chained to the waters of her home, aroaphite's life was always terribly lonely. though she would occasionally take a lover for the season, they never wanted to stay, and she would not force them into sharing her fate. though she hated being alone, she could never find anyone to stay with her, no matter how deep she had thought their connection was. but, she reasoned, perhaps she only felt the connection because she was so alone, and that it only went one way.

so, she resigned herself to spending her life alone, though she could not resist pulling in company whenever a man would pass by. when the charm wore off, they always left, promising to return, but they never did. since she had long since accepted it, she told herself that it didn't hurt quite so much. her heart, though, was unconvinced, and she was endlessly lonely, fearing that there would never be an end.

unable to go far from the waters of her home, aroaphite's fantasies about an ordinary life were doomed to remain just that: fantasies. among those fantasies was her dearest wish, falling in love and finding the magical happiness with one person that she dreamed about. that would change, though, the day fate and a song led a man named bevan to her river. handsome and charming, he was unlike anyone she had ever met, and when he promised to come back to her, he did, again and again, until she realized that she trusted him with her whole heart. they formed a close, affectionate friendship, and she shared everything with him, and it wasn't long before she fell utterly in love in with him. and, as time passed, he loved her too, and when they confessed their love to each other, aroaphite's heart at last felt whole.

despite their unconventional romance, bevan gave her everything she'd ever wanted, and more. he proposed to her on a day that she would remember forever, and she was so happy she thought she might burst. he brought his family to meet her, and she loved them instantly, and they adored her, too. she imagined she could never be happier until the day when they were married in a beautiful, heartfelt ceremony, and they promised to be true to each other forever. while aroaphite might have wished she could leave the water with him, she never felt anything less than happy being with him, and she wouldn't have traded it for anything. their years together were full of joy and love, and that only increased when she told him she was carrying their first child.

as the years passed, aroaphite only grew to love him more and more, and together they raised their children with love and compassion. they gave their children the best of both of them, and she was never jealous or hurt when they would leave to go to the village where bevan lived. she loved raising their children together and having the family she'd always dreamed of, but more than anything, she loved the nights bevan would stay with her, and she could spend the starlit night wrapped in his arms.

once their children were grown, bevan asked her for permission to leave her and find a way for her to leave the water, and stay with him all the time. she gave him her blessing, for she wanted nothing more than to be with him always, too. in the meantime, she misses him terribly, and her children say she is a shadow of her former self without her husband. it is said that anyone who ventures near her river at night hear a song of such painful heartbreak that it cuts like a knife. time passed, and she lost track of the years, but still she waited for him.

and her steadfastness was rewarded when he returned to her with a necklace that would allow her to walk on land with him, and though their lives had been entwined long before that day, they started a new life together upon his return, for the last barrier between them had been dissolved. aroaphite's happiness was at last truly complete, and the rest of her life was spent in pure bliss with the husband who'd given her the world.