Prologue

One year after the events of "the Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea"

Finally, after hours of worry and anticipation, Melody heard the first sounds of life indicating that she had just become an older sister. Without hesitating she dashed inside her parents' bedchamber, smiling all the while.

“Oh, I do hope it's a girl!” she exclaimed to herself. Ever since the news of her mother being pregnant came to light, that was the one wish which persistently buzzed inside her head. During that entire nine-month period, Melody had kept herself busy helping along with the preparations for the baby's arrival. She made sure to check and recheck every detail about it; making certain that the room was well lit, the baby's cloths were at the ready, and even seeing to it that there were plenty of toys lying about for the babe to play with. Of the things she accomplished during this time, the one thing she left solely to her parents was the responsibility of naming the expected child. Melody reasoned that such a detail should be left in their hands since it was, after all, their baby and not hers. (Of course, that did not stop her from bringing up names that she found “were rather nice.”)

Dashing past Grimsby (whom almost fell over as a result), Melody joined her father's side next to the bed where an exhausted looking Ariel who was beaming and tenderly holding her new-born infant at her breast. Melody was ready to yell with joy upon coming into the room, but upon seeing her mother's gentle face, overflowing with love, she decided not to spoil the moment and to patiently wait for the official announcement from her parents. She could have felt envious of her sibling, suddenly being given so much attention from everyone. However, she instead felt at peace in a way that she had never experienced before. For moment, Melody could swear that time itself seemed to stand still; that everything in the world, though harsh and unforgiving it may be to anyone caught unawares, seemed to finally fall into place to produce a blissful harmony.

The silence of the moment, however brief, was finally broken by the baby when it produced a long, toothless yawn. All the bottled up energy she had, which had temporarily been suppressed due to being caught in the moment, resurfaced all at once. It was from there that she revitalized her mission of identifying her newborn sibling. Eager to learn but remaining cautious upon delivering her question in fear of it sounding awkward, Melody asked, "So... is this my new baby sister or what?"