Based lightly off the gif set prompt of Belle being sold to the Dark One against her will and Arabian Nights.

Far and Away was a simple town of simple people. There was the Farmer and the Blacksmith. The town had their very own Merchant and Miller. And though the Dairy Maid was no longer a maid they still called her that anyways because that's what she had been.

In Far and Away, there lived a simple spinner. He had a home and a wife as men often do. He lived happily in his anonymity. The pair lived at the end of the lane in a small cottage where the town ended and the woods began.

Life was peaceful. Quiet. Comfortable.

Then, the War came.

The Ogres didn't come like thunder. They came like the tide.

Slowly, market days became less crowded. The traveling tradesman stopped coming to town. The few that did brought news about monsters roaming the land, devouring all they came across.

Occasional survivors wandered into the village. One armed men gasping for water. Women carried bags of bones begging food for their dead children. The insane and dying ended up in the square- screaming about the end. The end that was coming for them all.

The town people turned away. The Spinner's Wife stood at the well, mouth ajar in horrified disgust as her husband tried to hurry her away from the scene. The Midwife and the old Doctor were left to try and care for the strangers. But few survived. The horror was too great.

After a month of death, soldiers started riding into town. Purporting to be heralds of The Dark One, a powerful sorcerer, they promised the town of Far and Away safety from the faceless danger that was ravaging the land.

The town's mind was still full of the ravings and screaming of those who had fled the Ogres- the blood stains on the square's stones were still wet when the vote was cast.

Far and Away would bend knee to the Dark One for protection. He would keep their sleepy village safe from the destruction of the leviathans.

But all magic comes with a price.

That was the first lesson Far and Away learned from their new master. Yes, salvation was achieved but only at the cost of ten souls a year.

The first Reaping was almost celebratory. Every male in town lined up, dressed in their best clothes. The Spinner wore the shirt he had been married in. His Wife sewed trim onto his trousers. He shined his shoes until he could see his face in them. It was a plain face, starting to line and age but still bright with content.

But it was not to last. The Dark One arrived in the town square in a burst of black smoke, billowing out like greedy hands grasping for their throats. A few backed away from the tendrils, one or two young boys ran to join the women and children a few yards back. The silence was deafening.

By the end of the hour, ten men were gone. Four left widows, two left their mothers skirts and four left limping on canes.

None of them ever returned.

And so it went for the next ten years. Every Spring, the entire village came to the square. But it was no longer a joyous occasion. The village was thinning out. Women outnumbered the men ten to one now. Some young women had even left with traveling merchants to go to the nearest city, the port town of Cape, to find a town where the Ogre War did not hang heavy.

This year, the Spinner stood in a pair of ratty trousers, trim barely visible under the layers of dirt and grime. His burlap vest was itching his neck and his hair was long and uncut, curling about his neck in the spring humidity.

He was not surprised when the Dark One stopped before him, reaching out with one black scaly claw to mark his forehead with his touch.

He was not surprised to hear his wife crying to sleep in her blankets as he stared into the fire.

And he was not surprised when he marched away to his death.

The Spinner was however surprised when he found himself staring up into the gaping maw of an Ogre, blood trickling from the Ogre's latest kill onto his upturned face like rain- that he very much wanted to live.

He wanted to return to his cottage. He wanted to spin. He wanted to slide into his wife and place life inside her. And he wanted to see tomorrow.

And so, he ran.

The Spinner ran and ran until he found himself at home, pounding on his door in the rain until his wife opened it.

He should not have been surprised when the town railed him as a coward and a worm. He should not have been surprised when his wife left for the Cape even though he begged and pleaded for her to stay.

And so he was not surprised when the Dark One's soldiers rode into town looking for the deserter. He was leaning against the well in the square waiting for them, bruises and cuts lining his face and arms. His leg broken in two places from the Blacksmith's hammer.

And so the Spinner disappeared into the Dark One's castle. And the town of Far and Away breathed easier- knowing the tenth soul would be reaped and they would be spared.

Until the next year's reaping brought it's own surprise.

