-The Beast-
The sun was beginning to rise and they were almost there. It had been a long night and he still could not believe that Belle was walking back with him willingly.
"We're almost there aren't we?" She asked her head looking up as if she could see something far away.
"Yes. That's a neat trick."
She waved her hand around, "It's the echo, it sounds different."
He strained his ears to hear what she heard. He was impressed by her ability to piece together the world through her limited information. A lot about her impressed him.
He had been rudely staring at her for the entire walk back to the castle, watching as she turned her head slightly to hear something better and her hair shifted along her back. He was grateful that his arm was safely linked through hers otherwise he would have given into temptation and ran his hands through it.
"Can I call you Adam?" She asked.
He nearly tripped, having been jerked suddenly by his thoughts, losing all working functions. "You want to what?"
"If we're going to be in league I feel weird to be constantly saying, "The beast this-" and "the beast that-", and since I will not be calling you "the King", I was just wondering if I could call you by your name. If that is, after all, your name."
He couldn't respond. After a few beats of silence she jumped in blushing, "I mean, you can say no. It would just be- nice." she finished lamely.
"You can call me whatever you wish, but Adam is- it's my- it's the name my mother gave me." He said choking out. He regretted the words as soon as he said them. Hearing his name was like an old wound tearing open. He had only told her his name because he was confident that he'd never see her again. He didn't expect her to return with him, much less with his name still on her lips.
She would be the death of him.
"What in the heavens!" Screamed Polly from the front entrance of the castle and the Beast froze.
Belle laughed and the beast leaned in towards her, "You're only laughing because you're not the one who is going to take all the blame for this."
Belle pulled him closer and spoke in a low voice, "You know, if I really wanted to get you in trouble, I could probably convince her that you're the one who dragged me out into the forest to have your way with me."
She pulled away and winked at him, leaving him less than eloquent when Polly caught up grabbing Belle and marching her inside hollering down the roof about how cold it was outside.
He hadn't even noticed the cold until Polly had taken her out of his arms.
His went over the events of the night in his mind again with a stupid happy grin that refused to leave.
Vandy had to do a double take when the beast walked into the castle looking less than beastly.
"Where have you been?" asked Vandy incredulously when he saw his master's attire. "Was it the humans? Are they on their way?"
"No, Yes, I'm not sure." He said, distracted, making a beeline towards his rooms, the events of the night finally settling in. He was exhausted.
"Well why are you-" Vandy cut off suddenly and his face turned red, "Never mind. I don't want to know."
"It was nothing scandalous Vandy, you have my word on that."
"I should hope so. If it was I'd have to challenge you. I gave her my word."
The Beast laughed, imagining fighting his old friend to the death. "She is safe, and so are you. You Wouldn't survive the challenge."
Vandy looked him top to bottom and smirked, "Looking like that I'd have you in the first half."
When the Beast finally made it to his room he left Vandy in the hall. He pulled open the top drawer of his dresser where he kept the only mirror in the whole castle.
It had remained untouched for years, he'd always disliked mirrors, but now he cradled staring into it hoping to find something else, something other than him.
Hope sat at the bottom of his stomach like a useless piece of furniture shoved in the corner that gets no use until it grows so old and brittle it cannot be used. He just looked back at his sad reflection, feeling foolish, he gently placed the mirror back into the drawer, closed it, and shed his human form.
Being the beast cleared his head, it reminded him of who he was and it strengthened his resolve to remain alone. There would be no one for him. His thoughts then turned to his father. Years of lonliness and bitterness turned his heart cold. His mother had been a prisoner in the castle till the day she died and he hated his father for it. He was afraid he'd turn into his father.
He would be content with their agreement. Content to welcome Belle as a guest until the calvary came to rescue her. He would be content as she rode away in another man's arms. He would be content to make sure she made it out of the forest without even so much as a scratch and then he would trust she would keep up her end of the bargain that there would never be another human to set foot into his forest.
He would be content because that's what he told her he wanted. To be alone in the forest, to never be bothered again. He lied.
-Belle-
She had spent the entire first day back in her rooms sleeping. There was a weight that was no longer on her shoulders and since coming to the castle she got a good nights sleep for the first time.
Polly came by in the evening to get all the juicy details. After telling her everything Polly was shocked.
"You could have died out there Belle. The forest is not the place for anyone to be out on their own." She said incredulously. "I am glad you are safe."
"Me too, although I probably wouldn't be if he hadn't been out there." She said.
"So it sounds like all of your animosity towards the King has leaked out then." She said triumphantly.
Belle laughed, "Yes Polly. I no longer hate the King of Beasts. You have won." She said.
The next day Belle wanted to explore on her own to prove to herself that she could get around on her own without someone helping her. Everything was much more calm. She no longer felt like an awkward guest at the castle, but she now had purpose. Her progress was slow, but she managed to find her way to the gardens and then afterwards went in search of the kitchens.
She opened the door where she thought it would be, but on opening the door she realized that it was a lot bigger than she had expected and there were two boys in there polishing the silver who informed her that she had unwittingly entered the dining room and that the kitchen was two doors over.
She followed their direction and when she entered the door finally she was met with the most amazing smells.
"Belle, It's good to see you! Are you feeling up to helping in the kitchen today?" Anette asked.
