I apologize sincerely that it has been such a loooong (and I mean long) time since I last updated. v_v

I could tell you all the reasons why (mainly work), but you didn't come here for that, now did you? :P

So, without further a due, here is the next chapter. :)

I apologize if it seems rushed or rough, or if there are a few errors, as I pushed to try to get this one done in the little spare time that I have, but hopefully the next chapter won't take as long as this one did. :x

And I'd like to thank Lavadiamond10 for pushing me to finish this chapter...! So, thank you. :)

Alright! Enjoy!

Beast paced back and forth, trying his hardest not to destroy anymore of the furniture or décor that had managed to be salvaged or spared over the years, but his anger was boiling.

"Of course she would want to leave! Why would she want to stay here with a monster?" he growled to himself.

He didn't mean to yell at her, but for some reason he just became extremely upset when he saw the hopeful look on her face when she asked if she could leave.

She made a promise to stay with him! She promised she would stay forever…

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

"What?" he called out with a bit of a snarl.

"Master, may I come in?" Lumiere's voice came through the door.

"Why?"

"To talk," Lumiere simply said, and Beast stopped pacing, staring at the door.

"Why would I want to talk?" he nearly snapped.

"Because it would probably help better than destroying things," Lumiere suggested, and Beast was about to tell him off when he stopped himself, realizing he made a rather good point, but sometimes he felt destroying things was more comforting.

However, he knew Lumiere was right. Destroying things only made him direct his anger, never really releasing it, and as he thought about it, deep down he truly did want to talk. He wanted to get it off of his chest, and after a long silent moment, he finally opened the door, allowing Lumiere inside.

Lumiere carefully walked in, having been allowed inside only a few times, and he waited until Beast shut the door.

"Well?" he asked gently as he looked up at him, "Tell me all about it. What happened?"

Beast stayed silent as the thoughts ran through his head. He had never really talked about anything that bothered him before, but there was always a first for everything, right?

Lumiere waited patiently as Beast tried to find the right words, and he decided to start from the beginning.

"I…uhm, I used the magical mirror to find her horse…"

"…and to be honest, it was very sweet of him," Belle sniffled gently, sitting on the bed as Mrs. Potts and Madame Armoire listened. "I was just so happy to see Phillipe that I couldn't contain myself, and I said something I knew I shouldn't have." she frowned, looking down at her lap.

"Well, he shouldn't have yelled at you the way he did. It was not right of him to hurt you like that," Mrs. Potts said firmly, and Madame Armoire made to agree, but Belle shook her head.

"But don't you see? I hurt him first," she said sadly, and the two looked puzzled.

"He…" she paused, staring at the floor as she recalled the very recent event, "He just looked…so happy, and I ruined it by saying what I did." she shook her head, her brow creasing as she fought her tears.

"But, dear, who could blame you?" Mrs. Potts asked, and Belle looked up.

"Myself," she said firmly. "He was right, I made a promise that I would stay here. He gave me a choice to leave with my father, but I was too scared to risk it, so I gave him my word that I would stay. It was wrong of me to ask if I could leave when I made him that promise."

"Well, what are you going to do?" Madame Armoire asked, and they waited as she thought.

"I…I need to try to get passed my anger. I brought all of this upon myself, even though none of it was really fair, I had choices, and these are the consequences of those choices I made, and the only thing left to do is make the better of them, rather than fighting them." she nodded, finally coming to terms with what she was dealt with. "He tried, and now, it is my turn."

Madame Armoire and Mrs. Potts stared at her for a quiet moment, before Mrs. Potts finally smiled warmly at her.

"I think that is a very wonderful idea," she said, and Madame Armoire nodded.

"Thank you. However, I don't know what I should do," she said, her brow creasing, "He tried to apologize by bringing my horse back for me, but I don't know what I can do for him."

The three suddenly became quiet as they tried to think of something, but eventually Belle gently sighed and shook her head.

"I think I should just leave him be for a while. I've been doing nothing but causing him anger," she said sadly.

