Eeee! Another chapter! Woo! Hehehe.
Thank you guys So Much for the awesomesauce reviews! They are great motivators, so keep em coming! :P hehe.
Here is the next chapter, need I remind you of the evil ninja cow typos? e_e ...Moo.
Okay! Enough rambling from me! I hope you guys like this chapter!
And as always, enjoy!
"What? What do you mean?" Belle asked worriedly, and Christophe proceeded to tell them everything he had heard in the alley.
Maurice's brow furrowed as Belle put a hand to her mouth in shock.
"No! They couldn't possibly do that! It's— It's not right! We have to tell someone!" she said angrily, and Christophe shook his head.
"Gaston can just about do whatever he wants, and the manager doesn't need a warrant or anything to take someone away if he thinks they are insane."
"Oh, Papa, what are we going to do?" Belle asked him worriedly as her eyes became glossy from the tears that were forming in them. "I can't…I can't marry that monster! But I don't want you locked up in that terrible place either!"
Maurice stared into the face of his worried daughter, trying to figure a way out of this, but all of his options would mean one of them doing something they didn't want to— all except for one, which would mean both of them doing something they didn't want, but it was the best one he had.
"We'll have to leave," Maurice suddenly said, and the two looked at him with surprise. "We'll have to leave the village."
"But where will you go?" Christophe's brow creased. He didn't want them to leave, but he knew it was too risky for them to stay in the village. If they proclaimed that Gaston was bribing D'Arque to have Maurice locked away, the villagers would surely think Maurice insane, and he would be taken away without a doubt. And they all knew Belle would then marry Gaston without a second's thought to keep her father out of the madhouse.
"I'm not sure," Maurice finally shook his head, "But I will not have that man forcing my daughter to do anything she doesn't want to!" he said angrily, and disappeared into the dark as he began to search for something. He then came back into the light holding two large sacks.
"Come on, Belle, gather your things," he said, holding one out to her, but she didn't take it and instead, stared hopelessly at her father with tears in her eyes.
"Belle?" he questioned her worriedly when she didn't move, and instead she bit her lip.
"Perhaps… I should marry him, Papa," she said sadly, and Maurice became surprised.
"What? No! You will do no such thing!"
"Papa—" she began, but he shook his head.
"No, Belle, I meant it when I said that it is not your place to be sacrificing yourself for your old man. I will not have it." he shook his head angrily.
"But what about all of your inventions? We can't carry them all," Belle said desperately, and Maurice clenched his jaw.
"I can leave those here—"
"No, Papa! You have worked so long and hard on them, I couldn't… I couldn't make you leave them just to protect me from marrying an evil man!" she nearly cried, and her father stepped up to her, grabbing her firmly, yet gently on the upper part of her arms.
"Belle, it is not your duty to protect me! I should be the one protecting you, and if that means having to leave everything behind, then so be it! I love you and your unselfish heart, but as your father, I am telling you to go gather your things," he demanded in a stern voice, and Belle didn't know what to say. Her father was always a gentle, calm man, and it surprised her to see him so protective like this.
Finally, she nodded her head and took the sack from him.
"Christophe, did they see you at all when they were talking?" Maurice turned to him, and Christophe shook his head.
"No, I'm sure they didn't."
"Good. We will hide out at your house for the night, and just before dawn we will leave. Keep an eye out while we get ourselves together. Belle, hurry, now," Maurice said as she still hadn't moved, and she finally headed to her room to quickly change and pack her most important things.
She tried not to cry as she quickly changed out of her pajamas, and began to stuff the few clothes she had, among other things like a brush and her books, but her tears were slowly blurring her vision, and she stopped for a moment as she gripped the sheets of her bed in anger and sadness.
Then, she dropped down to her knees in front of her bed and put her head down to try to suppress the urge to cry, but several tears fell into her lap. How could Gaston do something like this? Why her? Why did he want her when he could have any woman in the entire village? It wasn't fair.
