11
THE moment Prince Adam opened the doors, everything within was laced with a bone-chilling biting feeling of cold. It sent a chill down his spine as his eyes adjusted to the darkness of the room at first, as the bitter air hung in the massive library filled with his family's collection of books throughout the years.
Long and dark shadows slunk along the tall walls. The Prince was grateful that a servant, probably Monsieur Cogsworth, kept a few lit candelabras for light and warmth within the library, even if he could not remember the last time he had set foot within this room. Not since he was a teenager, at least. He scowled and shook his head.
The Prince had trouble shaking the memories away.
"Stay put for a moment until I can let some light in," he muttered, his voice sounding strangely hoarse for reasons that he did not understand why that might be the case. He did not let himself ponder it further as he quickly made his way toward the library's window. The moment he pulled back the curtains of the largest window in the room, flooding his family's library with light, the gasp Prince Adam heard Belle let out made this venture here worth it.
"Oh, my God, you-you have a library! It's beautiful…I-I have never seen so many books in all my life, there are more books in here than I could read in a lifetime," he heard the girl gasp and let out a delighted little laugh.
You might have a lifetime to read them all if we cannot break this hex, Belle, he thought bitterly to himself but dared not voice the thought aloud.
He smiled sadly to himself but did not immediately turn around, cherishing the moment. The little squeak that came from the Beast's lips was finally enough to inspire Prince Adam to turn and face the Changeling she-wolf. She was looking around the library with wonder, a paw clamped over her mouth, her dark eyes brimming with shock.
The candlelight danced over Belle's strange form, the jittery light making the shadows cast by her cursed body look even more monstrous than the farm girl truly was. And yet, as he looked upon her, he was not disgusted by her turned form.
The Prince stood there in silence for a few moments, content to watch her as the girl muttered something incomprehensible under her breath, as her hand was still clamped over her mouth. The Prince took a heavy hand and drug it down the side of his face as he tried to rid himself of the anxiousness now gnawing at him.
Despite his enjoyment at seeing Belle's reaction to his mass collection of every kind of book she could think of, he could still not shake the feeling of ghosts from this place.
The last time he had come here was not since…He would not think about it. He couldn't.
He shook his head to himself and forced his gaze back to the awestruck Beast in front of him.
In this accursed form, Belle was not the beautiful woman she had once been that he was immediately captivated by, but something of her innocence and genuine warmth was contagious.
In his mind, he had wanted more time to linger, hence his decision to reveal the library to Belle.
The colorful stained-glass windows littered almost every wall within his family's library. His mother's idea, he remembered her telling her once when he had asked about the artwork when he was a small boy.
The moonbeams floated lazily through the beautifully intricate works of art. Some of them depicted fantastical stories of a virtual paradise, while others displayed Gothic versions of a nightmarish hellscape, places, and creatures he would not want to visit in his wildest dreams. A fast hand found its way through his long blond hair as he ran his fingers through it nervously. He wondered what she thought of this place and if she would like it.
Adam recalled seeing her reading the first moment he had spotted her out alone in her wretched hovel of a simple village. A small smile played on his lips as Belle was already walking towards picking up one of the books from the shelves closest to her, eyeing it longingly. He hoped she would like it and grow to find the library a haven for herself if she was adamant about not venturing outside the castle again.
Encouraged, the Prince spoke quietly, maintaining his composure and a level head.
"How do you find it, Belle? Do you like it?" he asked when she did not offer up a verbal response. He approached her slowly as she turned around to face him, and reveled at the shock and shining pressure building to life behind her eyes. All Belle could do was nod numbly.
She seemed at a loss for words. She could not speak, or perhaps she did not want to and ruin the moment by shattering the silence between them. Even still, the closer he stood to her, but a few inches away from him now, Adam could not explain away the sudden peace wallowing in his soul. He let his gaze rest on the Changeling Beast as Belle stood in front of the flaming lights of the small candelabra she was near. Adam could not help but notice the black dress and red vest Mrs. Potts had chosen for her resting on her body perfectly.
Even in her accursed monstrous form, Belle still looked like she belonged here in this place, like she was a work of art worthy to have her stained-glass window made of her. Her eyes were scanning a few of the pages of the book she now held in her paws, with no small amount of awe and wonder in them.
"Do you like it?" he repeated, wanting to hear confirmation from her lips.
He watched as Belle's eyes widened slightly at the sound of his voice. He marveled at how she could be so timid at just a simple question.
Though, a wave of guilt washed over him as soon as the thought crossed his mind.