"But dear, what will you do? You can't stay in here all day and night! You'll go mad!" Mrs. Potts said worriedly, and Madame Armoire gently glared at her. "No offense, dear," she quickly added to her.

"Well, I mean, I guess I could still walk around the castle…and help you with anything you need, I'll just…leave him alone until he's ready to speak to me again," Belle said with a slight shrug.

She truly felt as if she had really hurt The Beast's feelings, and she couldn't help but feel terrible for it.

Hopefully things wouldn't get worse for them.

"What should I do?" Beast asked Lumiere, sitting on the bed. "Should I just leave her alone? Should I apologize again?"

"What do you think you should do, Master?" Lumiere asked, hoping he would make the right decision.

"I don't… I don't know." he shook his furry head, sighing.

"What do you honestly want to do?" Lumiere asked, encouraging him.

Beast thought about it for a moment. What did he truly want to do?

"I… I don't want to be angry. I don't want her to be angry with me. I want…to make it better. I want to make her happy," he said honestly, and Lumiere smiled.

"Then, do it! There is no time like the present!"

"But how?" Beasts asked, unsure of himself. He was never good at this when he was human, how could he do it now?

"Hmm," Lumiere thought, and Beast waited silently, hoping Lumiere could come up with something that wouldn't end tragically like the dinner idea and the surprise had.

"Perhaps you could just talk to her?" he suggested, smiling widely.

"Just talk to her? How?" Beast asked, as he remembered the last time he had tried to 'just talk to her', which resulted in them arguing. It seemed almost everything he did resulted in anger and arguments.

"You know, just talk. Don't argue, don't yell, just talk and listen." Lumiere nodded as if it were that easy. "You need to learn to control your temper, and what better way than to just try and simply talk to the girl? Hmm?" he raised his eyebrows in anticipation.

Beast made a face as he thought about it. He really did need to learn to control his temper…

"I guess… I guess I could try," he finally said, still unsure of himself, but if he were to try to get Belle to fall in love with him, he needed to keep trying. He knew he shouldn't give up so easily, especially when his, and his servant's destinies, were on the line.

"In order to be free of this curse, Adam, you must truly fall in love with someone, and they must truly love the beast that you are in return, before the last petal falls on your twenty-sixth birthday, or you will remain as a beast forever."

He knew it needed to work both ways. He had to get her to love him, and he love her in return, but could he bring himself to love again? He realized that the two most important people he had ever loved were torn from him, and it closed off his heart. He hadn't truly loved anyone with his heart since.

"Well then, what are you waiting for?" Lumiere asked, but Beast shook his head.

"No," he sighed, "I think… I think I should give her some time first."

"But Master, we don't have much time…" Lumiere said with a frown, but Beast sighed again.

"I know, but I don't want to rush things either, and have it push her away," he said, staring at the floor with his ears down. "I feel like I just need to give her some time first."

Lumiere's frown deepened, but he knew his Master's mind was set, and he nodded gently.

"If that's what you feel you must truly do, then I can only support you," he said firmly, and Beast finally looked up at him.

"Thank you, Lumiere, for…this," he said sincerely, and finally stood up. "I think I would like to be alone now, please," he said gently.

Lumiere immediately understood, and with a bow, he left his master alone to his thoughts.

Several days had passed and an extreme cold front had swept through, causing the grounds to become covered in snow. Surprisingly, Belle hadn't hardly seen or heard from The Beast ever since the incident, which caused her to actually become sad and fearful that she may have truly hurt him.

Although she shouldn't have cared, since everything he had done to her, she couldn't help herself; she cared too much with her heart, and she felt terrible for it. Who knew she could hurt such an angry, cold, beast?

She had sat out in the main room quite often in hopes of seeing him, but from what she had gathered from the servants, he was keeping himself locked in the West Wing, and slowly, she was losing hope of ever returning the favor of trying.

A few times she had spotted him watching her from a distance, and she tried to find the courage to say something, but all they did was stare at each other with rather fearful and nervous eyes until he would finally turn away and disappear again.