When they were younger, Gaston hardly took notice of Belle— in which no way did she mind— probably because she was always hidden behind a book, but it seemed after that day in the food market, when he approached her for the first time to talk about Prince Adam, he developed a great interest in her, and never left her alone from then on.
Belle walked slowly as she eyed all of the colorful fruits and vegetables; trying to decide what she should make for dinner for her and her father. She had just got done visiting the library, but had only left with one book, rather than the usual stack she carried, for she had to carry the food she was to buy as well.
She stopped by the potato cart and tried to decide which ones were the best when a small group of girls walked by, giggling and talking excitedly.
"Oh, Prince Gaston is so handsome!"
"Yes, but Prince Adam has gorgeous eyes!"
"Prince Gaston is quite the flirt!"
"Prince Adam seems more quiet, but he sure is adorable!"
Belle watched as the girls walked away, and looked down to see Prince Adam, Prince Gaston and LeFou all slowly walking down the busy aisle, looking at more of the village girls passing by than they did the food. Prince Gaston sure did look like he was trying to flirt with nearly every girl they passed, puffing out his chest and putting on his best smirk, while LeFou tried to do the same, but he seemed to go unnoticed next to the two, tall, very handsome, young princes.
Her eyes then landed on Prince Adam, and although he was looking at the girls, he hardly seemed to be trying to catch their attention. He merely smiled at them as they passed by, and Belle had to admit that he did look rather adorable.
Immediately, she began to remember when they had run into each other the other day, and how he had come back to help her. Even though she had heard from the other villagers about his rather growing, spiteful temper, when they stared at each other, she could see kindness deep behind his sky blue eyes, and he had proved it when he came back. However, she was so angry about Prince Gaston shouting at her and stepping all over her books that she did not give Prince Adam the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps he wasn't truly like the vain and discourteous Prince Gaston after all…
She finally pushed the thought away and continued to look through the vegetables, wanting to get home quickly so she could start dinner soon and read her book.
After several minutes, she caught sight of someone approaching her out of the corner of her eye, and looked up to see Gaston heading in her direction, with his eyes set on her. She eyed him suspiciously as he smirked at her. What could he possibly want?
"Hello… Belle, is it?" Gaston asked her when he finally approached her.
"Yes… Can I help you?" she asked slowly, trying to keep the lingering anger caused by him stepping all over her books at bay.
"I wanted to apologize for my rude behavior the other day. I clearly wasn't thinking. Will a beautiful girl such as yourself accept my apology?" he asked, and she stared at him for a moment as he stood there, giving her his best smirk.
He was undoubtedly a handsome young man, but Belle couldn't get passed his obviously large ego and self-pride that radiated off of him. She didn't see what was so attractive about being highly conceited.
After a silent moment however, she finally nodded her head.
"I accept."
"Great. And I also came to apologize for Prince Adam," he said, and Belle looked over to where Prince Adam was standing with LeFou. He smiled gently at her, but she didn't return it as she became curious.
"Why couldn't he do it?" she asked as she looked back at Gaston, now secretly doubting his kindness. Why couldn't he come and apologize to her himself? Why did he send Gaston to do it for him? That didn't seem sincere enough in her opinion.
"Because he wanted to ask if he could make up for it, but he is rather shy when it comes to these things," Gaston said, and this only made Belle more curious.
"What do you mean?"
"He… He would like to apologize in a very sincere way…" he said slowly, a smirk playing on his lips. Belle still didn't quite understand as she continued to stare at Gaston, her eyebrows pulled low in question.
"He would like to… Show you his apology. Alone," Gaston said, raising his eyebrows as he emphasized his words.
Finally, it clicked, and Belle became shocked as well as angry.
"I beg your pardon?" she said heatedly as her cheeks flushed. "I will do no such thing! How dare he—! We're only sixteen years of age! That isn't something—! We are too young!" Belle stammered with a shake of her head, completely stunned that he would think of such an indecent way to apologize.
"That is the most foul and ill-mannered way to apologize to a girl!"
