#not to be mixed with tne Disney character

[thoughtfullyrainynightmare]

For this Sunday I decided to make little chibi kisses (from the Discord emote template) for the other 2 Fue x OC ships that I know and are more prominent at least in this corner of the internet

First one is Fuegoleon x Lital belonging to @vilandel

And the second is Fuegoleon x Esmeralda belonging to @mamavino

[gpsoftun]

Mermaid Musings:

Melody is about tied with Belle as my favorite Disney princesses. Funny enough, they share the commonality of feeling like detached anamolies in their environments. They also use escapism to cope- books for Belle and swimming for Melody.

The Little Mermaid as a film is mostly very well done. The soundtrack is iconic, Ursula is a terrific antagonist, Eric is the first Disney Prince to be fleshed out with a personality and life all his own when we first meet him, and the supporting characters- Sebastian, King Triton, Flounder, Max, Scuttle, and Grimsby- are all gems. Then, there's the titular mermaid herself.....

Look, I know a lot of young girls found Ariel's naive, short-sighted behavior very relatable. However, she isn't awkward while trying to do her best like Mulan. When it comes down to it, Ariel isn't only irresponsible but too reckless, defiant, and selfish. The worst part is the same idiotic problem with Raven Xavier and Erik Lehnsherr. She is never held accountable nor does she face real consequences.

Right from the go, Ariel ihas a bad first impression. The concert Sebastian and her sisters worked so hard on somehow slipped her mind. When King Triton, rightfully, reprimands her for ruining the show and going up to the surface, she plays wounded by crying and swimming off in a huff. No matter what anyone says, her father did the best he could with a child so difficult. He told his children tne very real truth about how dangerous the surface is for them. He questions his own parenting and hates having to be so firm. Surprisingly, Triton ia thrilled with the idea of Ariel being in love- so long as it's within their own species.

Part of Your World is an amazing song that becomes very baffling when given to someone whose life doesn't fit it at all. Ariel is NOT some out-of-place underdog. She's the cherished youngest child of a loving family and an entire kingdom that literally sings her praises. On top of having such a loyal best friend like Flower. She's probably completely unaffected by having a deceased mother. She has more than enough older sisters to fill that void.

No, as difficult as the sequence was to watch, destroying Ariel's treasures did not make Triton a monster. He was at his wit's end after finding out she got too close to humans. He certainly didn't enjoy hurting her. Parents have to be harsh sometimes. Deal with it.

Knowing full well about Ursula's infamy, Ariel was still stupidly self-centered enough to make a deal with her. She knew it meant abandoning her family and felt guilty about that for all of four seconds. She was just that obsessed with a guy she watched for roughly ten minutes. No, she didn't 'earn' Eric by saving him. She's a mermaid! Swimming an unconscious person to shore isn't exactly high-risk.

Towards the end, Ariel endangered all of her loved ones for her own selfish desires. The only thing that kept Atlantica from being enslaved to Ursula was Eric's valiant intervention. And still, Ariel gets her way and learns absolutely nothing from the experience. With all of the unfair criticism against girls like Cinderella and Snow White, Ariel has too many defenders. Probably because most girls resemble Ariel instead of Belle.

Then, we have Melody, who is the mermaid kingdom's equivalent of A New Hope. While she is forbidden from going out to the sea, Melody can't help being drawn to it. The little girl has a ballroom full of party guests at home, but she only feels comfortable in the water with Sebastian and the aquatic crew. Unlike Ariel, Melody actually was ostracized and considered a freak by the other children in the kingdom. It was her own birthday party and Melody looked seconds away from a panic attack.

Similar to how I reason Blade to be an allegory for mistreated children conceived in rape, Melody's story really resembles the mixed kid experience. Not all of them are aware of the full details of their parentage. Some could talk or like vastly different things from the norms of their communities for reasons even they don't understand. The wall dividing the human kingdom and the mer-kingdom could symbolize the one-drop rule. The kids at her party mock Melody's love of being around fish the same way a mixed child might be ridiculed for liking certain movies and music. Think about her overjoyed reaction to some mer-kids asking her to hang out with them. It was a short moment, but she looked ready to cry for being accepted so easily, possibly for the first time in her life.

Ursula's sister Morgana had a drastically different approach to luring someone in. Her lair was inviting and bright with no tiny terrified creatures urging Melody not to go in. Instead of being obviously creepy, Morgana acted more like an energetic cool aunt. She even offered food to Melody and related to her about having a mother who doesn't understand her. Since Melody's parents never gave her the real story as to why the sea was so dangerous, she had no reason not to trust Morgana. She made Melody a mermaid without asking for anything in return as well.

It's hard to hear Melody sing For a Moment without tearing up. It's simply beautiful to see this warm, sweet, spirited girl who felt so lonely and unwanted by her peers declare, "For a moment, just a moment, I belong!" How could she possibly talk to Ariel about anything? They are completely different with opposite social experiences.

When Melody realized Morgana to be no fairy godmother, she is devastated by what she's done. No, not that a spell ended before she could get what she desired, but because she felt like she ruined everything. For a moment, she got to be truly happy and comfortable in an environment. Then just like that, she was left feeling like she really is nothing more than the princess of disaster no one likes. However, instead of sitting back while everyone else risks themselves, Melody makes an effort to right her own wrongs. While she succeeded, she almost died in the process. Still, she's apologetic towards her parents.

It's really telling when, once the danger is over, Triton has not one negative word for Melody's actions. Even though Ariel and Eric are right there, he lets Melody alone make the decision to live as a human or as a mermaid in Atlantica with Grandpa. This might sound like Triton is undermining the parents, but please. At newly 12, Melody has more courage, wisdom, capability, and humility than her mother does now, let alone when Ariel was 16. In an awesome move, Melody opts to tear down the wall so the two kingdoms can unite. Also, Triton's A-OK giving the kid the trident to do so. Dissolving that wall might have been more euphoric for her than growing fins. Meanwhile, Airhead Ariel couldn't even go for a swim around the block without a chaperone. And Melody's crowning achievement in the field of awesome comes when she invites the kids who mocked her to come play in the water.

It's such a shame that a protagonist so wonderful ended up as part of a direct-to-video sequel. If the Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea got a big budget and theater release like that awful third mermaid movie, Melody would be much bettered remembered. Regardless, I wouldn't trade her for any of Ariel's undeserved hype.

🏖💛👸