Hey all! Thanks for putting up with the spring break crazyness, so here's the next chapter and it's a long one! Yay!
Roslyn woke in a much better mood the next morning and with far fewer pains than she had had previously, having spent a relaxing night in actual slumber. Stretching she looked around at her still pink room that seemed to have grown more inviting since the night before. With a smile on her lips she remembered her conversation with the Beast from the night before and how well they had got on together after he had opened up to her. Maybe staying in the gloomy castle wasn't going to be as difficult as she first thought. Her smile dimmed as she remembered the Beast's outburst of temper that had so frightened her and the shredded canvas that had littered the picture gallery; maybe she should reserve judgment on that, but she was now far more inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt.
Rising she crossed to the curtains as a familiar rumble started in her stomach; opening them she allowed daylight to enter her room and smiled at the bright sunshine even though she felt guilty for sleeping so late.
The grounds stretched out before her glowing emerald green while the multitude of flowers shone like scattered gems across the vibrant canvas. Deciding the day was too beautiful to waste cooped up in the dark and oppressive castle she resolved to spend it outside before seeing about opening some rooms to the fresh spring air.
As before the door opened behind her but instead of a procession of food, it was only the single maid from before. Smiling at the only constant presence besides the Beast's she followed her invisible keeper to the closet where she watched as it perused the dresses. Striding forward Roslyn plucked at a gown of spring yellow muslin that reminded her of the lovely sunshine outside, it had an off white sash and tiny pearl buttons marching up the back, "I think I'll wear this today, I want to go for a walk in the gardens." The gown was lifted from the rack and taken to rest on the bed along with a matching parasol, white gloves with pearl buttons, and soft kid shoes. Still unused to such fussing, Roslyn reluctantly allowed the maid to strip, dress her, and arranger her hair in an intricate pile of curls. Thanking her invisible companion she headed downstairs in search of breakfast but first stopped to collect a good book from the library.
Only getting lost once, Roslyn felt proud of herself as she pushed open one of the large oak doors and was once again greeted with sunlight that momentarily blinded her. Blinking in surprise her jaw dropped as she gazed around the newly cleaned and polished library, if it was possible, the room was even more awe inspiring than before. The mahogany bookshelves gleamed proudly in the light and the gold leaf on the spines of the leather bound books shone like the exquisite treasures they were. Transfixed by the lovely sight she was drawn forward as if by the Pied Piper himself; reaching the first bookshelf she lovingly caressed the soft bindings as her eyes scanned the titles. Delighted to find that they were in alphabetical order by author she immediately began looking for Shakespeare, finding the section she sought she was amazed to discover that the Beast's library contained all of the master's works, not just the well known ones. Jumping for joy, she quickly swiped A Midsummer Night's Dream from its resting place and skipped from library, vowing to return yet again when the weather wasn't so inviting and her stomach less empty.
Upon reaching the front hall she was immediately met with the inviting scents of eggs, fresh bread, hot chocolate, and cooked meat. Her stomach gave another loud protest at being empty; with a laugh she tucked her book under her arm and skipped down the stairs to the dark dining room, not allowing the shadows to dampen her mood she began humming to dispel the gloom, not realizing that a pair of amber eyes were avidly watching her every movement from one of the multitude of dark corners.
Ducking through the double doors, Roslyn moved towards her seat at the head of the table which pulled itself out for her. She took this to mean that the Beast wasn't going to join her in breaking her fast; choosing not to examine the pang of loneliness that realization caused, she ignoring it lest it threatened to ruin her light mood. Illuminated by candle and fire light, the amazing breakfast that she had scented was laid out before her. Continuing to hum and smile she prepared her plate, filling it with the amazing offerings. Eating quickly she had barely cleaned her plate before grabbing her book, parasol, and gloves and marching to the door that lead to the solarium and rose gardens. Before she left the dining room, however, she turned back to watch the procession of dishes as they cleared themselves. "Um," she began and the clinking of china and silverware ceased abruptly, "If it isn't too much trouble, I would like this room opened please, thank you." Feeling foolish she continued out the double doors and approached the much plainer one at the end of the hallway.