For it was the Spinner, dark and terrible in leather and scales who threw the hood back from his twisted face, revealing himself to be the new Dark One. It was the Spinner laughing in a high-pitched giggle as he claimed the ten souls- slaughtering them where they stood.

And then he claimed ten more.

And ten more.

And ten more again.

Until the town of Far and Away was just a memory.

And the Dark One ruled the entire Northern Kingdom- the only Kingdom free of Ogres.

For it was the only Kingdom empty of any living soul save his own.

"Nan, don't be so dark," Belle criticized, not bothering to look up from the book she was translating. "Why do you insist on telling that story to the children when they're frightened enough?"

"It's not a story," the old crone swore, looking up from the circle of children surrounding her. "It's the truth!"

"Honestly, Nan," Belle sighed, sparing a warm but exasperated look to the old caretaker. "It's just a fairy tale designed to keep little ones from the Northern border."

"It's a warning!" Nan protested, shaking her iron gray curls in argument. "And a good one at that! Ain't none of these doves going to go flying off into that dangerous place after hearing that legend!"

The six young ones were glancing up at Belle shyly, obviously still scared silly from the croaking growl of Nan's voice. Snapping the book shut, Belle placed it in her lap. She leaned over in her seat to smile reassuringly at the children.

"Now, now," she murmured, brushing a tear from the smallest one's cheek. "You mustn't believe the Dark One is any danger to you here. You all are very smart and brave but you know the rules."

Belle turned her gaze to the oldest who was sitting at the edge of the group, nodding at him to speak.

"Don't' go past the Northern field," the young boy answered in rote. He had twisted his jacket into knots in his lap, knuckles white against the blue fabric.

"And why is that?" Belle asked softly, encouraging him to continue.

"Because… cause…," the boy said nervously, licking his lips as he avoided her eye.

"Or else the Ogres will get us!" Piped up one young girl in front. Belle smiled at her, reaching out to pull one blonde pigtail in approval.

"That's right!" Belle agreed. "Our walls have protected us for two centuries from the Ogres and they will continue to do so. We just have to have hope."

"Hope?" Snorted Nan from the other side of the children. "Fat good that will do us when the Ogres break down the gates to grind our bones to make their bread."

"Nan!" Belle said in horror, mouth falling open in shock at the old woman's blunt statement.

"Tis true, pet," the old woman sighed. She stood, shaking slightly as she placed her hand on her aching hip. "The gates may have held but after years of erosion, they are weak. And those monsters know it."

Belle pursed her lips together, eyes glaring at the old woman to be silent but Nan was already limping away. Belle did not go after her or dare rebuke her further. The old woman was growing weak and getting more and more difficult these days.

Nan had lost her three sons to the war and now her only grandson was presumed dead. His mother, Nan's youngest daughter, had thrown herself from the tower walls in her grief- leaving Nan alone in the world.

"Lady Belle?"

Broken from her reprieve, Belle glanced down at the young girl in pigtails who was standing timidly before her. "I'm sorry, yes dear?"

"Lady Belle, is that the end of the story?"

"Oh," Belle murmured, finger running along the edge of the book's spine in her lap. "Yes, that's all for today, children. Now, you best be getting to your rooms before it gets dark. Run along, I'll see you all tomorrow."

The young ones clambered to their feet in an ungraceful eddy of limbs and chatter- disappearing down the rows of books in the library. Their footsteps and voices echoed before fading along the castle's walls.

Belle stood, wiping the wrinkles from her day dress when she heard the slow tread of Nan approaching. She looked up to find the older woman frowning at her in disappointment.

"How you going to lie to those precious lambs like that?" Nan rebuked, shaking her head. "Some of them are old enough to know better. None of them have parents because of the Deal-"

"Enough, Nan," Belle whispered, placing a hand on her forehead to stem the growing ache. "The Deal and that fairy tale are two completely different things."

"Oh?" Nan said, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "And then why has the Middle Kingdom withered away these past hundred years? Why are there only six children in the whole of the land?"

"Nan," Belle said, a tinge of steel lending warning to her tone. "Enough. Is my father still in court?"

