed past her breaking point desperate, impulsive, and aching to be heard by a family that refused to listen. King Triton's anger, his rigid fear of humans, the way he dismissed her curiosity as childish rebellion. The love she'd developed for Eric, sudden and overwhelming, fueled by her obsession with the human world and the final blow was her collection, the one place where she felt understood, reduced to shattered wreckage by her own father's hand.
That was when she ran.
That was when she made the deal.
But none of that had happened.
And yet here Ariel was walking, breathing, smiling after making a contract that was far too vague for someone like Ursula. The sea witch was cunning and calculating. She never gave something for nothing.
A small yawn interrupted his thoughts.
Simba stirred, blinking sleepily as he lifted his head. He looked around, confused at first… then his eyes landed on Ariel.
In an instant, he was awake.
Simba let out a soft chirp and clambered over, hopping into Ariel's arms before she could react. She gasped lightly but caught him, laughing as the little lion purred loudly and nuzzled into her chest.
"Well hello there, little Simba," Ariel said warmly, stroking his mane.
Simba's tail flicked happily.
Then his nose twitched.
His gaze drifted past Ariel… toward the side of the bed. Toward the items Lucian hadn't bothered to hide.
The red conch.
The glass bottle.
And the tiny, ghostly green ship drifting inside it.
Simba wriggled free from Ariel's arms and dropped onto the bed, hopping down to the floor with a soft thump.
"Simba—wait," Ariel said, reaching out.
Too late.
The cub darted forward, curiosity blazing, tail swishing as he skidded to a stop beside the items. He sniffed once… then twice… then gently pawed at the bottle containing the Flying Dutchman.
"No, no, no don't touch that," Lucian said sharply, lunging forward.
Simba squeaked and bolted, darting away with surprising speed. Ariel moved at the same time, trying to scoop him up, but Simba twisted away, leaping sideways and bouncing off the bed.
"Simba!" Ariel laughed, half-panicked.
"I told you not to—!" Lucian started.
They both moved at once.
BANG!
They collided... hard.
Lucian lost his footing and went down flat on his back with a dull thump, the air knocked clean out of his lungs.
Ariel stumbled forward and landed right on top of him.
They froze.
Lucian lay there, staring up at the ceiling, breath caught somewhere between shock and disbelief.
Ariel blinked, her hands braced against his chest. Her long red hair spilled loose, draping over his shoulders and brushing against his face like a curtain of fire.
Slowly, she lifted her head.
Their eyes met.
For half a second, the world forgot how to move.
Then—
The door burst open.
BAM!
"Lucian, we have a situation—" Hiccup stood in the doorway, bent forward slightly, one hand gripping the doorknob, the other braced against his knee as he caught his breath.
He looked up and froze. "…Here," he finished weakly.
The room went dead silent.
Simba chirped innocently from the corner.
Hiccup stood there, eyes darting from Lucian flat on the floor… to Ariel straddling him… to the curtain of red hair spilling over both of them.
His brain visibly stalled.
"…I—" Hiccup started, then stopped. He blinked once... then again.
"This is not what it looks like," Lucian blurted out immediately.
Ariel squeaked and scrambled back so fast she nearly tripped over Simba, landing on her knees beside Lucian with her face burning red.
There was a long pause.
Hiccup slowly nodded.
"Uh-huh," he said. "…Yeah. Right."
Lucian opened his mouth. "Hiccup—"
"I guess I've got… really bad timing," Hiccup continued, already reaching for the door. He stepped backward, carefully, eyes never leaving the room.
The door creaked as he pulled it closed.
"Find me after you're… done," Hiccup added, his voice drifting back as he eased the door closed.
Click.
Silence returned.
Lucian stared at the door. Ariel's face was bright red.
Simba flicked his tail.
"…I can explain," Lucian muttered to no one in particular.