-The Beast-

The morning air was cool and crisp. It was the beginning to the season change and winter was begining to show it's hand. It was finally here, the last day of the Blood Moon. After today the wolfmen would be powerless and he wouldn't have to worry for another year.

Usually he wondered whether it was worth the trouble. This time around he had reason to fight.

Belle had met him in the garden when he went to leave.

"You're awake."

"You're leaving." She said in an accusatory tone.

"For a short while. I'll be back later today." He assured her.

She walked towards him and he took her hand while it was outstretched towards him. He stared down at her small hand curled into his monstrous one. It was a reminder that she was a world away from him.

She reached up with her other hand and grabbed his shoulder. She pulled him closer towards her, but he flinched away from the familiarity of her touch. It was fear that had protected his heart so far, and fear was his automatic reaction.

"I don't want you to go." She said. She didn't reach for him again, but her hands were wrapped in nervous knots in front of her. "but you don't have a choice, so I want you to remember one thing. I'm waiting for you."

She was scared. He could smell her fear and feel her nervousness. She was so very vulnerable to him. She had faced loss just as he had, and she still came out to face him head on. Maybe they could help eachother to get over their fears.

"I won't leave you. I'm coming back, and when I do I still haven't forgotten what I said about doing all of this right." He said just so that he could see her smile. He reached down to her hand and engulfed them with his own beastly hands.

He pulled closer to her than he had before all the while searching her demeanor for any sign of disgust. She just closed her eyes and leaned towards him softly until he had her in his arms. Fear was replaced in small ways by bridges of trust which made it all the more hard when he had to finally pull away from her.

"If you don't come back I'm going after you." She said in a lighthearted manner.

"If I find myself in a situation where I need to be rescued by you, we are both in grave peril." He responded.

With that he left her side now more motivated than ever to return to her.

-Gaston-

They had left in the earliest hours of the morning. After all the dust had settled, Lord MonteVerde had managed to give him a hefty sum of 70 men total. Some were some of his personal guard, and some had been stirred to help by crazy Maurice's passionate pleas.

Gaston had suggested that Maurice ride in the back incase of an attack from behind. It was a rather inspired idea that ensured that Maurice's quest to rescue his daughter didnt interfere with Gaston's agenda.

It was easy enough to find where Gaston had first faced the beast. His retreat earlier had left clear tracks to follow. Once he was in the clearing he was reunited with his forgotten sword at long last.

"The forest is still scarred from your great battle you highness!" LeFou said.

Gaston smiled and nodded as others looked on in awe of the trees that had been mangled from the beast's massive claws.

"Careful now men!" Gaston said in a serious tone. "This is his territory now. He is unbelievably fast and could be anywhere."

He remembered distinctly which direction the beast flew in from and he guided the party accordingly.

He had ordered the men to keep am eye on the sky as they marched. They were all looking for a Beast of incomprehensible size, so no one was looking for the wolf beasts who crawled from the dense trees like ghouls.

No man paid any attention as the wolves surrounded them. Gaston was urging the group forward at a brisk pace when he heard the screams of his men behind him.

He wheeled his horse around and was nearly trampled as men ran into him trying to escape the massacre. Wolves the size of their horses were ripping men off of their mounts and tearing into them.

Gaston struggled to get his sword out of its sheath and then waved it in the air.

"Attack!" He yelled in a desperate attempt to rally what men had not abandoned them already. He didn't wait to see what men had answered his cry before he ran towards the nearest wolf.

His horse sceramed with tension. The wolf nearly had its jaws around a man's chest. The man was kicking furiously at it, but he was losing the battle.

Gaston swooped down gracefully on the wolf, and hacked into the beast's gaping maw. Blood followed his path and men cheered and built courage as they watched him incapacitate another wolfman with another swing.

Gaston ran out of room and in his attempt to wheel his horse around for another charge, a wolfman leapt out of nowhere and latched his jaws around his shoulder. Gaston yelled and threw himself from his horse in a solid movement of pure fear and stupidity. They both hit the ground hard and Gaston lost his sword to the dust.

A desperate war waged around every man as he fought for his own life. Every man began to see the futility of their circumstances as every blow weakened them and their sharpened steel seemed like nothing to the wild wolfbeasts of the forest.

Gaston jerked to the ground, his hands searching for his sword. The wolfbeast lunged, his foaming yellow fangs bearing down on Gaston when a strong wind washed over everyone and the King Beast dropped out of the sky with a roar that halted all the fighting for the smallest moment.

Every man was frozen in fear, but the wolfbeasts lost interest in them. The one who had stopped nearly on top of Gaston lost interest in treating into his throat and instead threwback his head and let out a screaming howl. The others mimicked his howl and they all crept towards the King Beast, their previous prey forgotten.

Gaston stood quickly. Looking around to see if anyone had noticed that he had nearly been defeated.

"Sire, we must flee!" LeFou had somehow managed to stay mounted on his horse during the ordeal and he now extended a hand towards Gaston.

"I'm finishing what I started!" Gaston growled and he grabbed LeFou's hand, wrenching him off of his own horse.

"What are you doing?!" LeFou cried out as he struggled to stand.

"I'm going to the Beast king's castle, and when he dies out here, I am going to take what's mine!" He said and he kicked his horse into a run. The horse reared, fresh from adrenaline and ran off.

Gaston smirked as he saw the beast one last time being torn apart by the wolfbeasts.

Gaston was a few strides away from the battle when he realized he was being pursued. He turned back to see Crazy Maurice riding furiously behind him, clinging on tightly to his saddle.

"Go back Maurice. I will find your daugther!" Gaston called out, but it had no effect on him.

"We'll do this together!" He said with determination.

-Belle-

She was standing at the edge of the garden when the ungodly howling started.

"what does that mean?" She asked Polly who just pulled her away from the forest.

"Let's go inside dear." Polly said.

There was something very wrong about her voice. She had been hearing phantom noises in the forest ever since Adam had left with the promise that he would return.

"I don't want to go inside. I want to stay out here and wait for him to come back."

There was a silent pause and she felt Polly look towards Vandy who stepped closer to her.

"Belle, we cannot stay out here. There are two possible outcomes to every fight. If the King returns triumphant it will not matter to him if we have waited outside or in, but if something else emmerges from that forest it will not rest until we are dead.

Belle strained her ears to listen for any sign of action, but when her hearing failed her she sighed.

"You're right Vandy." She said, and she allowed herself to be led back into the castle.

Belle could hear crying from the kitchen before they walked through the door. It was Agnis who's muted sobs were drowning out her mothers soothing words.

"No one's coming for us. We're going to be ok." She said hypnotically.

Belle moved towards the table and found the back of the chair Agnis was sitting in.

"Are you alright?" Belle asked softly, but the young girl was crying too hard to respond.

"It's the fighting." Anette said softly. "No one likes it."

"Well everything is going to be fine." Belle said and with every one waiting in the kitchen for the outcome of a fight they couldn't see. Everything did not seem fine.