"He's with his advisors," Nan shared, sniffing angrily. "And I'll be telling those lambs about our own deal with evil tomorrow morning, whether you like or not my Lady. They deserve to know why they're all orphans, poor things."

"They're too young," Belle said urgently. "Nan, please- they won't understand-"

"What's to understand?" Nan ignored her, waving her pleas away. "Your Great Great Grandfather made a deal with The Dark One for gates to last two hundred years. Everyone knows magic comes with a price."

"But they're children," Belle repeated, blushing slightly and glancing away from Nan's glare. "They won't-"

"They won't understand why that Beast demanded a bride in return for this protection?"

Belle nodded, biting her lip in frustration at her own embarrassment. Honestly, she read. She knew the kind of things a husband and wife did in the dark of their chambers. She had been in birthing chambers since she was eleven- she had seen the miracle of birth. She had also walked the halls of the sick room, seen men die in agony or slip away in unconsciousness never to wake again.

But still, she could not meet Nan's eye.

"Can you imagine the dismay they felt- the day they offered the first woman to the Beast?" Belle shook her head no, feeling the familiar nausea at the Deal. "Or the horror when dawn came exactly one year later and her dead body was lying in front of the gates- him sitting bold as you please on the gate tower, cackling like a insane man as he ordered them to find him a new bride?"

"The Deal was struck," Belle whispered, clutching the book to her chest. "And our lands have been safe from the destruction of the Ogres for near two hundred years."

"And how many have died?" Nan whispered angrily. "Two of my girls gone, returned to me as pale corpses dressed in silk. What he did to them-"

"He's a monster," Belle snapped. "I don't deny it. But until the Wall falls or a Bride survives- it's the only way to keep people alive. Every woman who signs up for the Deal knows that. And her family eats well for the year in payment of her sacrifice."

Nan opened her mouth to argue but Belle cut her off, "And every boy who goes to War knows he might be the one who ends the Ogre War- who saves his sister from the Beast. I would sign my name if my father would allow it. I would have signed it the day I turned eighteen."

Nan's anger was fading, she looked deflated and gray in the face of Belle's ire. And she nodded sadly, eyes finding Belle's. "Ai, Lady, I know. You're a good woman and you'll make a fine wife to Sir Gaston."

"I don't want to be a wife-" Belle sighed, walking past Nan towards the exit of the library. "I want to be the one who finds an end to all this madness."

Lost in her thoughts, Belle didn't realize where she was headed until she stood before the doors to her father's private study. They were closed, two guards standing at attention outside, meaning the council was within. The windows across from her showed the moon had started to rise, it was early evening and dinner would be called shortly.

For a moment, she debated going back to her own rooms. She could finish translating the runes in her current book- it was an interesting guide on the stars and how to navigate based on them and she was looking forward to testing it in the highest tower one evening.

However, her argument with Nan was still fresh and her heart was racing. Belle strode to the doors, ignoring the two men and threw them open. She heard the rattle of armor and startled voice of the two guards as they tried to grab her back but she strode forward, head thrust proudly up.

"Papa," she said, voice ringing in the high vaulted rafters of the Lord Maurice's private chambers. "You must do something about Nan- she's-"

But Lord Maurice never learned what he must do about Nan, for while he quickly moved to stand in front of his only daughter; he was not quick enough to hide what was going on.

"Ooooooh," giggled a voice. "And who is this?"

Belle looked up at her father, his sad and aged face sagged in the jowls and he had bags under his eyes- puffy and swollen from nights of not sleeping. He was a broken man.

"Papa?" Belle whispered, locking her eyes on his blue ones. "Papa, what's going on?"

"Belle, I –"

"I'm growing bored," the voice interrupted. "You called me here to help save your precious kingdom and end up ignoring me. How inconsiderate."

"Belle," Lord Maurice was saying, but his voice was thick and it was breaking. "I love you, my darling girl. I love you so much-"

Before Belle could say a word, he thrust her out before him. She fell to her knees in confusion. Her arms hit the ground with a crack as her body flashed in pain.

