Disclaimer: I own none of these characters!

Note: Someone asked about the chapter where Eren leaves and who was smelling his cloak. That was Mike, not Levi. I made that really unclear and I'm sorry! Second thing: Levi is the prince of Maria, not Rose. I made that typo in their last chapter.

Once upon a time, a young girl was forced to live in a cursed castle with a cursed prince and his cursed court. She was unhappy, at the change in her life, and wanted to escape. But whenever she thought about it or tried to escape, the Beast holding her hostage would keep her there. Not through force, but through an unlikely charm. And the beautiful young girl soon found herself wanting to be in the Beast's presence. She became less repulsed by his appearance and saw the beauty that was within.

This is not that story.

Eren fell asleep against Irwin's shoulder, his arms still wrapped around the man's waist. His hood had fallen back, so when he woke up he felt a chill over his cheeks. It was not quite morning when they arrived at their stop. The moon was still out but the early taste of the new day was in the air.

Eren yawned and opened his eyes, keeping his chin on Irwin's shoulder. With sleepy eyes, he looked up at the castle.

It was massive. Tall, looming steeples were adorned with winged gargoyles. They had gone through an iron gate and were moving across the grounds. The windows of the castle were mostly stained glass; the others were plain, but with curtains hanging inside and drawn closed.

Lifeless trees twisted over the grounds, all of them as black as the castle itself. Thorny vines crawled up the walls of the black castle, their limbs brown and their leaves dried.

Eren raised his head to get a better look at the castle. At his new home. His hair brushed against Irwin's cheek and the man turned slightly to look at him.

"You're awake?"

"Ah, yeah," Eren laughed. "Um…this is it?"

"This is it."

That was it.

Their small caravan came to a slow halt. Eren sat up straight and looked down at the ground. It seemed rather far away. Irwin and the other guard, whose name was Mike, both made it off their horses with ease. Of course, both of them were practically giants.

Eren grabbed the saddle and stared at the ground, judging just how he was supposed to jump down. Irwin laughed and held out a hand.

"Need some help?"

With a grumble, Eren grabbed his hand. He was tired of sitting and wanted to be off the horse.

"Swing your leg around," Irwin instructed. "Be careful. Don't pull anything."

"I'm not!" Eren hissed. He threw his leg around and forgot to hold on to the saddle or steady his feet on the stirrups. He fell forward and Irwin caught him, laughing again.

"Too fast?"

"I didn't pull anything," Eren said as he was lowered on to the ground. His feet touched the hard surface of the dirt and he took a step back. He let go of Irwin's arms and felt the horse against his back. The feeling left him breathless.

Irwin standing over him. The horse preventing him from moving away…

"Oi, Irwin."

Eren gasped and looked up at the sound of the cold voice. Levi stumbled out of his carriage, looking awful and rather tired. There were heavier bags under his eyes than usual and he almost looked paler.

"Yes?" Irwin asked. He turned and Eren let out a long breath. The air suddenly felt thinner and he could actually breathe.

"Take that brat to the dungeon," Levi said.

"The dungeon?" Irwin asked.

"That seems a bit harsh, isn't it?" asked the other guard, Mike, as he tugged the horses together.

"I don't give a fuck," Levi hissed. He leaned against the coach. "I'll deal with him later. When I don't feel like shit. I'll give him a proper room. Maybe. He's my responsibility."

"Why can't you take me to your precious dungeon then?" Eren asked. He narrowed his eyes but Levi shot him a deadly glare.

"You filthy shit," Levi growled. "You can stay in the damn dungeon for all I care. I won't give you a fucking proper room. Irwin, go put him in one of the cells. And be sure to lock it too."

The man angrily turned before Irwin could protest. Eren shuddered, his fists clenching until his fingers ached. He wanted to run up behind Levi and punch him. As hard as he could. But Irwin's gentle hand on his shoulder suggested otherwise.

"He'll blow off some steam," Irwin said. "He gets upset easily around this time of night. It's best just to let it blow over. As of now, however, I have to follow his orders. I'll have to put you in the dungeon, but it'll only be for the night."

Eren sighed and shrugged. "Whatever. Just what you have to."

They left their horses for Mike to tend to. It was Irwin's duty to take Eren into the castle and to the dungeon. But at least Eren caught a glimpse at the place he would be living in now.

Inside, the castle was darkly beautiful. Candles burned low on the walls; a chandelier hung overhead. The floors were dark, cold marble. The heels of their boots clicked and echoed with each heavy step. There were closed doors along the walls and Eren was a little curious what would be behind them. In the entrance hall, a double staircase spiraled onto a second level. Pillars twisted with thorny engravings, holding up the ceiling. And then there were tall windows, letting in specks of moonlight through the trees.

