"I do believe that was the first time I have actually spoken with my people one on one," Miranda told the pretty brunette who sat across from her. "And I have you to thank for that. So thank you for restoring my connection with my kingdom."

Andrea shrugged and looked at her as if to say, it was you. You were the one who did all the talking. Miranda shook her head fondly and with a powerful pull of her arms, pulled the oars out of the water and made the boat move faster. It was a lovely summer night, and they were sitting in the wooden boat under the sky of endless stars. The boat cut quietly through the clear water, the only sound being the oars slapping against the river as they were pulled out and back.

"Nothing's happening!" Lily hissed from her hiding spot in the tree above the two women. "Only one day left, and that girl hasn't puckered up once. Hmm. I think this situation calls for a little vocal stimulation."

She flapped over to a low-hanging branch and opened her beak to vocalize terribly. Ugly squawks and screeches emitted from her opened mouth and everybody in the lagoon winced.

"What is that dreadful noise?" Miranda looked around.

"Ugh, amateurs," Emily growled and hopped out of her hiding spot. "You have to create the perfect ambiance. Percussion...Strings...Winds...Words."

There you see her

Sitting there across the way

She don't got a lot to say

But there's something about her

And you don't know why

But you're dying to try

You wanna kiss the girl

"Did you hear something?" Miranda asked.

Andrea just shrugged with an adorable grin on her face.

Sha la la la la la

My oh my

Look like the girl too shy

Ain't gonna kiss the girl

Sha la la la la la

Ain't that sad?

Ain't it a shame?

Too bad, she gonna miss the girl

"I need to know your name," Miranda said suddenly.

Andrea looked at her sadly.

"I'll try and guess it," Miranda rushed to wipe the saddened look of the brunette's face. "Is it Leah?" At Andrea's shake of disapproval, she tried again. "Mildred?" Andrea's reaction was to scrunch up her nose in distaste and shake her head back and forth furiously. "Amy?" Again, the young woman shook her head.

"Andrea," Emily hopped out of the water. "Her name is Andrea."

"Andrea?" Miranda pronounced it with a slight french accent and looked at the woman sitting across from her hopefully. Andrea nodded enthusiastically and a huge smile broke out across her face. "Andrea. That's a beautiful name." Andrea blushed and Miranda's heart skipped a beat when she looked into brown eyes illuminated by the starlight and the multiple fireflies in the air.

Now's your moment

Floating in a blue lagoon

Boy you better do it soon

No time will be better

She don't say a word

And she won't say a word

Until you kiss the girl

They floated into a hidden pool, neither paddling, and stared deeply into each other's eyes. The music got louder, and fish leapt out of the water while birds vocalized in harmony. Miranda grasped Andrea's hands tightly and started to lean in.

Sha la la la la

The music play

Do what the music say

You got to kiss the girl

You've got to kiss the girl

Andrea closed her eyes and slightly tilted her head to the side, her whole body tensing in anticipation for the kiss she knew was about to come.

You wanna kiss the girl

You've gotta kiss the girl

Go on and kiss the girl

Suddenly, both women found themselves soaked in water. Immediately, Miranda reached for Andrea and held her close. "I've got you. It's okay." Trembling, Andrea leaned her head on Miranda's shoulder and shivered. "Let's go back to the castle. It's getting late."

Irv and Stephen surfaced after they two women left and slapped each other's tails in congratulations. Then, they flipped their bodies, and made their way back to Jacqueline's cavern.

"Nice work boys," the sea witch's french accent was heavier due to her anger and stress. "If that little tramp continues at this rate, the queen is going to be kissing her by the time they go to bed tonight, and my whole plan for taking over Richard's kingdom will be ruined." She frowned and then squirted over to her cabinet full of potions. "Over my dead body will that little mermaid get her happily ever after," she snarled under her breath as she began dumping various vials into the black cauldron. Then with a mighty shriek of victory, she stepped into the concoction and started laughing as her eight legs were shrunk down into two. In the middle of her evil chuckle, her scary voice turned into Andrea's musical one, and long red fingernails grasped the seashell tightly as the transformation started to complete.

Miranda sat on the beach and stared out across the ocean.

"Miranda, you've been pining over that mystery girl for a long time," Nigel said gently, coming up behind her. "If I may say, far better than any dream girl, is one of flesh and blood, one warm and caring, and right before your eyes."

He walked away, leaving Miranda to her thoughts. The white-haired woman looked up at Andrea's window and saw the young woman smiling blissfully in her mirror while combing her hair with a fork. Miranda chuckled and making up her mind, she turned away from the sea and started walking back towards the castle, her intent determined to make Andrea finally hers. Something had happened in the past two days, and Miranda found herself head over heels with her. Suddenly, a haunting melody washed over her, and she turned back to see a beautiful raven-haired woman emerging from the dark water. Vaguely, Miranda recognized the song as the song the mystery woman sung to her, but she was too focused on the glowing shell around the woman's neck that she didn't really care. Jacqueline smiled when she saw that the Queen was firmly under her spell, and then took a step closer, still vocalizing with Andrea's voice. With each step, Jacqueline laughed louder and louder, knowing that she had won

TBC...