There was utter silence in the room except her heartbeat in her own ears. A sinking sensation in the pit of her stomach made her woozy as the sting of her bruised limbs began to set in. She glanced warily up more out of fear than curiosity. She already knew exactly what she was kneeling prostate before.

Two tall riding boots, black with inky purple laces traced up two calves. Leather breeches, fitted tightly to a pair of lean thighs and tight hips where a black brocade jacket dipped down, ending in two sharp points along the back of the thighs. A jerkin vest was pulled taunt over a wiry chest, and a scaled clawed hand was resting thoughtfully one hip, the other was curled in the air by the face of the Dark One.

Belle swallowed, meeting the dark black eyes- glowing yellow in the lights of the candelabra hanging from the rafters. His face was pointed and sharp like the edges of an axe. His yellow rotted smile was oozing hatred like an open wound.

"Papa," Belle whimpered. She tried to crawl backwards, her day gown caught between her thighs. She ended up sitting on her elbows, eyes glazed in fear.

"Ah, so this is the brave daughter you were telling me so much about," the Dark One laughed. "And yet, she cries and shakes just like the lowest peasant girls. How telling."

"Enough," Lord Maurice was saying, voice thick. "Do we have a deal?"

"Another hundred years the wall will stand," the Beast sang. Belle slowly found her feet, swaying uneasily as she stood, eyes never leaving the gaze of the snake before her. She couldn't look away, not even if she tried. She felt the panic of the thousand women before her in the pit of her stomach.

"I don't know," the thing said, eyeing her. "I think she's about to be sick. I hate the ones that get sick."

Belle swallowed the bile in her throat, the hot burning of it making her dry heave despite herself. The Dark One cocked an eyebrow at her in disgust before turning to someone behind her.

"Yes, I suppose we do. I take the Lady Belle as my Bride. In return for this noble act, the walls will stand for another hundred years."

"But she is the last-"

"Hmph," The Dark One grunted, twitching a finger at the gathered men. Belle turned her head to see all the heads of state standing in the shadows, a few looking like scared children and the others looking like dead men in the green light of the evening's moon. "That's not part of the deal. The original Deal states that until you find me a suitable bride- I'll continue returning those that don't please me. I just require a higher initial payment as it were on this particular agreement- make sure you know what you are agreeing to."

A few mutterings from the councilors but Lord Maurice raised his hand to still them. "My ancestor did not have a daughter to give so he sacrificed the women of his land with a heavy heart. But he did not understand their grief. And now, you ask me for my only daughter, knowing it's her life you are truly asking for." Belle swallowed, tears falling freely as she watched her father speak.

'And perhaps I will be thought of as stronger than my ancestor. For I will know every parent's pain as their daughter walks out those gates and into your embrace. And we all will know the price we paid for the safety of the land was bought by our daughters."

"Are you done?" The Beast drawled, raising a brow in consternation. "Why, you're even more longwinded than the last one.'

Every daydream Belle had ever had of offering herself as one of the Brides was nothing compared to this moment. She had thought she would be strong, proud, every inch the Lady of the Middle Kingdom and instead- she felt like screaming, running, begging the men she had grown up with to save her. She saw Sir Gaston by the door, his sword hand on his hilt but he did not look at her. His eyes were focused on Lord Maurice, avoiding hers.

"Please," Belle begged, turning to her father. "Papa…I don't want to die-"

She gripped his arms with her hands, leaning on him as she begged. His fingers grasped her gloved elbows, squeezing tightly in response. For a moment, she thought he was going to change his mind.

"Take her and be damned," Lord Maurice said. His voice broke as he closed his eyes against the sight of the Dark One springing forward with a cackle.

"Come now, dearie," he crowed. He grabbed her around the waist and pulled her tight, smiling at her father with a wicked leer. Lord Maurice turned his back, and Belle hated him for a moment. Hated him for not having the strength to watch the end of his bargain. The Dark One snapped his fingers. "We have only a few hours left till midnight."

And the dark swirls of smoke surrounded her. And everything she ever knew disappeared from her sight.

She was horrified to find she cried.

XxXxXxX

Author's Notes

Um. I didn't mean to?