The door squealed on its rusty hinges as it opened, allowing a wedge of bright golden light to illuminate the hall, in his corner the Beast withdrew farther into the shadows away from the light, wishing he were brave enough to offer to join her on her walk. He loathed that he was reduced to spying on her from the shadows but at the same time facinated as he watched the light play in Roslyn's dark hair, burnishing the strands with gold, red, and deepest brown.
Inhaling the fresh morning air gratefully Roslyn exited the dark foyer and entered the world of exotic flowers encased in the glass walls of the solarium. Not wanting to bother with her gloves she left them on a work bench but playfully decided to use the parasol, walking forward she reveled in the caress of the warm light through the delicate lace canopy. After thoroughly exploring the multihued flowers within the solarium she moved on to the garden proper, intent on finding a nice spot to sit and read her book while enjoying the warm day.
Before her the gravel paths stretched out in every direction, leading her through seas of roses that came in every color imaginable. Catching her breath at the beautiful sight she walked forward as if mesmerized, reverently touching the soft red, pink, coral, lavender, dawn, orange, yellow, and white petals. "Beautiful," she whispered before picking a path at random and beginning her wandering. Seeing a large oak on the other side of the rose ocean she began making her way towards it, figuring that it would offer the perfect amount of shade or the perfect perch if she felt like climbing. Smiling mischievously she wondered what the Beast would think of her if he found her ensconced in a tree with her book. As her mind turned to wondering about the whereabouts of her absent host, she nearly screamed as something orange and furry tumbled out of the rose bushes into her path.
She found herself staring down into a pair of large, terrified brown eyes that belonged to a little fox kit. Clapping her hand to her racing heart she watched as the poor little thing tried frantically to bolt only to realize its paw was caught in the thorny trap of a rose vine. As it squeaked and tussled in fear and pain Roslyn crept slowly forward, intent on relieving the little kit of his suffering. "Hush little one," she whispered as she edged closer and deposited her belongings on the path. The kit stopped struggling and resumed watching her with his large eyes, fur bristling all over his little body as he quivered. Biting her lip she looked at the tiny fox's poor bloody paw that had been savaged by the thorns.
Crouching beside the struggling creature, Roslyn reached forward only to have the fox sink his sharp teeth into the fleshy part of her palm, "Ouch!" She cried out, snatching her hand back and watching the bright red drops of blood well on her skin, "I'm only trying to help you." The fox continued to struggle. Seeing no hope for it, she resigned herself to getting scratched and bitten by the little whelp. Scooping the creature up she winced as his sharp teeth sunk into her forearm and his little claws raked her skin. Grabbing the offending vine she unwrapped it from the fox's paw, earning more scratches from the thorns for her trouble, she carefully removed all the thorns from the fox's injured limb as it continued to writhe and twist in her grasp, adding several more deep scratches and bites. Finally satisfied that the animal was free of thorns, Roslyn released it, only to have it bound back into the roses and stare at her with its big eyes from its thorny hollow.
"Well fine," she huffed angrily at it, "see if I help you next time you daft little thing." Realizing that there was a fair amount of blood on her arms and that it was staining her beautiful dress, she quickly rose, gathered her things and returned to the castle.
Moving swiftly to her room, Roslyn mumbled angrily at the fox as she ran water from the sink over the wounds, washing away the blood and soothing the angry red welts. Adding soap she winced as the wounds stung unmercifully. When she was satisfied that they had stopped bleeding and were free of dirt she gingerly stripped herself of her yellow dress and chose another in a similar style of light pink. With a sigh she decided that she had had enough of the great outdoors for one day and returned to the library. Spying a lovely red plush window seat in the gigantic window that overlooked the resplendent gardens she decided that it would do as well as any oak tree and gladly took her seat to begin reading A Midsummer Night's Dream.
