The Girl with the Green Tail

Chapter Fourteen: A Voice for a Dance ("Poor Unfortunate Souls")

"Thissss way," said the eels, guiding Ariel into Ursula's lair.
Ariel followed the two eels into the lair, which had a most peculiar doorway. There were worm-like creatures that Ariel looked at with disgust and fear. One reached up and grabbed her, and she wrestled free from it, when she heard a high, raspy voice, gentle in tone, speak, "Come in... Come in, my child."
To Ariel, the voice sounded all too familiar... Like one she had heard from somewhere before...
Ariel, after her fight with the creature, immediately swam into the center of Ursula's lair.
"We mustn't lurk in doorways," said the voice, "it's rude. But, who am I to question your upbringing? Mm-mm-mm..."
Ursula had purplish skin, an white hair, but the most unusual thing about Ursula's appearance was the fact that she had tentacles, as an octopus would. She sat down in front of a mirror, and began to fix herself up.
Ursula spoke, "Now, you're here because you have a thing for this here human," she put some gel into her hair, "this wizard fellow," she turned to face Ariel. "Not that I blame you," she said. "He is quite a catch isn't he?" She chuckled lightly. "Now, angelfish," Ursula applied some lipstick to her lips, "the answer to your problem is simple." She continued to look in the mirror, not facing Ariel. "The only way to get what you want... is to become a human yourself."
Ariel looked hopefully in Ursula's direction. "Can... Can you do that?" Ariel asked.
Ursula glanced sideways towards Ariel, an evil grin sweeping across her face. "My dear, sweet child, that's what I do. It's what I live for. To help unfortunate merfolk," she extended one of her tentacles to touch Ariel underneath her chin, "like yourself." Ariel pulled away, frightened. "Poor souls, with no one else to turn to..."
Ursula began to sing, "I admit that in the past, I've been a nasty. They weren't kidding when they called me, well, a witch... But you'll find that, now-a-days, I've mended all my ways; repented, seen the light, and made a switch! True? Yes..."
Ursula floated over to her cauldron. "And I fortunately know a little magic. It's a talent that I always have possessed." With a wave of her hand, the cauldron opened, ready to be used. "And here lately - please don't laugh! - I use it on behalf of the miserable," a merman appeared in the cauldron, who seemed really upset, "the lonely," a mermaid appears next to the merman, much rounder than he was, and also looked sad, "and depressed."
Ursula turned to her eels - whose names were Flotsam and Jetsam - and whispered, "Pathetic!"
She began to sing again, "Poor unfortunate souls. In pain, in need." She indicated the round mermaid, "This one longing to be thinner," she then indicated the merman, "and that one wants to get the girl. And do I help them?" She snapped her fingers; instantly, the round mermaid was thin and beautiful, and the merman gained muscles, and the both the merman and mermaid embraced each other in a hug. "Yes, indeed! Those poor unfortunate souls! So sad, so true! They come flocking to my cauldron, crying 'Spells, Ursula, please!' And I help them? Yes, I do!"
She began to have a rather serious look on her face. "Now, it's happened once or twice, someone couldn't pay the price. And, I'm afraid, I had to rake 'em 'cross the coals." She waved her hand over both the merman and mermaid, and they became one of the worm-like creatures Ariel had seen upon entering the lair.
She closed the cauldron with another wave of her hand. "Yes, I've had the odd complaint. But on the whole, I've been a saint... to those poor unfortunate souls!"
She grabbed Ariel with one of her tentacles, pulling her towards the cauldron. "Now, here's the deal," Ursula spoke. "I have a spell that will turn you into a human for three days. You got that? Three days."
Ursula reopened the cauldron with her hands. "Now, listen here, this is important!" In the cauldron, three circles shown, representing the sun of three different days. The three suns moved in a semicircle-like pattern. "Before the sun sets on the third day, you've got to get dear old wizard lover boy to fall in love with you." A wand appeared in the cauldron and a heart next to it.
"That is, he's got to kiss you," she said. "Not just any kiss; the kiss of true love." The heart in the cauldron shone brightly, indicating "true love".
"If he does kiss you before the sun sets on the third day, you'll remain human permanently!" At this, Ariel beamed.
Sebastian and Flounder quietly entered Ursula's lair, in hopes of getting Ariel out before it was too late.