Sitting on the cold, marble stairs was the prince himself. He was hunched over with his brow furrowed more than usual. Eren kept his eyes on Levi, bumping into Irwin as the guard stopped walking.

"Sir, do you require assistance?" Irwin asked. Levi shook his head and waved a hand.

"I'm fine. Just take Eren to his room. I'll call the witch if I have to."

Levi winced and grimaced. Whatever was wrong certainly looked painful. Eren almost felt sorry for him. But then again, Levi was an asshole.

Eren followed Irwin through one of the heavy doors. He was lead down a decadent corridor and down a set of stairs. The walls were no longer covered in wall paper or tapestries or even painted. Instead they became leaking stone walls as they went down those stairs. The marble floors disappeared in favor of more stone. The only light came from wooden candles on the walls. A few had even gone out.

Irwin stopped at a cell. He pulled the keys from a nail on the wall and opened the creaking bars. He held the door for Eren.

"You're a gentleman, at least," Eren sighed, stepping inside. Irwin chuckled as he closed the door.

"I'm only being polite."

Eren looked around the small cell. It was honestly larger than his room at home. There was a small cot, lifted off the floor. It was covered with a thin, rather scratchy looking sheet. There was a hole in the ground, which Eren assumed to be the latrine, and then a pile of hay in the corner.

He felt like an animal. An actual, fucking animal.

"I'll come for you once he's found a place for you," Irwin said with a slight bow. "Try to rest."

Eren watched him walk away and pulled his cloak close. He listened to the door creak and close before letting his first soft sniffle escape his throat. It all came crashing down at once.

He was alone. He was ripped from his family and friends and life. To be alone in a cold, dank castle. Under the control of a cold, dank prince. He was locked in a dungeon. By himself. With a pile of hay in a corner like a horse.

Eren fell to his knees, feeling his chest clench up tight. Hot tears started to roll down his face. He missed his mother. He missed Mikasa. He missed Armin. He missed his warm bed.

He crawled onto that awful cot of a bed and curled into the corner. The wall was freezing against his back. Even with his cloak wrapped around him, he was cold. He tried to sleep but his constant shivering kept him awake.

The morning sun crept in through the bars of the cell. The light in his face woke Eren up and he groaned. He felt weak and tired and his stomach was in a twist of knots. The cell was freezing cold; ice even sticking to the bars. Heavy bags darkened his eyes and if he had food in his stomach, it easily would have come up.

He wasn't sure how long he slept, but he knew it wasn't very long. He tried to sleep more and for a while he did. But the chill from the air crept in and woke him back up. It made him feel sick.

The door to the dungeon opened. Eren heard the sound echo and he flinched, terrified. He didn't know who, or what, to expect. So he closed his eyes and waited.

Walking footsteps did not follow. It was a full sprint. And then there was a loud banging against the bars that made him jump. He opened his tired eyes and looked at a woman staring at him.

She was very pretty, petite with auburn hair pulled away from her face. Her eyes were wide and Eren assumed she was worried about something. She wore a long cloak, plain and simple and brown. It was tattered on the edges that touched the floor at her feet.

"Are you okay?" she asked, breathing hard.

Slowly, Eren sat up. He let his red cloak slip from his arms and he shivered at the sudden feel of cool air on his skin. He still felt sick and uneasy. His stomach was still in knots. But he managed to nod to the woman.

"I'm…alright," he muttered.

The woman rustled around in her cloak, pulling out a set of keys. She fumbled with them before opening the cell door. She rushed inside and sat on the edge of the bed. Eren jumped back, falling against the wall.

"You poor thing," she said. She reached out and pressed a hand to Eren's cheek. She tsked. "You have a slight fever. And I'm sure you haven't rested and you're stressed. I cannot believe he would leave you in here, of all places…"

"Who, Levi? I'm not surprised," Eren muttered. "He doesn't seem—You won't tell him I said that, will you?"

The woman smiled gently and patted Eren on the hand.

"Of course I won't. I know that he can be…a little stand-offish."

"A little?"

She laughed and folded her hands in her lap. "People always assume Levi is going to be a grand prince. Some tall, handsome man; I can't count the times people have assumed Irwin to be the prince of Maria, instead of Levi. But instead they get a small, temperamental man with a fairly bad attitude and a need to be excessively clean. It's a little shocking."

"A little?! Again?" Eren cried. He coughed, turning away and raising his cloak to his face. The woman pulled a canteen from her cloak and held it out to him.

"Take a drink," she said. "It's fresh water, I just refilled it."

Eren took it and drank a small sip. The cool water burned his throat and down into his tight chest.

"What's your name?"

"Eren…"

"It's very nice to meet you, Eren. I'm Petra."

Eren smiled a little. So the only person in this castle who was an ass was Levi. The actual prince was an asshole. Irwin was nice—maybe too nice. The other guy, Mike, was nice, even if he had a tendency to smell everyone. And this lady, Petra, seemed nice.

