*Of course these characters are not mine.
*Please review.
His Heart
He lay in their bed, watching Belle brush her hair, the various shades of mahogany dancing in the candlelight.
"Are you done?" he asked.
"Almost" she replied.
In all of the years of being cursed as a beast, he had never dreamed that a woman like her would enter his life. She had the smile of an angel, the patience of a saint, the intelligence of Athena and the beauty of Aphrodite. Most of all, she returned his love and he was a better man for it.
"A franc for your thoughts, my love" Belle said quietly, noticing the faraway look in his eyes as she had climbed onto him.
"It's nothing".
"Please tell me".
In his mind, he was not in their bedroom, but on the balcony, on the day he nearly lost her.
The fight with Gaston had reached its climax; the Beast has nearly given up when Belle's voice broke through the melee.
By the time she had reached the balcony, he was ready to fight again.
With the Beast distracted, Gaston saw his opportunity to make the kill. But he missed his intended target, the knife lodged in Belle instead.
Gaston's eyes grew wide as he realized who the knife had penetrated. The Beast turned on him, his eyes full of rage. As the Beast stomped toward him, the ground beneath him shook. Before Gaston could reach for something, the ground crumbled beneath him, causing him to fall into the bog below.
"Beast…" Belle called out him, her blood covering her hands and quickly spreading across her skirt.
"This will only hurt for a moment" as gently as he could, he pulled the knife of out her and threw it to the ground, before cradling her into his lap.
"I should have said it before, I…" she started.
"Don't waste your strength".
"I love you. Then she was gone.
"And I love you" he whispered. Around him, lights surrounded his castle and his servants, as they returned to their previous forms, but the one person he needed was gone.
"It seems, young prince, you have changed your ways" the sorceress appeared, startled by the appearance of young boy she had cursed, his eyes full of remorse and loss.
"Her life force is not yet completely depleted, I can restore her life force, but your human form will never return".
"If I am to agree, I would ask of one condition…" the beast started to ask.
"You wish to know her as man knows his lover. If you are agreeable young prince, then we have a deal".
He nodded in agreement.
He felt them both lifted surrounded by light as the world went dark around him.
When he woke up, he looked around, nothing had changed. Looking in the mirror, his claws, fangs and horns were gone, but he was still a beast.
"Master, she is awake and has asked for you".
When he entered her room, her found her father sitting with her.
"It seems, young man, that I made a mistake. You make my daughter very happy. I hope you will continue to do so for many years" Standing up, Maurice left the room.
"Hi,".
"Hi" she replied.
"How are you feeling?".
"I will survive. I want to thank you for saving my life again".
"Anytime" he replied before clearing his throat nervously.
"I was wondering, well, in light of recent events, if you would like to stay here, with me, instead of going back home with your father".
"I couldn't think of anything better".
For the first time in ten years, his future was bright and he was happy.
He was woken up from his memories by her kiss.
"Do you feel better now?" Belle asked.
"Yes".
"Good, because no matter what they say, you are my beast and I wouldn't have it any other way".
She lay on top of him for a moment, the only sound being the sound of their heartbeats.
He blew out the candle as she rolled next to him and they both fell into sleep.
The End