Thanks to him, she was now cursed to live her life as a Beast until the cryptic answer the hag who had done this to her took on a meaning they both could understand. But for the time being, if and until that happened, she was trapped in this form, to live out her days as this Beast.
Her lips parted slightly as if Belle meant to speak, however, it took her a moment.
"I…y-yes, of course, I do, this library is beautiful, b-but…" Belle hesitated and trailed off. It did not escape Adam's attention that she suddenly looked nervous. Timid. "Why, Your Highness?" she asked, her question clumsy and blunt. "Why to bring me here and show me this?" she questioned quietly.
The Prince's serene expression changed only slightly the moment the words left Belle's lips.
Of course, she would have asked him such a question, what else had the Prince been expecting she would ask?
Was it a consolation to assuage the guilt that he felt for being the root cause of her curse, was that it?
Was it the more selfish thought that, on the slim chance Belle's curse could be undone, once she was human again, would she consider staying with him, was that the reason?
Adam awkwardly straightened his back and folded his hands neatly behind his back, almost as if he were embarrassed and was ill-prepared to respond.
If he was being quite honest with himself, he was not entirely sure why he had thought it a good idea to bring Belle to his library. From the first moment he'd laid eyes on her in the village, he'd known that he wanted more time to linger, to be near her. No one else in the castle could know how extraordinary this was—how she was.
How he thought it amazing that just by her scent alone, the lady Belle could transport him back to a time in his life when he was the happiest. Before Mother died. Before Father had cut his face and given him the mark of shame he would always bear. Before. Before. All of that had been before…
He'd known he had wanted Belle to stay, even before her curse, but no other answer would come up.
Asking her questions about her life was the last thing Belle needed now. Adam's brow furrowed in contemplative thought as he thought for a moment. Perhaps he could help her, though in what way he did not know.
Perhaps one of these hundreds of books in his library would hold the answer to the witch's cryptic statement she'd given when he'd asked how to lift her curse. He could help her look if nothing else…
She need not suffer through this on her own. All he knew was that she needed looking after, with her penchant for getting into spots of trouble. This was admittedly the easiest place to keep eye on her.
Adam suspected he would have difficulty in the coming days pulling Belle out of the library.
The Prince returned his gaze to the Beast in front of him, who was looking at him expectantly, waiting for a remark on why he'd brought her here.
"I'm not quite sure, mademoiselle." His hesitant smile returned. "Maybe…I too am alone and am just looking for one alone in the heart as I am. Like you. Maybe…I'm looking for a friend," Adam shrugged.
Belle looked a little shocked at hearing his words but less so than she had expected to be. A hesitant smile of her own crossed her furry and monstrous features, and for the briefest of moments, Adam thought he could see the flickering shadow of the beautiful girl beneath the curse that was longing to burst free. The candles flickered as the two of them stood there in silence, with Belle clutching whatever book had her so fascinated close to her chest.
Perhaps it was the glass and a half of wine he'd drank at dinner that was now making him bold the longer the Prince stared at the Beast close to him.
A wave of curiosity overcame him, and despite his best efforts to contain it, the Prince had to know.
The question slipped out before he could stop himself from asking it as it burned on tip of his tongue.
"What do you think of me, Belle? Truthfully," he asked, his tongue feeling like heavy clay in his mouth, and his mouth, already dry, went dryer still. His stomach churned into knots, making him feel slightly ill.
He almost feared to hear the she-wolf's answer and dreaded hearing it, and yet, at the same time, he needed to know. He cringed as he watched Belle's expression grow solemn.
She glanced down at the book clutched tightly in her paws, as if searching for the answer in the book, and was quiet for several long minutes.
Though to the Prince, it felt like an eternity.
Belle reached up and grabbed a curl of her hair, twisting it around and around in her finger, a nervous tic, he suspected, but he kept his eyes fixated on her face, watchful for any hint of disgust or fear in her eyes, but he could find none within. Belle let out a shuddering breath and looked away. When she spoke, her voice was small, and if Adam had not already been listening intently and hanging onto her every word, he would have missed them.
"What happened the day you brought me back does not matter, Your Highness, it's done," Belle said, very quietly. She ducked her head, keeping whatever expression she wore on her face out of the Prince's line of eyesight.
Belle shook her head, still keeping her expression hidden.
"After…after this," she muttered, shifting the book to hold it with one arm so she could gesture to her monstrous self with a wave of her arm. "I wanted to hate you," she answered, a note of bitterness seeping its way to the surface of her voice that made him cringe. "Agathe had told me there was no love or goodness in your heart, but…"
Belle hesitated and finally lifted her gaze to his.
