After the party everyone on board the ship finally went to sleep—but not the Little Mermaid.
She knew that she would turn into sea foam at the first rays of dawn light.
So she stayed on deck and looked out at the sea and the stars.
"My Prince, my soul, and my future—they're all gone now," she thought.
Minutes before the sun appeared, the Little Mermaid noticed some movement in the water near the ship.
Suddenly she saw five figures rising from the waves, waving to her.
The Little Mermaid didn't recognize her sisters right away.
Their long and lovely hair was gone.
Together they swam close to where she stood.
Their heads bobbed above the water as they spoke.
"We're here to save you!" cried the eldest sister.
"When we found out about the Prince's wedding, we went straight to the Sea Witch for help."
The second sister explained, "She gave us a magic dagger that will save your life.
In exchange she demanded our hair."
The third sister told the Little Mermaid what the witch had instructed them to do.
"Before the sun rises, you must plunge the sharp blade into the Prince's heart.
Once he is dead, you will become a mermaid again."
The Little Mermaid trembled.
"But I don't want to hurt my Prince," she thought.
When the Little Mermaid hesitated, the fourth sister added,
"Please, Sister, you must kill him to save yourself.
Then you can come home with us."
The fifth sister spoke for them all.
"We all miss you.
Our grandmother and father are waiting for you.
You belong in the Sea Kingdom."
"But I wanted my life to be different," the Little Mermaid thought sadly.
The eldest sister yelled impatiently, "Hurry! You must be quick.
It's almost daybreak.
Kill the Prince now!"
She threw the dagger up into the air, and the Little Mermaid caught the knife easily.
"Please hurry, Sister!" cried the five mermaids as they dived back beneath the waves.
The Little Mermaid looked at the knife.
She was uncertain about what to do.
This gift had cost her sisters their beautiful hair.
They had given her a last chance to save herself.
The Little Mermaid crept up to the royal tent and parted the curtains.
She stepped lightly inside and saw her Prince with his arms around his new bride.
They were both fast asleep.
The Little Mermaid felt both anger and tenderness.
Through the thin cloth of the tent, she saw that the morning sun was about to rise.
Time was running out.
Her chance was almost gone.
She looked at the dagger and then at the handsome face of the sleeping Prince.
It was either her life or his.
She lowered the knife close to his heart but then stopped.
"How can I kill him?" she thought.
"I love my Prince.
He must live, even if I must die."
So the Little Mermaid ran out of the tent and flung the knife into the waves.
Then she threw herself over the side of the ship and into the sea.
She thought she could feel her body dissolving into thousands of bubbles of sea foam.
Soon the Little Mermaid would be no more.