"I know. I tried to tell him that a beautiful girl such as yourself would not be interested in that sort of thing, but he insisted I come over here and ask." Gaston shrugged, and this only further shocked and angered Belle. What kind of person did he think she was? She had more respect for herself than that!
"So, is that a no?" Gaston asked, waiting for her answer.
"I'd rather be locked away for an eternity than to receive an apology such as that!"
Then, she turned on her heel and stormed away, not wanting to even look at someone who would consider that of her.
After that day, she hadn't seen Prince Adam once in the village, nor did she want to. She did however, see Prince Gaston, and anytime he saw her after that, he tried to talk with her.
"Listen, Belle. I know Prince Adam angered you with his… Informal way of apology, but would you allow me to make it up to you for him in a more sensible way? I could treat you to dinner, or we could take a walk down to the river?" Gaston suggested with a smirk as he leaned against the wall next to her.
"Uhm, thank you, but no thank you, Gaston. I'm just going to go home and read," she said with a small smile.
"Are you sure? I mean, I could show you how a real man treats a beautiful girl such as yourself." He smiled widely, flashing her his near perfect teeth.
"That's sweet of you, but I'm sorry, I have to get home." she insisted, and he frowned rather heavily.
"Suit yourself, but I'll have you know, Belle, I don't give up that easily. Especially when it comes to a very beautiful girl. I'll get you to say yes sooner or later," he said with a sly smile, and she gave him a curious look.
"And what makes you think I will?"
"They always do in the end."
And from then on, Gaston continued to ask her time and time again, eventually working his way up to proposals as they got older. She never understood why he wanted to court her so badly after that day, but not once did she say yes to any of his marriage proposals, for his ego and pride always pushed her away.
Back then, it seemed so simple, and she would have thought that he would have let it go when she turned him down numerous times. She never thought that such a day would come when he would threaten her and her father over it.
Her poor father. Why should he have to suffer just because she didn't want to marry Gaston? Why did he have to put her father in the middle of it?
She was extremely grateful that her father would go to such a great length to protect her and her happiness, but was this selfish of her to let him? If she just said yes to Gaston, then her father wouldn't be threatened with getting locked away, and Gaston would provide him with anything and everything he needed to become a great inventor. They would still be able to live in the village, and they wouldn't have to worry about scraping by just to live comfortably… But could she really submit herself to that?
"Belle," Christophe suddenly said from the doorway of her bedroom, pulling her from her thoughts, and she looked up at him sadly, her tears streaming down her face. He stared at her painfully, his face full of grief. Would tonight be the last time she would ever see his face again?
Then, she quickly got up and ran to Christophe, practically throwing herself at him as she hugged him tightly around the neck. He hugged her back just as tight, and she began to cry. She didn't want to, not ever, but she knew she was eventually going to have to say goodbye to Christophe.
"I don't want to leave," she cried into his shoulder.
"I know. I don't want you to leave either," he said gently as he rubbed her back.
Then, she pulled back and roughly wiped the tears from her face, "I could just s-say yes, Christophe. I could just say yes, and e-everything would be fine. We wouldn't have to l-leave and P-Papa could… H-He could…" she couldn't finish as she looked down painfully and another sob took over.
"No," Christophe shook his head. "You couldn't marry that man. You would be so miserable, Belle… It's not worth it."
"B-But—" she tried as she looked up, but he shook his head and pulled her back into another hug as he shushed her.
"Look at you, you're not even married to him and he makes you cry harder than I have ever seen. You cannot marry him. It is not worth it."
"Belle!" They heard Maurice call, and Christophe pulled back once more, cupping her face.
"You're strong Belle, the strongest girl I have ever known, and you will get through this, okay?" he asked, and she nodded her head, followed with more sniffling.
"And maybe someday, when you find that man that makes you smile brighter than the sun, you can come back to visit. And you will know just where to find me," he said sincerely, which only brought on more tears to her eyes, and she tried to blink them back.