"I cannot take it anymore, I need to do something! I feel terrible," Belle sighed one early evening, after having spent most of the day just hanging around with the servants, and not seeing The Beast.

"What are you going to do?" Madame Armoire asked curiously as Belle began to think.

"I don't know… Maybe I should make the first move, instead of waiting for him," she said in more of a question. "I mean, it's not like he has been around anyone outside of the castle for years, I assume…right?" she turned to Madame Armoire who thought for a moment, and then nodded.

"Right."

"So, he obviously feels uncomfortable with an unfamiliar person in the castle…and probably doesn't even know how to approach it!" she said rather excitedly as if she had just figured it out. "That's it! I should go find him myself and talk to him! Oh, thank you, Madame Armoire!"

"Err... No problem, Sweetie!" Madame Armoire chuckled, though confused of what she had done to be thanked.

And with that, she set out to find him, determined to talk to him and to apologize for her behavior.

"Master, it has been days, and neither of you have said a word!" Lumiere pointed out as he, Cogsworth and Beast walked through the halls.

"I know…" Beast sighed, "I've tried, but… I just… I don't know, I get too nervous to speak. She stares at me with those round, beautiful, brown eyes, expecting me to say something, but I lose my nerve and just leave. I've never… I've never felt this way before, and I don't know how to deal with it."

"Just go up and talk to her, Master." Lumiere encouraged. Winter had quickly approached them, and that meant time was quickly approaching as well.

"But what do I talk about?" he looked to them, confusion apparent on his face.

"Anything!" Cogsworth spoke up, "Tell her about the castle… Talk to her about the weather—"

"…The weather?" Beast raised an eyebrow as he stopped walking, and Lumiere shrugged.

"It's better than nothing, eh?"

Beast thought for a minute. He really just needed to gather his courage and do it. He was a former prince, and a beast, after all! How could such a petite, beautiful, quick-witted, independent girl cause him so much nervousness and fear?

Because she was beautiful, quick-witted, and independent.

But those were the things he liked about her. She was different from everyone else… Just like him.

"I guess that's right… —No. No, you're right. I should just go up and talk to her." Beast nodded, and he felt a new courage fill him. "I'm going to do it. I'm just going to go up and talk to her. Right now."

Lumiere and Cogsworth both smiled and watched as Beast walked away with a new bound determination, and hope filled them.

Perhaps the curse could be broken after all.

Belle searched the main room, the kitchen, the dining room, and even a few of the halls, but she couldn't find The Beast anywhere.

Where is he? She wondered as she searched.

For being such an enormous beast, he sure was hard to find.

As she continued to look, she found herself passing by the stairs to the West Wing, and she paused.

Could he be up there? She wondered. She knew he had said it was forbidden, but… What if he just said that because he didn't want to be bothered by her? Was it truly forbidden? And what could really be up there that would make it forbidden in the first place?

I've looked everywhere but… her thoughts trailed off. No. No more beating around the bush, I am determined to talk to him, even if that means…

She quickly looked around the hall, but didn't see anyone around, and before she knew it, she found herself climbing the steps.

She knew he could possibly become angry with her again, but she was determined to find a mutual grounding with him. She wanted to make peace with him. They couldn't go living on like this, especially if they were to spend the rest of their lives together. Not to mention she was becoming extremely bored spending most of her time by herself. There was only so much she could do to entertain herself, and the servants… While they were fun to talk to, she held so much curiosity for The Beast. She wanted to know so much more about him.

She was halfway up the steps when she suddenly heard that humming again. She hadn't heard it since the last time she was near the West Wing, and as she got closer to the top of the stairs, the humming became even louder and more clearer.

What is that? She wondered as she finally made it to the top of the stairs, and she found herself staring down a long dark hall.

Spookiness just radiated from the extremely dark hall, but as her eyes adjusted to the dark, she could see a faint, pink-like glowing coming from the large doors at the end of the hall, and she just knew that's where the humming was coming from.