Her expression was almost hopeful, and the Prince inexplicably felt some hope swell in his chest as he realized there was no hatred in her eyes.
Surely, it was too much to hope that she had forgiven him his transgressions and yet, for reasons Adam could not explain, he found himself hoping for just that.
His wandering mind was pulled back to earth by the sound of Belle's shy voice reaching him.
"I don't believe that." He looked up, surprised, just in time to see Belle fold her arms across her chest and look away. She seemed to find it easier to speak to him about such a topic when not looking at him.
"You saved my life and brought me back here when you could have left me in that cave to die at Gaston's hands. That alone is no small feat, Prince. And…" she hesitated for a moment.
It was as if she was unsure to say the next bit of whatever was on her mind but continued upon seeing the almost pleading look in the Prince's wintry blue eyes as he silently implored her to continue.
But to his relief, Belle continued speaking.
"I suppose…you've changed since you brought me back, somewhat, Your Highness. Or are trying? It is for that reason that I don't see any reason to hate you, Prince Adam. How could I? For me to hate you and not be able to forgive you, well, that would make me no better than someone like Gaston."
She cringed and made a face as if she found the very notion unbearable to her. She drew in a breath and continued, eager to try to supplicate him somewhat.
"And…if I'm being honest with you, I'm tired of being alone. I would much rather be stuck in this castle with you for the end of my days as this Beast, than anywhere else. The villagers back home would hurt me. At least you are like me, I think. Alone in the heart. Different. And not one of many." Belle admitted her look pained.
She lifted her gaze and locked eyes with the Prince, dark chocolate brown against icy blue, and boldly stared.
The Prince sighed, relieved, and came to step closer, half hoping that his nearness would soothe her obvious nerves as he approached.
But, his closeness seemed to have the opposite effect.
Belle inhaled sharply and staggered back into the bookshelf behind her and accidentally knocked a few books off of the shelves.
She let out a terrified squeak and dove for the books, scrambling to pick them up just as the Prince knelt at the same time, not annoyed at her blunder in the slightest, finding it somewhat endearing.
They rose to their feet simultaneously and as the Prince made to hand the book back that she had dropped, their fingers brushed together slightly from the interaction.
The Prince drew in a sharp breath and held it, surprised at how warm her hand was. Though he supposed it could have been caused due to the light brown fur that now covered the entirety of her body. Either way, neither one of them had expected the unexpected touch between them, and they pulled back into themselves quickly.
"There, Belle, see? No harm done," the Prince muttered, the beginnings of a wry little smile tugging at his mouth, though he fought it back down as he stared intently into the Beast's dark eyes.
Belle looked as though she wanted to say something more, though her courage failed her as she nodded and sharply turned away, hurrying away from him to the other side of the aisle.
For a moment, he felt cold and alone now that Belle had moved away, taking the warmth she exuded with her, but then a small wave of warmth washed over him and a candle spluttered somewhere over to his left.
"Thank you," Belle finally blurted out, letting out a little breath as she gingerly shuffled closer towards him, fumbling with the candleholder in her paws. "I—my father is always chastising me for not taking better care of my surroundings." She paused and swallowed down hard. "No matter," Belle shyly mumbled, looking up at the Prince at last with saddened dark eyes. "I hope that the next time I see him again, this curse will be lifted, though I am beginning to fear that nothing could be done for me. 'Love and blood', I don't suppose this library has any books on witchcraft?" Belle dryly asked, looking around.
The Prince shook his head. He could not allow her to think her situation was hopeless. He had heard it from the witch's mouth herself, even if he knew not what her words had meant.
"I can't say that it does, but even still, I cannot allow you to continue talking like that," he muttered darkly. "There is a way, Belle. I must admit, I didn't especially like to hear your village crone spit the words 'Love and blood' to me, but I don't see any reason she'd have to lie to me. She cares for you, I could see it. I do not think she'd let you stay…like this, forever. There is still hope," Adam mumbled, trying to ignore the faint blush on his cheeks.
He frowned. The shadows that danced along the wall to her left were hiding Belle's face, making it difficult for him to discern what she might be feeling. Or thinking.
"I…your words mean more than you could know, sir. Thank you, Your Highness, for…everything," Belle said, very quietly, after a moment as she moved to step closer, unaware of how the nearness was causing the Prince's heart to start beating once more—slow and unsteady.
His throat grew dry as Belle approached. He swallowed down hard and closed his mouth, though his breaths were coming to him short and fast, rendering him lightheaded.