"Thank you," she whispered, and he gave her a small, warm smile.
Finally, he let go of her face,
"We have to go now. Come on," he said, and Belle finally turned and grabbed her sack. He held his hand out for her to take, and she clutched on tightly.
"Did you get everything you need?" Maurice asked when they stepped back into the living room, and she nodded, unable to speak at the moment.
"Alright, let's—"
Suddenly, they heard the trotting of horses and the wooden wheels of a carriage in the distance and they froze. They were nearly here.
"What do we do?" Belle whispered worriedly as Maurice quickly blew out the candles, leaving them in the dark.
"Let's sneak out the back. We'll have to hitch Philippe up quickly," Maurice said, and they hurriedly headed out the back door into the cool night air, quietly making their way to the small stable where Philippe was kept. They could hear them getting closer, but if they hurried, they could possibly escape unnoticed.
"Wait, how will we all fit?" Belle asked as Maurice and Christophe strapped Philippe up. Three grown people couldn't ride on one horse with sacks strapped onto him…
"I'll catch up to you guys," Christophe said with a nod as Maurice climbed up onto Philippe.
"But what if they see you? They would surely know you had something to do with our disappearance," Belle said worriedly. She didn't want anyone else to get involved in this, especially someone she loved just as much as her father.
"Belle, come on, we don't have time." Maurice warned, waiting for her to get up.
"I'll be fine, Belle, I promise. I'm a quick runner," Christophe smiled assuredly, and then bent down and held his hands out together to help Belle up.
She reluctantly, but quickly put her foot in his hands, and together they hoisted her up onto Philippe.
"Thank you, Christophe." Maurice nodded to him, and Christophe nodded in return as he stepped back from them. "Don't do anything that would put you in danger."
"I won't. I'm going to take the other way around by the river and cut through the town that way. Now you guys better get going," Christophe said as the sound of the carriage wheels got louder.
"I love you, Christophe," Belle said with a frown as she wrapped her arms around her father.
"I love you too, Belle. Be safe, and I'll see you at home." He smiled, and quickly turned and ran into the dark in the other direction.
Maurice urged Philippe forward, trying to be as quiet and quick as possible. They came around to the side of the house and he stopped Philippe to peek over.
They were a lot closer than they had thought, and there were four of them. However, Gaston was not among them, and Belle was glad. She wasn't sure what she would do if she saw him.
Maurice quickly urged Philippe forward, and they stayed hidden in the shadows as they moved along. All they had to do was weave through the outside of the small patch of forest to the other side behind the town, and get to Christophe's house where he would hopefully be waiting for them.
So far they were doing good, and none of the men or D'Arque, who was directing the carriage himself, had noticed them. Philippe silently trotted along the trees; Maurice slowing them down every now and then when there was a gap in the trees that could expose them.
Belle and Maurice watched as they finally made it to the front of the house, and D'Arque got off of the carriage and walked up to the front door with the three men behind him. He raised his hand and knocked, and they all stood outside and waited with their backs turned to them. Relief was slowly coming over them as they continued on unnoticed.
Suddenly, Philippe stopped and began to whinny, causing panic in Maurice and Belle, who looked down to see a mother fox and her babies in front of them.
"Whoa, whoa. Shh." Maurice tried to quietly hush the horse, but he began to toss his head and back up as the mother fox growled, pushing toward them. He started to stomp his feet and his whinnying became louder.
"Shh! Philippe!" Maurice tried to direct him away, but the mother fox persisted, growling at them as she blocked their way.
Then, she darted forward and tried to bite at Philippe's feet, yipping loudly. Philippe let out a cry as he raised up on his hind legs and suddenly, all of the men turned towards the trees.
"Hey! I think that's them!" one of the men yelled, holding up one of the lanterns they had, causing panic in Maurice and Belle.
"Papa!" Belle said worriedly, her body tensing.
"Philippe! Go!" Maurice said, and quickly urged Philippe into a run, getting away from the mother fox and the men, who were all running back towards their horses.