She felt her curiosity begin to carry her feet, and she allowed it as her eyes scanned around the dark hall.

There were thick, long scratches along the walls and paintings that lined them, curtains torn and décor broken, but the humming pulled her along, and soon after, she was standing before the large doors.

She placed her ear against the door to listen.

Yes, the humming was definitely coming from inside. She grabbed the handle and paused, quickly glancing back and finding herself still alone in the hall.

Then, with a deep breath and quick beating heart, she pulled the door open and slipped inside.

Where is she? Beast thought as he searched the halls, the kitchen, and the main room. He had asked a few of the servants, but none of them seemed to have a clue. One of them said that she might have been in her room, so he quickly headed that way to check.

"She went to go look for you," Madame Armoire said, surprised to see The Beast looking for her.

Beast quickly thought. She wouldn't be outside on the grounds, it was too cold and covered in snow. He had checked nearly everywhere, but where could she be?

Suddenly, an unnerving thought struck him. She couldn't be…

With a hammering heart, he quickly raced toward the West Wing. She couldn't be there, could she? He told her it was forbidden, but she was nowhere else in the castle…

He just hoped he was wrong.

As soon as Belle had stepped inside, she expected to see someone, or something humming inside, but as soon as she had entered, it immediately stopped. What was it? Where did it go? Was it just her imagination?

She felt her adrenaline and nerves rising as it finally hit her that she was in his room —or at least the room he spent all of his time in.

She took a few steps forward, looking around at all of the broken furniture and décor. The room looked like it had been trashed for some while now, as there were cobwebs across the ceiling, and dust lining broken shelves and décor. She could just feel a dark and eerie presence in the stagnant, musky air.

She carefully stepped over the books and things strewn about the floor, careful not to make noise. What happened here?

As she continued further in, something caught her eye, and she looked over to see eyes staring back at her, causing chills to run down her spine for a moment until she realized it was a painting. She stepped closer to it, and as she stared at the painting, noticing huge scratches and tears across the face and making it difficult to make out, she couldn't help but stare at the blue eyes that stared back. They looked familiar…

As she moved even closer, something else caught her eye… Something shining and bright…

She quickly looked over and was surprised to see a beautiful glowing rose, hovering on a round table with a glass case over it.

What is that? She wondered as she slowly began to make her way towards it, careful not to run into any of the furniture. It was very beautiful, like no other rose she had ever seen, but she had also noticed there were a few, dark, wilted petals resting on the table, and suddenly, she could hear the faint humming again.

This was it!

But a rose? Why would a glowing rose be humming? Why would it be glowing for that matter? And was it dying? Why? These questions buzzed through her head.

She finally approached it, and with careful hands, she grabbed the glass case and slowly pulled it over the beautiful rose and set it down. It was so beautiful, and she felt like it was pulling her in.

She raised a hand up, and slowly began to reach out towards the rose, feeling its warmth pulling her…

She was just about to touch the rose, when suddenly the door flew open with a bang, causing her to jump back, and her heart began hammering in her chest as she looked over to see The Beast standing in the doorway.

His eyes were wide with shock and fear as he stared at the rose, but when they swept over to her, his brows lowered, and an angry, malicious look crossed them.

Fear immediately filled her as she had never seen him look so angry before, and he quickly raced forward, picking up the glass case and covering the rose with it.

She was too afraid to speak, and she stood there frozen as he started to growl.

"What are you doing here?" he growled threateningly at her as he turned away from the rose. "I warned you to never come here!"

"I-I was looking for you… I g-got lost…" She tried, but she knew his temper was not going to allow her to slide by. There was no longer that soft, buried kindness in his eyes. He looked so angry… He looked as if he could kill…

"You're lying!" he slowly advanced on her, his fangs bared.

"N-No, I swear!" she shook her head as she slowly backed up. "Please, let me explain—"

"NO! You are a selfish girl! You never listen!" he raised his voice at her as he suddenly picked up a piece of a broken night stand and threw it angrily. It smashed into the wall close to her, and she backed up into a beaten, old cabinet as he continued to move toward her; her body trembling with fear.

