The beast stormed back to his apartments, practically bursting with anger, guilt, frustration, and another emotion that he couldn't name. He slammed the heavy carved door and slinked to his balcony.

There were many times when he had contemplated his actions, but the events of the last few days had sent him into a tizzy of thought.

"Why did I let that pathetic excuse of a man go? I could have easily locked them both up…but I didn't…Why did I accept her offer? I could have torn her apart with my bare hands…How did they find this place?" he thought to himself.

He leaned against the stone railing of the balcony and looked up at the sky. Dark clouds slowly fizzled out into a blanket of midnight speckled with stars. He sighed painfully, wishing he had just let that beggar woman sleep there so many years ago…

He had been this way for 10 years. 10 miserable, wasted years. His whole life had been ruined by one wrong decision! Here he was, a prince, reduced to such a miserable state. And not just him, but a whole castle full of servants was no longer free to roam about as they pleased. He was living with a group of ghosts!

He rubbed his hairy temples in frustration, groaning in agony. It was all his fault. Everything that had happened to him, his servants, the girl, and her father were all his fault. And what saddened him the most was that he couldn't undo any of it.

His thoughts drifted to the girl. No one had EVER stood up to him before. No one had EVER suggested something that he had actually agreed with before. The girl had spunk; there was no denying it. And the way she had pleaded for her father's freedom…

"Perhaps love does exist…" he said to himself sadly.

A thought occurred to him. She could be the one to break the spell…no. It couldn't be done, not after how he had treated her. But still…for the first time in a long, long time…he felt a small glimmer of hope.

o.0.o

After a long period of sobbing, Isabella rubbed at her bloodshot eyes, clearing them up. She then saw the room he had given her for the first time.

He didn't give her a prison cell…he gave her a paradise! She didn't realize how truly comfortable her huge bed was until she had actually lay down on it properly. It was like sleeping on a cloud! The ceiling had a lovely painting of cherubs prancing among the clouds. Her four-poster bed was of a fine dark oak, her sheets a deep purple. Her magnificent gold mirror hung on the wall, and a white painted door led to a huge marble bathroom, all with indoor plumbing, which was a rare commodity back in the village. She had never seen such luxury in her entire life!

And then she wondered, "Why did he give me such a nice room? Was it out of pity...Or does he have other plans for me?"

She stared up at the painted ceiling, contemplating her mysterious new "master."

o.0.o

When Maurice returned to the village after fleeing for several hours on horseback, he went to the first place he could think of: Eleanor's. He knew she would want to know what had happened.

He knocked frantically at the door, and jumped back a little as Eleanor flung it open, and upon seeing her father, safe and sound, embraced him.

She noticed how cold he was. "Come inside before you catch your death!" she scolded as she pulled him into the house.

She then urged him to sit down, and grabbed a blanket from the upper level of the house, and then bustled into the kitchen to make him some tea.

When she was sure he was comfortable, she immediately began to interrogate him. "Where were you?"

"I can't tell you…you wouldn't believe me if I did…"

"Of course I would Papa!" she said with a smile, encouraging him to speak up.

"Alright…you know that castle on the mountain? The one where the sun never shines?"

"Yes…"

"Well…I took a wrong turn, thinking that it was a shortcut, and I got lost in the woods…and was chased by wolves until I came up to the castle…I went inside to seek shelter…thinking that nobody lived there…"

"Go on…"

"And here comes the part where you will think that I'm a lunatic…the castle is indeed occupied…but not by a man…but a beast!" he said, breaking down in tears.

Eleanor, although a tad puzzled, embraced her father.

"Alright…so…what did this beast do to you?"

"He…imprisoned me…for trespassing…All I wanted was shelter for the night…about a week later…Bella came looking for me…and the poor thing offered to take my place…we'll never see her again!"

At hearing this news, Eleanor's eyes also filled up with tears. While they both embraced, Maurice had a plan brewing in his mind.

"I'm going to get her back…"

"What?" Eleanor gasped.

"I don't know how yet…but somehow, someway, I will get her back! I don't care how many trips to that God-forsaken castle I have to make! I will find a way to get her out!"

"But Papa…didn't he threaten you?"

"He did, but I won't let a few nasty words keep me from getting her back!"

She smiled sadly at Maurice's ambitions. True, she missed Isabella just as much as her father did, but she knew that there was a difference between bravery and foolishness.

"How exactly are we going to go about doing this?" she asked curiously.

"I'll think of something…" he said, rubbing his chin in contemplation.

o.0.o

Isabella's thoughts drifted to her family. Where had her father gone? Did he return to the village? What would her sister think if she knew about the events that had just occurred? Were they out there right now, looking for a way to free of her from this magnificent, yet frightening place?

o.0.o

The beast watched the girl inspecting her rooms in his mirror. She seemed…satisfied…but then he saw a new expression come across her face: worry. Worry for what? Her family? Her life?

And he too began to worry, for he had no idea how this was all going to work out.