Belle made a small noise in the back of her throat and lifted her eyes to his.
She looked up at him with what he thought was adoration in those almond-shaped dark brown eyes of hers that he had longed to see when she was human and stared.
"I am glad that you're not like the rest of them, Prince, that you are like…like me. That…you're not who I thought you were. That you are different, not one of many," she shyly admitted, biting down on her lip, smiling as she did so, still clutching the book Adam had given back to her against her breast.
Her smile was undeniably endearing, and even in her monstrous form, a small quirk of Belle's the Prince did not notice about her, until now. Belle's smile did not fade as she came to stand close to him.
She became more contemplative and quieter as the seconds passed.
Belle seemed to decide something just then, for she nodded once firmly as if trying to convince herself that what she was about to do would not hurt her in any way.
She popped up onto her toes and before the Prince had any time to react or try to push her away, she kissed his cheek. She let her lips linger for a moment before pulling away.
It was as the Prince was staring at her, wide-eyed, that he caught a glimpse of the uneasiness that made her dark eyes seem darker somehow, almost black in the dim light. He watched as she shyly stepped away.
"Thank you, Prince, for being so kind to me. You did not have to, but…I am grateful for it. For showing me this place. This library, like you, is not one of many." She shot him a shy smile. Well, it's-it's getting late and I should…be going. Thank you for the dinner, Your Highness -and for…for listening," Belle awkwardly stammered and wringing her hands.
He nearly smiled to himself as Adam realized that Belle was not aware she was flushing underneath her fur or babbling like a tow-headed simpleton, but the Prince did not care a whit. Belle proceeded to duck her head and turned her profile to the side to eye him bashfully from the corner of her lowered gaze, overcome with shyness.
Prince Adam watched as Belle turned in a twist of her skirts and turned away, wordless, quickly striding away from him, the sound of her boot heels making light tapping sounds throughout the long aisle of the library.
The Prince felt himself smile, watching Belle disappear through the wide oak double doors, though not before the Beast paused to look over her shoulder once at the Prince watching her leave. He couldn't be sure from this distance, as the details of her face were difficult to make out, but he thought he saw her smile before she disappeared through the doors and away from the Prince's line of eyesight.
The skin on his cheek where Belle had pressed her lips tingled, leaving a burning sensation he did not know what to make of. Her chaste kiss on the scar on his cheek that Father had given him a few years prior had his stomach twisting into an uncomfortable bundle of nerves.
His eyes had remained fixed on her eyes and her lovely dark hair, and when she had walked towards him, his mind had gone blank. For a fraction of a second, he saw the beauty of the woman he knew Belle to be from the first moment he laid eyes upon her in the village that did not appreciate nor understand her, underneath her monstrous visage coming towards him. Her beauty rocked him to his core for the smallest of moments, Adam forgot what she was and the state of the mess of his life.
Our lives now, he supposed as an abrupt bitterness seeped into his stomach. But the moment she had pulled away from him, and his gaze caught at the winding twisting little horns on top of Belle's head and he saw the fur that covered her body, Adam could not help but be reminded.
Belle's lips against his cheek were both hot and cold together, both burning and freezing him to the bone.
His jaw tingled, and the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. Such a monstrous creature as Belle had become, though the fault was entirely his and his alone, should have been disgusting to him, but somehow, Belle was different. Adam made up his decision at that moment.
One day, he hoped that she would forgive him, for if the day came for her curse to be lifted, by some miracle of God, he wanted her to stay. The thought was enough to give Prince Adam hope that she would stay willingly, of her own accord, as he left the library.
When he finally returned to his chamber in the West Wing, he collapsed onto the bed, lying down and staring numbly up at the ceiling while his hair splayed around his pillow on either side of his head, a flagon of fresh red wine in his hand.
Prince Adam searched for answers at the bottom of that flagon as to what the witch meant by the words Love and Blood to undo his mistake as he fell asleep.
Images of dark eyes and even darker hair swirled around in the Prince's head as throughout the night, he dreamt of Belle. His Belle.
The Prince's one-track mind was stuck on one thing and one thing only as he had left the library that night, too fixated on thoughts of the young Changeling Beast in his castle to pay too much attention to anything else.
For if he had been observant enough, he would have seen the face of the hunter that had hurt Belle in the woods.
He would have seen the murderous look of rage in Gaston's colorless grey eyes as he had watched the Prince and Belle converse, before quietly slipping away into the night, the man's mind reeling with so many possibilities.