It wouldn't be awful being stuck there. Except that Levi was an asshole.

"And I'm still so sorry Levi put you down here. He doesn't think," she said, getting to her feet. "But we'll find you somewhere else to stay."

"Huh…?"

She held out her hand to him. "Come along, now. You're not well. So keeping you down here in this dungeon is out of the question. Let's get you upstairs, into some warm clothes and into a proper bed."

Eren hesitated before taking her hand. Petra pulled him to his feet and he shivered all over. He felt lightheaded and his body was aching all over. He was sore from walking. The cold air had settled into his bones. His fever was rising.

He coughed and pulled his cloak around him, following Petra out of the cell. She didn't bother to lock it back up. She patted him on the hand and paused. She tugged the tie on her own cloak and it fell loose around her shoulders. She threw the tattered thing over Eren.

"That should help keep you a little warmer while we walk," she said. "The castle can be cold."

Eren would have smiled, but his eyes had fallen on her dress. It was sparkling blue, coming to her knees. It certainly wasn't what he was expecting to be hiding under her old brown cloak. And it wasn't enough that her dress was sparkling, beautiful blue because when she turned, Eren gasped at the sight of wings on her back.

Clear, lace-like wings. They sparkled in the dim light, sun illuminating the fairy dust that clung to her wings. Wings. Actual wings, this woman had wings. How could she have wings?

"A-Are you…are you a fairy?"

Petra turned around again. "You've never seen a fairy…?"

"Well…where I'm from…You know—no. I've never seen a fairy. I live in a really small town and…we…no. No, fairies…you're real?" Eren finally breathed. Petra laughed and patted him on the shoulder. She moved closer, linking her arm with his and giving him a tug. She continued walking and Eren followed.

"Of course I'm real," Petra said. "Fairies are just rare depending on where you live, I guess."

"Yeah," Eren muttered. "Um…is Levi a…?"

"Levi a fairy? No, not at all," Petra said. "He's human. Just…special."

Special. That was a nice way of putting short and cantankerous.

Eren looked around the grand entrance hall as they walked. In the better light, it was rather beautiful. Empty and still cold, but beautiful. It was the home of an ice prince; someone who was empty and cold and beautiful.

Not that Levi was beautiful. At all. He was awful and not handsome in anyway.

Eren huffed, wishing Levi didn't have such a shit attitude. Otherwise this servitude would be almost bearable.

Petra lead him up the stairs and onto the next level. It was warmer where they walked and it didn't smell of mold and old hay. Instead of the sound of dripping water, Eren could hear the soft crackling of fires. The hallways smelled of light lavender. Everything was decorated in a deep, cool blue and shades of greys and black.

It was a change from the warm colors of Shiganshina. Eren was so used to everything being red and orange and yellow. Now everything around him was dark and cold, almost gloomy. The only color came from his cloak; the only strong , warm color in the castle.

"Where's Levi?"

"He's asleep," Petra said. "He sleeps during the day."

Sleeps during the day? Eren swallowed, thinking about her words. He had heard tales of creatures that slept during the day. Ones he would rather avoid because of their eating habits.

"Why?"

"Ah…it's complicated." She laughed nervously and pushed open a door. She walked inside and Eren followed at her heels. "Levi is a little complicated overall. But once you get used to it, it gets easier."

"Of course it does."

The room was nice. It may have been a spare room but it was nicer than any house Eren had ever seen. The walls were painted a cool blue, light and pale. The bed was a deeper shade of blue and it looked welcoming. It was large and looked soft and the pillows were fluffed up. It was definitely not a cot on a wet dungeon floor.

Eren walked over to it with hazy eyes. "C-Can I really sleep on this?"

"Of course," Petra said, pulling back the blankets. "I'm sure Levi will have a better room made up for you. But for now so you can rest, this will do."

"A b-better room? Is that even possible?" Eren asked. He pulled off her cloak and then removed his own. He folded them both and set them down on a chair.

"This is just a spare room," Petra said. "A guest room. And you're not a guest if you'll be living here."

Eren crawled into the bed—and oh it was heavenly. He practically sank into the mattress. It smelled so fresh and it felt clean. And the pillows were as soft as they looked. And the sheets were smooth and it was all spectacular. It was a sensory overload.

But despite his luxurious surroundings, his heart still sank. He still felt his stomach ache.

He smiled, however, as Petra pulled the blankets over him. She kissed him on the head, tucking him in.

"I'll make sure you get some proper food in a while, alright?" she hummed. "But rest up for now."

"Thanks…"

With a nod, she turned and walked to the door. She disappeared behind it, closing it softly. Eren turned his watery eyes up to the ceiling. He let his tears trail down his face in hot streams when he closed his eyes.

"I'm not a guest, I know," Eren muttered softly. "I'm a prisoner."