"I'm sorry—"

"You cause me nothing but anger and problems! You only think of yourself! Do you realize what you could have DONE?" His chest heaved greatly with each angry breath. "You could have ruined EVERYTHING!" he yelled, throwing another piece of broken furniture.

"Stop, please! I-I didn't mean to…!" She began, but his growling only brought on more fear. He looked more menacing than she had ever seen him as his face came within inches of hers.

"Get out," he growled in a low voice, but she was too afraid to move as she stared into his furious eyes. The kind blue was gone, and only frightening black filled them.

"Get out. Get out! GET OUT!" he roared at her as he began to throw and smash more broken furniture and décor that were strewn about the room.

A piece of furniture flew by, nearly hitting her, and she finally turned and ran. Her heart beat wildly in her chest as she could hear him destroying the room. She didn't dare look back as she continued to run down the hall and towards the steps.

She made it to the bottom of the stairs, and before she could think, she headed straight for the castle doors.

"Mademoiselle? Where are you going?" Lumiere asked worriedly as she raced passed him and Cogsworth with tears in her frightened eyes.

She saw her cloak hanging on a coat rack and threw it over her shoulders, pulling the hood up.

"Promise or n-no promise, I can't… I can't do this! I c-can't stay here with that…monster!" she nearly cried as they followed after her. She pulled hard on the iron lock until it finally slid open, and she threw all of her weight into the castle doors until they creaked opened just enough for her to get through.

Even though the doors were locked with a simple iron bar, the feeling of pushing them open, the feeling of gaining back her freedom, was thrilling and terrifying at the same time. She couldn't believe it and yet, here she was, running straight out towards the large castle gates. The cold wind nipped at her skin as she ran straight toward the large gates and pushed them open, then ran over toward Phillipe and untied him.

She quickly climbed up, and together they raced out of the gates into the snowy white forest as they could hear Beast's loud roar echo out of the castle.

She couldn't tell where she was going, all she knew was that she needed to get far away, for she never felt so terrified in her life. She was never truly worried of The Beast hurting her, because she could always see a gentle kindness in his blue eyes no matter how angry he got, but when he found her in the West Wing, all of the kindness was gone, and she felt like she was truly staring into the eyes of a terrifying monster. She never wanted to see that again.

As they continued to race along, everything began to look the same, and she was becoming worried. Would they get lost out here forever?

Suddenly, she could hear howling in the distance, and she looked up to see wolves coming their way, and even more fear filled her.

The large wolves raced down towards them, and soon they were running along side of them. They tried jumping and snapping at her and Phillipe's legs.

She urged him to go faster while trying to hold on, but suddenly two of them appeared in front of them, and Phillipe immediately stopped, rising up on his hind legs and crying out as the wolves encircled them. They growled low as their hair raised up, and suddenly, one of them lunged.

"No, Phillipe!" Belle tried to control him as he started to buck, but she was thrown off of the scared horse and into the snow.

She quickly got up and pulled the hood off of her head as some of the wolves turned on her, and they began to approach her slowly. She looked around and spotted a broken tree branch next to her and quickly grabbed it, holding on tight.

One large wolf in particular was closer to her than any of the others, and he stood just feet from her, growling low.

She raised the branch up and prepared to fight for her life when suddenly, the large wolf in front of her transformed right before her very eyes, and before she knew it, she was staring at a muscular, rugged, and naked man.

Her mouth dropped open, and she stared at him wide eyed as he smirked at her.

"What's the matter, Beautiful? Never seen a beast before?" he questioned her in a deep voice as he began to step forward.

She couldn't believe it, and yet, this man was standing right before her!

"Th-This isn't possible!" she breathed, but the man merely laughed a deep, husky laugh.

"Why not? There's a beast that lives in a castle. Why can't there be werewolves in the forest, hmm?" he questioned her, and she didn't know what to say. She was at a complete loss for words.