Maurice had intended to keep them just near the outside of the forest where hardly any of the wild animals ventured, but now he had no choice and took them straight into it.
They could hear the men's horses galloping after them, and Maurice pushed Philippe to run faster, hoping the horse could see better in the dark than they could.
Belle held on tightly and tried to see into the dark ahead of them as Philippe weaved through the trees. Her heart was hammering in her chest as she heard the men's calls behind them. Would they catch up to them? What would happen if they did? Fear ran through her as these thoughts forced themselves into her head.
As they continued to race, getting further into the dark, cold forest, Belle realized she could no longer hear the other men, and looked behind her to see if she could see their lanterns. However, all she saw was darkness all around.
"Papa! Papa! I think they stopped chasing us," Belle said, and her father slowed them down to a quick trot.
"Any idea where they went?" he asked, looking back behind them as well, and Belle shook her head.
"No. Do you think they would go back into town?"
"Possibly, but I imagine they would take the main road straight through town though to try to catch us at path that leads to the next town. I think we can still beat them if we get out of the forest and get to Christophe's house from behind the village."
"Okay." Belle nodded as Maurice got Philippe into a gallop, trying to head back to the outer side of the forest again. It was dark all around them, and Belle tried not to let the feeling of someone watching them get to her.
Finally, they could see some of the buildings of the village again, and Maurice slowed down to look out for the men, but didn't see any of them yet, and Belle felt herself relax slightly. It seemed like they were going to make it to Christophe's before the men even reached the other side of the town where his house was located.
However, none of them noticed the wolf that had been stalking after them in the shadows, and suddenly, he jumped out towards Philippe with a growl, causing the horse, and Belle, to cry out as he rose up and kicked his feet at the wolf.
Then, Philippe darted straight toward the town.
"Whoa! Whoa!" Maurice tried to stop the scared horse, but the wolf chased after them through the forest, and didn't stop until they reached the very edge, causing Philippe to run them straight onto the town roads.
They came out onto the main road before Maurice finally got control of the horse, and suddenly, they heard yells of the men again, just entering through the right.
"There they are!" They called out, and Maurice turned Philippe to run the other way, urging him to go as fast as he could.
Belle held on tightly and looked back to see the men slowly gaining on them, a sinking feeling entering her. They were getting too close to them.
"Papa! We can't go to Christophe's! They are too close to us!" she warned, and Maurice had to think quickly. They were going to have to skip Christophe's and ride out into the forest again in hopes of ever losing them, but where would they go? The forest was dangerous and hard to see at night, but now he feared they had no choice.
He kept Philippe going forward for a while, before he finally turned the horse to the left, going down a path that wasn't traveled as much, and before they knew it, they were back into the dark forest again. The men continued to chase them, and Belle could see the village, her home, beginning to disappear behind the trees. Worry and sadness filled her, for Christophe would probably think something terrible happened to them, and she didn't even get to say a proper goodbye…
As they raced along, the cold air blowing passed them, Belle finally realized which direction they were going as they passed through the opening of the large, wooden wall that was built nearly ten years ago; plants growing up the side of the aged wood. She looked up and notice the empty watch towers, never having been used in almost five years.
She hadn't seen the wall in so long, because after they had built it, the town slowly started to spread out in the other direction away from it. No one went in that direction as the Queen had forbid them, and when the so-called monstrous creature that attacked the castle, and killed their former prince, didn't show himself after nearly five years, they stopped posting guards at the watch towers. However, the villagers still kept quite a distance away from it for fear of ever seeing The Beast again.
The clear path that was once here so long ago, was now being overtaken by vegetation, but it was still clear enough to follow, and they continued along it, unsure of anything that was lying ahead.
"Whoa! Whoa!" D'Arque slowed the horses pulling the carriage down, and the men followed suit.
"Why are we stopping? Are we just going to let them go?" one of the men questioned.
"I'm not going through there," the second spoke up with slight fear in his voice, and the third man agreed.
