Of Beast and Beauty (Complete)

CHAPTER FOUR: The Tower

The pathway was narrow, rugged and winding. The trees and overgrowth seemed to come at Alina from all sides as night continued to fall and the moon rose. The sounds of the forest changed from chirping birds to chirping crickets as the atmosphere began to shift into something more sinister and dark.

Fireflies began to turn on their lights, trickling towards Alina as they had always done. Her siblings had always been jealous and said that the fireflies made her their favorite. Even in this deep, dark wood they managed to find her and make her feel safe, lighting the dark path before her.

Still, Alina journeyed on with her tail of fireflies trickling after her in a wave. The trees seemed to be reaching out to her to catch her, to tell her to turn back or to trap her forever in their steel-like embraces. When she felt a leaf caress her cheek, she startled away and began walking faster.

The moon was high in the sky by the time Alina broke free of the forest and entered into a clearing. There, much to her astonishment and wonder, she found the castle estate that her father had spoken of.

The castle was no less menacing than her father had described. It stood guard over the haunting forest she had emerged from, surrounding it on all sides. A massive wall of stone surrounded the entire estate, at least six feet high. Through the obsidian, iron gate she could see the grounds illuminated by the full moon. It was a stunning, mighty castle no less than six stories in some parts. Peaked towers jutted from the sides and top in odd places, and, as her father had said, there was no candlelight.

It could be abandoned.

Hesitantly, Alina stepped towards the gate. It swung open for her without having touched it. She jumped back, alarmed, then steadied herself. She had nowhere to go but forward. If someone lived in this place, her father had struck a bargain with him. Which means that the man, or whatever he was, threatened her family.

She pressed on.

The grounds were strangely quiet. No wind, no sounds, just an eerie stillness about it. The nightly dew hugged the grass. It smelled of outdoors, night air and roses. Glancing to her left, Alina noted the immaculate rose gardens her father had spotted, and had gotten them into this mess. Still, Alina moved on, towards the two giant doors at the front of the castle. As she ascended the stone steps, the doors swung open for her. She saw no one there, but they could easily have been standing behind the doors out of view.

The castle was as enormous on the inside as it appeared to be on the out. Directly in front of her, in the entryway was a jutting, intricately beautiful grand staircase, leading to the second floor of the castle. In the middle, before it separated into two parts, one set going off to each side, was a large glass window. The window let in the moonlight and illuminated the entire entryway. Once again, there were no candles to light the way, so Alina relied on the light of the full moon. Despite appearing abandoned, there was also no smell of rot, dust or decay.

Someone was taking care of the place then, at least.

"Hello? Is anyone there?" Alina called out, hearing her voice echo inside the cavernous hallways.

Hearing no response, Alina continued on. Perhaps she had been mistaken and her father had stumbled upon an abandoned manor and then succumbed to delusions. There was no dust but also no other signs of life past that.

Alina walked down the great corridors, her footsteps echoing off of the walls, making it almost seem as though she was being followed.

"Hello?" She tried again.

She, once again, heard only her own voice in reply. And yet, she felt as though a great animal was stalking her – as though she was prey. Feeling unsettled, she tried the next door off of the corridor. It was, thankfully, unlocked and she slipped in, shutting the door behind her.