"So," he cocked his head to the side when she stayed silent. His eyes were ominous as they roamed over her, "I'm surprised to see you're still alive after all of this time. What's a pretty girl like you doing out in a forest like this?"

He took a step closer to her, and she tightened her grip on the branch.

"Please, I am just trying to get home," she said desperately, hoping that somehow this…man would have some kind of heart.

"Well, why don't you just come with me, and I'll show you were home is," he smiled wickedly, and took another step closer.

She didn't like this man. Everything about him just screamed danger.

"Don't come any closer, or I'll hit you!" she warned him, but he laughed, and the other werewolves began to yelp as if they were laughing as well.

"Beautiful and brave. You don't find that too often."

Her body trembled with fear as he continued to stare at her with hunger in his eyes.

Then, without warning he lunged forward, and she swung the branch, but he caught it swiftly in his hand and yanked it from her, tossing it to the side.

She gasped and quickly backed up into one of the trees as he advanced on her.

"S-Stop! Please! I live in the village not far from here. Please, just let me go home," she tried to say in a firm tone, but her voice was faltering.

"We promised our Alpha we wouldn't mess with anyone in the village, but he never said anything about the forest. You're in our territory now, Beautiful," he said with a glint in his eye.

Suddenly, she turned and tried to run, but he grabbed the back of her cloak and pulled it, causing her to stumble back into him.

The werewolves yelped and jumped in laughter again as the man turned her and grabbed her.

"No! Let me go!" She struggled with him, but he began to pull at her dress while two other werewolves grabbed at the hem with their teeth, tearing it. She grabbed at her clothes, trying to keep them in tact as they ripped them.

"How about we have a little fun, eh?" he smiled wickedly, flashing two sharp canines.

"Let me go!" she screamed as she continued to struggle with him; hitting and pushing on his bare chest.

For being naked in the forest, his body felt oddly warm as he struggled to hold her against him.

"Stop squirming!" he ordered her, and without warning, he back-handed her across the face.

She fell back into the snow, and quickly stared up at him with wide, shocked eyes. She had never been struck by a man before.

She put a hand to her hot and tender lip, and pulled it back to see blood on her fingers. He smirked as if this was some sort of fun game.

Before she could get up and make a run for it again, he dived down and grabbed her, attempting to pin her down.

"Get off of me! Let me go!" she screamed as he easily pinned her wrists down by her head, and climbed over her. She continued to writhe underneath him, but his body was too heavy.

Then, he lowered his head, and she quickly turned hers away. She heard him take a deep inhale of breath, and blow out hot air against her neck, making her shudder in fear.

"You smell delicious," he growled, and pinned both of her wrists above her head with one large hand as he reached for the front of her dress, beginning to pull on it again.

"Stop! Please!" she pleaded as she kicked underneath him; her body trembling in fear.

He managed to rip the first button apart and her chest heaved as she heard more howling and yelping.

Finally, she managed to slip one of her hands free from his grasp, and she reached up and slapped him as hard as she could. His head slightly turned to the side, but he quickly looked back with an excited smile and a glint in his eye.

"You sure are brave as you are beautiful. You would make a great female to the Alpha, but first, I'll need to see how well you perform," he said with a hungry growl, and he began to pull at the second button.

"Please, don't do this! Stop!" she pleaded as tears began to find their way to her eyes. She couldn't believe this was happening. If only she had just stayed at the castle…

She squeezed her eyes shut as the second button ripped, and the werewolves began howling and yelping in anticipation. Who could help her? How could she escape? Fear ran through her as she thought of what he was going to do to her next.

If only she wouldn't have been so selfish and stayed away from the West Wing like he had told her to, then she wouldn't be in this situation. She would rather him be yelling at her all of the time than to be where she was right now.

He was right. She was selfish. She never listened, and she caused nothing but anger and problems. This was all her fault.