"Why not? We can't just let them go…?" the first one asked with uncertainty.
"Under the strict orders of the Queen are we not allowed to venture that far beyond the wall," D'Arque said in a stern voice.
"What do we tell Prince Gaston then when he learns that we don't have them?" he asked worriedly, and the other men looked to D'Arque.
"He is not to return for a few days as he just left on business affairs. Hopefully by that time they will have returned. Until then, we will just have to keep a lookout. Let's go," D'Arque said, and they all turned around to head back into the town.
Belle looked back once more with a pounding heart, but it calmed slightly as she noticed the men beginning to slow down just as they reached the wall, yelling and waving after them.
"Papa! Papa, they stopped chasing us!" Belle said with relief as the men got further and further away.
"And with good reason," her father said behind him, and Belle became slightly worried again.
"Why? What do you mean?" she asked quietly.
Finally, he slowed them down only to a quick trot, not wanting to stop for any reason.
"Belle, this path hasn't been traveled in years, who knows what wild animals have made it their home now. It is not safe at night, so we can't stop. If my mind serves me right, the old path splits off towards the next town over, so keep your eyes out for it," he said and Belle nodded, keeping an eye out for any sign.
Now, she began to wonder about the old castle, and the monstrous beast that supposedly took over. Would it still be there after ten years? It was possible, but why would a beast take over a castle, and never show itself? Did The Beast really exist?
She had never really thought about this before, but now that she did, it all seemed curious to her. Why wouldn't the Queen send a group of men up there to take care of the monster? Was it really that vicious, that a whole group of men couldn't slay it?
Her already curious mind now buzzed with these worrying questions as they continued along the dark path, and she pulled her cloak tighter around her body to protect it from the chilly air as her quick breath came out in light fog.
Finally, in the distance, Belle could see an old, wooden sign up ahead.
"Papa, there! There's a sign!" she whispered, pointing ahead, and Maurice directed Philippe over to it.
The somewhat clear path now broke off into two ways, and they squinted in the dark to try to read the sign, but time had worn on the letters, making it difficult to make out.
"Which way do we go?" Belle asked, looking down both ways. Each path seemed rather eerie.
"I don't… I don't remember which way the town is from here." Maurice admitted with slight frustration.
Suddenly, they heard the sound of a twig snap, and they quickly looked around them in the darkness; fear trailing down Belle's spine.
"Papa, which way should we go?" Belle asked worriedly in an anxious whisper as she looked all around her, but all she could see were the dark trees.
Suddenly, Philippe's ears began to twitch and he started to act up again, only making Belle's worry and fear grow. Something was watching them, she was sure of it.
"Uhm, let's go…let's go this way," Maurice said, beginning to turn Philippe to head down to the right, but out of the darkness they heard a long, chilling howl, and goose bumps erupted all over Belle's skin as her heart began to beat quickly in her chest again.
Maurice tried to push Philippe forward, but he started to become reluctant.
"Come on, Philippe." Maurice tried, and Philippe began to trot forward.
Suddenly, they heard low growls, and Belle looked up to see three wolves in the path ahead of them. She felt a wave of fear tingle over her skin as they stared at them, and she gasped as they began to charge. Philippe let out a cry as the wolves ran toward them, and he turned the other way to run.
"Papa!" Belle called out fearfully into the cold night air as they started to race down; the wolves slowly gaining on them.
Then, another wolf jumped out in front of them with a loud growl, and Philippe rose up, kicking his feet as the wolf tried to snap at him.
"Whoa!" Maurice tried to get control, but the three wolves came right up behind them, and Philippe began to kick his back feet, jerking Maurice and Belle on top of him.
One of the wolves jumped up towards Belle, and she screamed as she kicked her foot out, managing to actually hit the wolf's muzzle. It clumsily fell, sneezing and snorting for a moment before finally regaining itself and growling at them again.
Philippe turned and turned, trying to keep the wolves that were encircling them in his sights, stomping his feet.
