Ariel and Eric walked on the beach, hand in hand. Everything was silent, and nothing could be heard except for the gentle rolling of the waves. Everything was quiet. Everyone had gone to sleep. But the night looked too perfect to resist staying inside, so Eric had insisted that they go and enjoy the bella notte.

Ariel was just about to stop walking and make a romantic gesture when she heard a loud, cringing cry, causing the couple to gasp and turn in the direction of the sound. Noticing a small, shadowed figure on the cobblestone ground of the town, struggling to get up, he dropped Ariel's hand and sprinted towards the fallen person, Ariel carefully following behind as quickly as she could.

Eric dropped to his knees when he reached the person, seeing that their basket of bread had been dropped and that the person wasn't moving. Instead, it was lying face down on the street, breathing heavily, as if out of breath. When Ariel arrived, noticing the poor person, Eric said, "Just watch, love. Don't-" She dropped down on her knees as well. "Or not," he mumbled to himself, putting the last of the bread back in the basket.

"Excuse me, are you alright?" Ariel said gently, softly touching the person's shoulder to see if they needed help getting up.

The creaky voice of an elderly woman responded, attempting to pick herself up, "Oh, no, dear, I just-" she stopped speaking when she looked up into the concerned faces of Ariel and Eric. "Your Majesties!" she gasped, scrambling to stand up and compose herself.

"Oh, please, don't," Ariel said worriedly, seeing the old woman struggle. "We're just trying to help you." The woman continued to struggle, so Eric stood and quickly grabbed her arm to carefully help her up, handing her the cane that she fell on top of.

Once the woman was steadied, basket still in hand, Eric asked, "Are you sure you're alright, mam?" The old woman shook her head quickly. "Oh yes yes yes, thank you so much Your Highnesses-" she took a step forward and slipped, falling again. Only this time, Eric caught her.

"Come sleep in the castle tonight," Ariel insisted, her hand on her chest from gasping when the woman staggered again. "It's late, and your leg might need medical help." The woman began to disagree, but Ariel said sincerely, "Please. I insist."

After a few minutes, the woman finally agreed, and Ariel and Eric led her to the castle, walking slowly with each of her arms intertwined with theirs. "What's your name?" Eric asked kindly as they walked.

With a smile, the woman responded, "Athena. My parents really loved the demigods." Eric shot Ariel a look, discovering that her face was one of surprise, her lips parted in a little "O" and her thin eyebrows raised. Her face relaxed after a moment, and by the light of the full moon, Eric could see there was a tear in her eye. He wanted to go comfort her, but obviously he couldn't.

"It's a lovely name," Ariel managed to whisper, a small smile gracing her lips. Now Ariel felt that she was helping her mother by helping this woman. She suddenly felt a wave of happiness flood over her as they reached the careful steps, proud that they were assisting this woman, even if only for the night.