Belle smiled and went over to where she was standing.
"No, I am just wandering around today trying to get my bearings. The castle seems a lot bigger when I'm on my own."
"Well that's too bad. I need a taste tester." she said
"Well, I could stay for a minute." Belle said.
She stayed for an hour or so tasting everything that Anete sent her way and then reluctantly stood up to leave.
"I couldn't eat another bite." She said.
Anette laughed, "Thanks for your help dear, come back any time. You're good company."
Belle said her goodbyes and then went back to her task at hand. She managed to make it to her bedroom from the kitchens, but when she went back to retrace her steps she came to the exact spot where she expected to find the kitchen door and instead there was a potted plant.
"I'll never get the hang of this." Belle exclaimed to no one in particular. Moving without any sort of walking stick was tedious and slow, and moving at a glacial pace only to have gone the wrong direction the whole time was disheartening.
"Hello?" She called out, but there was no reply. She listened catrefully for any voices or sounds, but she heard nothing. Either the castle walls got a lot thicker, or she found herself in an abandoned part of the castle because there was absolutely nothing.
She turned to go down the hall she had come from, but her hand followed the wall and nothing seemed familiar. There were painings on the wall that she did not remember, and side tables that would trip her up that had definitely just barely appeared. She was completely lost.
The silence almost grew menacing, and Belle tried to keep it from frightening her. The next person she came across she would ask for directions and that would be that. She tried to tell herself that she was panicking for no reason, but after a while more of wandering without any escape in sight, she began opening doors at random in desperation.
She would open a door and then call out a hesitant, "Hello." and then with no reply she would move on. It was a futile excersize when every room she opened was abandoned. She almost wondered if she had gotten herself lost beyond help when she reached for another door and it opened quickly with force.
Belle jumped back and gasped, falling against the wall behind her.
"What's the matter?Are you okay? " It was the Beast who sounded as though he was also panicking. Belle drew a breath to calmly explain to him that she was lost, but instead she was overcome witha fit of laughter at how foolish she looked.
She had been rushing around, afraid of the menacing hallways, and had nearly screamed into his face for the third time in a row.
It was probably her heart beat still racing and the arenaline that it had pumped into her body to flee, but she found the whole situation hilarious.
"Should I go get someone else to help?" He asked, and it was the concern in his voice that tamped down her laughter.
"No, no. I don't need any help. I just got a bit lost and thought you were some sort of monster." She said, breathing deeply, trying to calm herself.
"Well you weren't wrong. I am some sort of monster." He said, now sounding more light-hearted after he realized there was no danger.
Belle waved his comment away with her hand, "that's just what you want everyone to think. Now, how close am I to the kitchens?"
He laughed, "Not even close. You've been in opening every door in my wing of the castle, and shouting the place down. I had thought we were under attack."
Belle blushed at that and made a silent note to herself not to go around opening doors anymore. You never know who you're going to walk in on.
"Well I am sorry for worrying you, but your response time is terrible. I would shudder to think what would happen if we actually were under attack."
"If we were under attack, then I suggest you say something other than "anybody in here?"."
"Alright, I will work on my crisis dialougue if you will point me towards the kitchens." She said.
He stepped closer towards her, and closed the door behind him.
"I was actually just barely going there myself if you would like an escort?" He asked.
Belle curtsied slightly and then held out her arm for him. "lead the way." He stepped forward and linked his massive arm through hers and she reached her other hand and put it on top of his arm for more stability, feeling the thick fur he had.
They fell into an awkward silence. She had thought that she heard him start to say something a few times, but nothing ever came out. It would seem that if she didn't want to walk around in complete silence, which she didn't, then she would have to start the conversation herself.
"Is anyone who lives here human?" She asked. It might've been an offensive question, she wsn't sure, but she had noticed that everone here had some sort of beastly quality to them.
"You're here."
"besides me obviously." She said.
"No. My father was the one who started taking people in. If anyone in the forest is outcast from their group then they can seek assylum here for food and a place to live."
"That-" She started and she died out. It was amazing. To think that there was a place that anyone could go for safety.
"Of course, some of the more rowdy ones get turned away, and that always creates a problem, but no one here is human. Besies you obviously." He said in a light-hearted tone, but Belle didn't feel so lighthearted all the sudden.
She wondered exactly how much of Adam's life had been spent helping everyone around him.
"Do you want to be the King?" She asked him suddenly and he laughed sharply.
"Who doesn't want to be King?" he asked.
"That's not an answer, that's a non answer, so I'll guess that you don't want to be King."
He grew silent and she was afraid he wasn't going to answer her, but he did. "I am King. I will be the King until one of these nights I go out and don't come back. That will never change. It's not a matter of want or not want."
He couldn't say he doesn't want to be King. He can't even bring himself to say the words. He was trapped by a curse just as much, if not more severely than Belle was trapped by never being able to see.
"The kitchen is just up here to the left so I will let you take it from here." He said, breaking her train of thought.
"I thought you were going to the kitchens." She said.
"No, I uh- I remembered that I've got something to do." He said.
He turned to leave but Belle didn't let his arm go.
"Are we friends?" She asked.
He stilled, "Would you like to be friends?"
"Yes. I think I would like to be friends." She said quietly and she heard him take a deep breath.
"I would like that too." He said, and then he left.