Then, one of them jumped again and Philippe quickly rose up with a cry. Belle felt her grip loosen, and with a squeak, she fell off of the horse and to the cold, hard ground.
"BELLE!" Maurice yelled out and quickly got off of Philippe, rushing to his daughter.
Two of the wolves jumped at Philippe again, who dodged them, and suddenly found an opening and took off, leaving Maurice and Belle as the wolves chased after him.
"Philippe! No!" Belle cried out as the horse galloped away.
"Come on, Belle!" Maurice said, quickly pulling her up to her feet. They began to run in the other direction away from the wolves, but one of them spotted the two running away, and began to chase after them.
Suddenly, Maurice was jerked back as the wolf took a mouthful of his cloak, bringing him down to the ground. Belle skidded to a halt, quickly turning around.
"PAPA!" she screamed as the wolf tore at his cloak, jerking him.
"Go, Belle! RUN!" Maurice yelled, but there was no way she was going to leave her father to die. She quickly began searching for anything to help her, when her father suddenly yelled out in pain, and she looked up to see the wolf's jaws latched onto his forearm, shaking his head forcefully and tearing Maurice's skin.
Her heart hammered in her chest as she quickly looked around for some sort of help, and finally, she spotted a tree branch and picked it up without a second's thought. She then ran over to her father who was trying to get the wolf to let go of his arm, and just as she approached them, the wolf let go and growled at her, ready to attack. She immediately swung the branch, hitting the wolf in the face, and all of the smaller branches and twigs smashed and splintered off into the wolf's face.
The wolf yelped and pawed at its face in pain, and Belle quickly helped her father up while it was distracted. His arm was now bleeding very badly, but the rest of him seemed alright enough to run. They heard a wolf's howl break through the air again as they took off running down the path to the right. They ran as fast as their feet could carry them, but they could hear the growls getting louder behind them.
They wove around trees and ran through the brush until suddenly, Belle spotted a large gate. It was the old castle.
Without thinking, she pulled her father towards the gates, and as soon as she reached them, she began to pull, but the gate wouldn't budge. She could hear the wolf's growls getting louder, and she tugged and tugged until finally, the gate slid open just enough for them to get through.
Her father fell forward into the old castle's yard as Belle turned and pulled the gate as hard as she could, trying to close it before the wolves came, but the bottom was dragging on the dirt and rocks, making it difficult.
Then, she saw the wolves charging full speed, and with one last defying jerk, she finally pulled the gate completely closed.
She fell back with a gasp as the wolves jumped at the gate, slamming into it and snapping at them through the bars.
However, it seemed as if the wolves finally realized where they were, and they stopped trying to get through the gate and stared at Maurice and Belle for a moment, before finally turning and running away.
Belle curiously watched them leave, and looked back up towards the castle, finally seeing it for the first time.
It was enormous, dark and scary as it loomed over them. There were no lights on inside, and the grounds looked just as eerie as the plants had overgrown it— now slowly dying due to winter approaching— and growing up the sides of the castle walls.
Suddenly, thunder and lightning struck the night sky, illuminating the castle for a moment, which only caused it to look even more unnerving and sinister, as a light drizzle began to fall. She couldn't tear her eyes away from the castle until her father made a slight groaning, and she looked down to see him putting pressure on his bleeding arm.
"Oh, Papa." She frowned heavily, tears beginning to well in her eyes. The cut look considerably deep, and it was possible he was going to need stitches.
"Come on, let's get inside," she said, beginning to help him up. She looked back in hopes of seeing Philippe, but he was nowhere in sight, and she feared that the wolves had gotten him.
They slowly approached the large castle, but just before she opened the door, her father stopped them.
"Belle, I don't know…" he warned, looking up at the castle himself, blinking in the light drizzle.
"Papa, we have to. We'll get sick from the cold rain and we can't go back out there in the dark, it's too dangerous. Plus, we need to take care of your arm," she said worriedly, for she did not want to enter the castle either, but what choice did they have?