Sometime later, having lost all sense of time while engrossed in her book, Roslyn was shaken from the mischievous world of love and fairies Shakespeare had created by the sound of heavy foot or paw steps on carpet followed by the distinct click, click of claws on wood. Looking up she spied the Beast leaning against the library door, arms crossed, watching her. With his upper body shaded in shadows of the hall, she once again noticed the way his eyes seemed to glow with their own light. He wore a simple white poet's shirt, black breeches and a large black cloak with a red lining, Roslyn was struck by the thought that if he had been a man, he would have been quite handsome. "Good morning Roslyn."
"Good morning my lord," she said with a genuine smile.
"Did you sleep well?"
"Yes, very well thank you. I trust your night was restful as well?"
"Yes." He paused, "Beautiful weather is it not?"
Grinning she realized that the Beast was attempting to make small talk with her; she found his effort…surprisingly charming, "Indeed."
"Why are you not enjoying it?"
A wry grin shaped her lips. "I have had more than enough sunshine for one day." There was a longer pause.
"You didn't spend much time on your walk." Her jaw dropped in indignation.
"You were watching me?" He shrugged unapologetically.
"You are the most interesting thing that has happened around here in a while." As if that made spying on her alright, Roslyn stroked the pages of the book in her lap as a blush stained her cheeks.
"Please don't watch me," she said. He stiffened from his relaxed pose as if he would leave but Roslyn rushed on quickly, "I find the thought of being watched from the shadows…unsettling. If you want to spend time with me please just…" She faltered, "What I mean is…I know how lonely it is here, if you want company you are welcome to it." She finished with a deeper blush, unable to look at him. He moved forward into the room to examine the shelves, striding unerringly to the hole left by the book she had borrowed.
"A Midsummer Night's Dream?"
"As I said last night, one of my favorites," she said, impressed that he knew which book was missing from just the barest glance at the shelves. They lapsed into silence as the Beast subtly moved closer to her spot on the window seat, under the guise of inspecting his books. As attuned to his presence as she was, Roslyn ended up reading the same line thrice before giving up and opening her mouth only to find that he was poised on the edge of speech as well. With a laugh she motioned for him to speak first.
"I was wondering…" he trailed off as his eyes narrowed on her arm, "What happening to your arm?" Looking at her savaged skin she blushed and tried to hide it.
"Nothing." Striding forward he glowered down at her but she couldn't quite meet his blazing eyes.
"Roslyn," she still refused to answer him, "Let me see," he growled threateningly but made no move to actually touch her. Reluctantly, like a small child, she held out her arms to him so he could see the damage wrought by the tinny furry demon she had saved. "What happened," this time there was no question in his voice, only command. He sounded angry but he still didn't touch her.
Wrapping her arms around herself she spoke in the kit's defense, "There was fox caught in one of the rose bushes, when I freed him he bit me. It wasn't his fault; please don't be angry, he was merely frightened and hurt." She risked looking up into his face which was wrinkled in a thunderous glower that made her feel like a child being scolded even though he hadn't said a word.
"HENRI!" He bellowed without warning, making her flinch. After a moment, during which he continued to appraise her with a stern frown, he turned and addressed the masculine presence that had entered the room. "Fetch some bandages and salve for the lady and see her tended. Quickly." His voice held a snarl with the last being added as a thinly veiled threat. Having delivered his orders, the Beast turned and swept from the room with a menacing scowl that made Roslyn fear for the poor creature she had saved. Rising she rushed after him and rounded the door just as he was about the round the end of the corridor.
"Beast!" She cried, he paused in his tracks and swung his head towards her. The look in his eyes had her stepping back in fear but she straightened her spine and stepped forward with a defiant raise of her chin. She would not be intimidated by him. "Don't hurt him."
There was a pregnant pause as they each stared into the other's eyes, broken only by the return of the presence called Henri with the salve and bandages for her arms. The Beast's nostrils flared as he gave a subtle nod of his head before disappearing around the corner. Letting out the breath she had been holding, Roslyn gracelessly allowed herself to be ushered back into the library where Henri diligently tended her wounded arms, but no matter how much she tried she was unable to shake her apprehension over the Beast's temper and the fox's welfare.
Sorry about the semi cliffy ;) lol I guess you'll just have to read the next chapter to find out what happens!