She felt her tears leak out of the corners of her eyes as he tried to pull on the third button of her dress when unexpectedly, she heard the all-too-familiar loud roar, and the man above her was abruptly hoisted off of her with a yelp. She quickly opened her eyes to see the man fly into a tree, and crash hard into the snow in a crumpled heap.

She quickly looked up and froze as she stared straight into a pair of piercing blue eyes that were staring right back at her.

"You…" she breathed, but suddenly, three werewolves jumped onto The Beast, knocking him over as they sunk their teeth into him. He roared angrily as he began to wrestle with the werewolves, grabbing them and throwing them off as more jumped onto him.

Belle quickly sat up, holding her clothes to try to keep herself covered up as she watched The Beast and the werewolves fight.

He knocked two of them down, but three more would jump on him, and they would thrash about again. What was Belle going to do?

The man who was over her quickly got up, and transformed back into his wolf form, charging after The Beast. He was the biggest werewolf of them all, and most likely the Beta werewolf, as he fought well against him.

Belle didn't know what to do as she stared helplessly at the werewolves tearing at The Beast.

Finally, she looked over and spotted the branch she was holding before, and quickly got up, running over to it. She picked it up, and ran over to The Beast.

One of the werewolves turned just as she approached them, but she swung the branch as hard as she could into its muzzle, and the werewolf yelped in pain as it flew back.

Another werewolf and the Beta werewolf noticed this and jumped at her. She gasped and turned, trying to protect herself as she waited for the blow.

Beast, although still fighting with the other werewolves, managed to tackle one of the werewolves down, but missed the Beta werewolf by inches, and he sunk his claws into the skin of her shoulder, and she could feel it tear down the flesh of her back as they fell over.

She cried out in pain as they fell, and she looked up to see the Beta werewolf on all fours again, growling at her. Fear ran through her as she was now extremely vulnerable; her back shoulder burning and bleeding.

Before the Beta werewolf could attack her again however, Beast threw the other werewolves off of him and immediately jumped over Belle, keeping his body hovered closely over hers as he growled threateningly at the Beta werewolf.

The other werewolves surrounded them, growling and inching closer, but the Beta werewolf barked at them, and they stopped moving and cowered down, but still growled quietly at Belle and Beast.

It was quiet and still except for the blowing wind that seemed to have picked up, and the threatening growls from The Beast and the Beta werewolf.

Belle couldn't have been more worried for her life, but at the same time she felt comfort and hope as The Beast hovered over her protectively, nearly pressing his large body into hers.

Then, in the blink of an eye the two lunged at each other.

The Beta werewolf clamped his jaws around his forearm, as Beast hit him anywhere he could. Beast grabbed a handful of his fur and tugged him off, throwing him. The Beta werewolf rolled in the snow, but quickly got up and charged Beast again, trying to jump for his neck.

Belle made to get up, but one of the werewolves suddenly snapped at her and she fell back. She winced from the wound on her back, and realized that all she could do was watch as the two animals tore at each other. She couldn't help but wonder what would happen if The Beast lost. Would they take her away? Would she become one of them? Or would they simply kill her?

She shuddered not only because of the cold wind on her exposed skin, but at the thought of what they would do to her before they killed her; what they were going to do to her before The Beast had even showed up. However, she knew that no matter what, she wouldn't go down without a fight.

She wouldn't let The Beast's death be in vain. Even though he screamed at her, even though he was furious with her, he came and put his life at risk just to save her, and in this moment, she felt that she would risk her life to try to save him in return. What did this mean?

Suddenly, she gasped as she watched the Beta werewolf jump towards The Beast and knock him onto his back. He immediately went for The Beast's open neck, and she prepared herself to get up and fight when he suddenly grabbed the Beta werewolf's fur, holding his jaws back from clamping around his neck.

She held her breath as they struggled against each other, and The Beast managed to punch the Beta werewolf hard on the side of his head, knocking him off and dazing him.

Beast quickly got up and grabbed the Beta wolf's back leg and a handful of skin and fur, and picked him up. He then turned and swung him as hard as he could into a nearby tree.