His eyes roamed over the castle again as a look of contemplation crossed his face and finally, he nodded his head.
She took a deep breath and then pushed the large castle door open. It made a deep groaning as she opened it just enough for them to get through. They stepped in and she pushed the door shut, trying to be as quiet as she could, but the groaning made a slight echo.
It was just as grand inside, though the darkness still made it chilling. It was slightly warmer, but she pulled her cloak tighter around her to keep her body heat in.
They stood silent and still for a moment, listening and looking out for any sign of life or a monster, but it was just as silent as still as they were.
She wished they had something to light the room with, but the lightning from outside gave just enough quick light for her to see a main room off to the left.
"Come on," she whispered, and they quietly walked into the main room.
She led her father over to one of the chairs and he sat down, wincing slightly as he held tightly onto his arm. She kneeled down on the floor in front of him.
"Here, get my knife and cut a long piece of my cloak." He whispered to her as he leaned over to the side so she could get the knife out.
She pulled it out and found an already torn part of his cloak at the bottom and cut a long strip off.
"Shouldn't we clean it first?" she asked as she set the knife down, but he gave her a worried look.
"I don't know, Belle, I don't think we should be walking around the castle, let alone be in here," he whispered with the shake of his head.
"But it'll get infected, Papa. I can't…" she shook her head, trying to find the words, "I have to do something, because I'm scared," she said, looking up at him worriedly.
He stared at her for a moment, realizing that his daughter, who truly was a brave woman, was indeed scared for him, and for their situation. He sighed gently and nodded his head.
"I understand, Belle, but we'll go together, okay? I am not leaving you alone in this castle," he said sternly, and she nodded.
"At least tie this off first just to stop the bleeding." He held his arm out, and she nodded again as she held the strip of cloth out, and carefully began to wrap it tightly over his wound. He winced slightly as she wrapped it, but finally relaxed when she was done.
"Okay, let's go," he said, and she helped him stand up.
Now that she wasn't running for her life, she suddenly realized just how sore her body felt, and her shoulder slightly hurt as well, probably from when she fell off of Philippe, but she knew her injuries were minor compared to her father's arm.
As she stared down at her father's arm, she felt terrible, but immensely grateful at the same time, for he had put his life at risk to save her.
"Papa, I…" she trailed off quietly, and he looked at her as they walked closely together. "Thank you, for saving me."
He smiled gently at her, "Of course, Belle. You are my life, and if I lost you… I don't know what I would do." He shook his head with frown at the thought.
"I don't know what I would do either." Belle shook her head.
"Probably be an ordinary, village girl," he said, and Belle looked up to see him playfully smirking, and she couldn't help but smile as well. He could always make her smile, no matter what situation they were in.
They looked forward as they quietly walked through the entrance hall, looking around at all of the dark décor displayed around the castle. Although the statues and paintings were beautiful, the darkness and the story behind this old castle is what made it rather spooky.
However, something struck Belle odd as they came to the end of the hall. This castle was ten years old, and a supposed beast lived here alone… So, why was the castle free of dust? Surely, a monstrous beast wouldn't be worried of cleaning the castle…
Finally, they came to a door, pulling Belle from her thoughts as her father reached out and slightly pushed her behind him, withdrawing his knife and holding it firmly in his good hand, and he slowly reached out to push the door open.
Suddenly, just as her father put his hand to the door, there was the sound of slight shuffling that seemed to come from the other side of the door. They immediately froze and listened in.
Then, Belle's adrenaline shot up as they thought they heard muffled, quiet voices, but the thunder outside suddenly cracked, and Belle couldn't tell if it was just her mind playing tricks with the weather, or if she had indeed heard muffled voices coming from the other side of the door.
Her father looked back at her, and she took a deep breath and nodded her head. He faced forward and readjusted his hold on the knife, preparing himself.
Then, he opened the door.
I know just how much you guys love these cliffhangers. :P mwuahaha!