"But, if he doesn't, you'll turn back into a mermaid and..." Ursula closed the cauldron again. "...you belong to me!"
"No, Ariel!!" Sebastian shouted, causing Flotsam and Jetsam to rush over and lock themselves around Sebastian and Flounder, trapping them and restraining them from shouting out to Ariel anymore.
"Have we got a deal?" asked Ursula.
"If I become human..." Ariel said, "I'll never be with my father or sisters again..."
"That's right," Ursula said. "But, you'll have your man..." She chuckled evilly. "Life's full of tough choices, isn't it?"
Ariel looked down at the floor of the lair. "Oh! And there is one more thing..." Ursula said. "We haven't discussed the subject of payment! You can't get something for nothing, you know!"
"But I haven't got any-" Ariel began.
"I'm not asking much," Ursula interrupted. "Just a token, really a trifle! You'll never even miss it. What I want from you is... your voice."
Ariel's hand reached up and touched her throat. "My... my voice?" she stammered.
"That's right," said the Sea Witch. "No more talking, singing, zip!"
"But, without my voice," Ariel said, "how can I ever-"
"You'll have your looks!" Ursula interrupted. "Your pretty face! And don't underestimate the importance of body language! Ha!"
She began to sing again. "The men up there don't like a lot of blabber! They think a girl who gossips is a bore!" She began to find ingredients for her potion to turn Ariel human. "Yes, on land it's much preferred for ladies not to say a word! And, after all, dear, what is idle prabble for? Come on! Men aren't all that impressed with conversation!" She threw many different ingredients into her cauldron, causing smoke to come out. "True gentlemen avoid it when they can! But they dote and swoon and fawn on a lady who's withdrawn. And it's she who holds her tongue who gets her man!" She held up a tongue and threw it into the cauldron as an ingredient.
"Come on, you poor unfortunate soul!" Ursula sang, "Go ahead! Make your choice!"
She waved her hand, showing Ariel an image of Harry, and Ariel looked into Harry's eyes dreamily. "I'm a very busy woman, and I haven't got all day, it won't cost much!"
Harry's mouth moved, but Ursula's voice came out, "Just your voice!" Harry's face was gone, replaced with Ursula's and the smoke from the creation of the potion.
"You poor unfortunate soul! It's sad, but true! If you want to cross a bridge, my sweet, you've got to pay the toll!" She waved her hand again, and a yellow scroll appeared, with a pen for Ariel to sign it with. "Take a gulp, and take a breath, and go ahead and sign the scroll!"
Ursula leaned in towards Flotsam and Jetsam, and sang, "Flotsam, Jetsam, now I've got her, boys!" She then sang louder, and swam to the roof of her lair. "The boss is on a roll!" She pointed towards Ariel, "This poor! Unfortunate! Soul!"
Ariel signed the scroll, and the scroll floated quickly to Ursula, then disappeared into thin water.
Ursula grinned evilly and turned to her cauldron; she began the spell to create the potion. "Beluga, sevruga, come winds of the Caspian Sea! Larynxis, glaucydis, et max, laryngitis, la voce to me!"
She turned to Ariel, the water around them now green from the potion's magic, and said, "Now, sing!"
Ariel sang the melody which Harry had heard and been in wonder by, which Harry might never hear again from Ariel's own mouth, "Ah ah ahhh, ah ah ahhh, ah ah ahhh, ah ah, ah ah ahhh, ah ah ahhh, ah ah ahhh, ah ah ahhh, ah ah, ah ah ahhh, ah ah ahhh!" The green light from the potion turned into hands, which reached down Ariel's throat and grabbed her voice. Ariel grabbed her throat in shock. Her voice was pulled by magic into Ursula's magic shell, which she wore around her neck as a necklace.
The potion began to work its wonders; Ariel's tail split in two, and she had legs. Ursula, all the while, was cackling evilly as Ariel struggled to breathe.
Her cackling reminded Ariel where she'd heard the voice from; her dream. "You're too late!" she remembered. It was too late now. There was no turning back. She was human now, and she had to get Harry to fall in love with her.
Flotsam and Jetsam had let go of Sebastian and Flounder some time earlier, so they helped Ariel up to the surface, for she did not know how to swim with human legs. She broke the surface, with her friends helping her to the shore, where she hoped Harry would be waiting for her.