Belle instantly closed her eyes and turned away as she heard the animal collide into the tree, and suddenly, all was quiet again.

She opened her eyes and looked up just as the other werewolves did, their ears perked forward in question.

The Beta werewolf was dead.

Suddenly, Beast took a deep inhale of breath, and roared as loud as he could at the other werewolves, and they immediately turned and ran away in fear. He did it. He saved them.

Once they were all gone, however, Belle looked over to see The Beast standing there staring at her. His cloak was torn, his fur was nearly covered in blood, and he was breathing heavily. She could feel her fear of him quickly return, for he looked like a menacing beast, still ready for the attack.

They stared long and hard at each other, and Belle could see regret in his eyes, but still, there was greater anger in them. She didn't know what to do, and all she could do was stare in fear. Was he going to try to take her back to the castle? Or was he going to kill her for trying to escape?

Then, he began to walk towards her, fog rolling from his snout, and she began to tremble as more fear filled her. She tried to scoot back, but the snow and her fear kept her from getting very far.

"Please," she tried to say, but her voice was weak.

He was getting closer, and she held her breath as he slowly raised his blood covered paw. This was it. He was going to kill her.

She raised her arms and closed her eyes, preparing for the blow when suddenly, he dropped to his knee with a grunt. She quickly opened her eyes, and with one final look, he collapsed into the snow.

Belle quickly got up, ignoring the pain of her back shoulder as she rushed to Phillipe, preparing to climb on top of him and flee to freedom once again when she stopped and looked back at him lying helplessly in the snow, wondering if this was the right thing to do.

Was he really going to kill her, or was the fear in her making her believe he was going to kill her? Surely not, as he did come back for her after all…but were his intentions to force her back to the castle rather than saving her? He didn't have to save her though…

Still, could she really just leave him out here to freeze to death, or leave him vulnerable in case the werewolves came back for him? What was she to do? Her mind not only buzzed, but tugged her back and forth.

Suddenly, she could hear Mrs. Potts' voice in her head, bringing forth the memory of when she had first arrived at the castle.

"He has had a rough life like any other, but he has not had the sympathy, love, and care that most —without realizing— take for granted. Promise me that, if you ever do come to find it in your heart to care for him… Promise me that you will not give up on him so easily."

"…I promise."

She had made that promise to her, even though he didn't know about it. Did this mean that she cared for him, then?

She couldn't truly answer that, but what she couldn't deny was that he did come back to save her. Not only that, but he had tried to have an apology dinner for her when she first arrived, and he went out of his way into this dark and dangerous forest and brought back Phillipe for her, and she realized that this whole time he had been trying, but she was too angry and stubborn to see it. Maybe it was finally her turn. She had made a promise that she would not give up on him, and she couldn't break that promise, especially to Mrs. Potts.

After a moment of debating with herself, Belle finally made up her mind. She couldn't just leave him, and he would just have to be mad at her for what she had done. She now felt it in her heart that he would not kill her, because if he had wanted to, he would have done it a long time ago.

She carefully walked over to him and kneeled down beside him, finding that his eyes were closed, and he was still breathing heavily. She reached out towards him, but hesitated.

She got up and went over to Phillipe, who seemed to have calmed down now that the werewolves were gone, and led him over to The Beast. She kneeled back down beside him and reached out, picking his arm up as carefully as she could, and draping it over her shoulder. He slowly opened his eyes and looked towards her as she winced at the stinging pain of her back shoulder, but she pushed through it and stared back at him, waiting for him to reject her.

However, there was no longer any anger in his eyes, but more regret as they roamed over the bleeding cut and bruising of her lip, but she gave him a small smile to assure him that she was alright, and together, they helped bring him to his feet.

She carefully walked him over to Phillipe, who seemed even calm around him, and he draped his other arm over the horse.

Then, they began their slow and cold trek back to the castle in silence, all the while him keeping her close, and she didn't mind it one bit.

Again, I apologize for the delay! Hope you enjoyed it. :)