Our Anniversary

by Erin Salvatore

Disclaimer: I don't own The Little Mermaid. I'm just borrowing. Only the story belongs to me.

Note: Hey, everyone! I got an idea for this story recently and thought I'd share. It takes place after the events of Little Mermaid 2 and centers around Ariel and Eric's anniversary. This is my very first Little Mermaid fic, so bear with me.

Ariel gently closed the door to her daughter's room and let out a sigh. It hadn't been easy, but she was able to get Melody to go to bed early so she and Eric could have a private anniversary celebration. During the whole ordeal with Morgana's return, it had been close to impossible to celebrate much of anything. They did try to celebrate Melody's birthday, and to say it was met with disastrous results was putting it mildly.

"Is she asleep?"

Eric's voice startled her and Ariel turned to face her husband. "Yeah, but she was a bit disappointed she didn't get to stay up after giving us our present."

"She's stubborn, that's for sure," said Eric. "Reminds me of a certain redhead I married."

Ariel gave him a look and playfully punched him in the arm. Eric might have been a grown man, but he still acted like a kid at times, which she learned to get used to in the time she had been married to him. He may test my patience sometimes, but I still love him, she thought.

"Very funny, Eric," she said. "Now, let's go downstairs before I change my mind."

Eric chuckled and put his arm around Ariel's waist, escorting her down the hall and down the stairs to the sitting room. It was quiet this time of night, which the couple was hoping for. There was also a fire in the fireplace, creating a romantic atmosphere for them. Eric smiled when he saw it, looking down at his wife.

"Did you plan this?"

Ariel smirked. "Maybe. Come on, let's take advantage of the fire, shall we?"

Eric complied and they entered the room. Before they could sit down, Ariel went over to the chair, picked up a long box and went over to Eric, handing it to him. He looked at it and then at Ariel before taking it from her.

"What's in here?" he asked.

"A little something I bought while I was in town," said Ariel. "Something I thought you'd like. Go ahead, open it."

Eric opened the box and his blue eyes widened as he saw what it was – a flute. It looked exactly like the one he threw into the ocean years ago. Ariel saw he hadn't spoken yet, so she spoke first.

"Do you like it? I know it's your birthday in addition to our anniversary."

"I...I do," he said. "I just didn't expect you to give me something like this. I hadn't thought about the flute I had thrown into the ocean before I was hypnotized by Ursula using your stolen voice." He smiled at his wife. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Eric pulled her into his arms and kissed her, placing his new flute down before running his fingers through her long, red hair. He couldn't imagine a better anniversary/birthday celebration than the one he was having right now.

"Did I ever tell you how much I love you?"

"You tell me every day."

"Well, I really love you right now," said Eric. "Marrying you was the best thing that ever happened to me. I don't think I would've been as happy if I married anyone else."

Ariel smiled. "Like the Princess of Glowerhaven?" She saw the look of surprise on his face. "Oh, don't act surprised. I was there that night and overheard everything you and Grimsby were talking about. And you know what? I'm glad I married you too. You're the greatest treasure I ever found. If I had to do it over again, I'd still choose you."

Eric relaxed and smiled. "Yeah, me too." He kissed her again. "Hey, since you got me something, I have something for you too."

"Eric, you didn't have to get me anything," she said. "Just you being with me is all the present I could want."

"I know, but I wanted to," said Eric. "I was kind of in town the same time you were, but managed to get in and out of the shop before you noticed I was there." He handed her a box. "Happy Anniversary, Ariel."

Ariel opened the box and gasped when she saw it was a gold necklace. "Eric, it's beautiful."

"Do you like it?"

"I love it." She threw her arms around him. "And I love you too."

Note: Yeah, I had nothing else to add, so I'll end it here. I had something else in mind for it, but I decided to go with this instead. Enjoy!