Beauty and the Beast

Chapter 1

He sees her huddled near the side of the road, the hood of her tattered brown cloak pulled tightly around her wrinkled face.

She rises to her feet as he nears on horseback, her tiny frame hunched over, a crooked wooden cane clutched in her weathered hand.

"Won't you buy a rose, my lord?" She asks, her voice a low cackle that crawls over his skin.

He glares down into her white eyes, the eyes of a blind woman, and the stench of sickness reaches his nose. Her hood falls back from her face, revealing her blistered lips and her ashen skin, marred with the spots of disease.

"Get away from me, peasant." He shouts, disgusted.

She bends one crooked arm and reaches into her basket, pulling out a long stemmed rose, the bud shriveled and black, the petals dry and brittle.

"Please, my lord," she begs, her eyes brimming with tears. "I am but a poor and hungry old woman, with no home or family to speak of."

She lifts the rose towards him, ambling closer, when suddenly she trips and stumbles into the side of his horse, regaining her balance by gripping his shiny black boot.

He pulls his foot from the stirrup and kicks her away, angry that she put her filthy hands on his new boots. She stumbles to the ground with a weak cry, her basket of dead roses scattering across the ground.

"Get out of here, you disgusting creature. You are on my land, and I will set the dogs on you," He sneers, turning his nose up at her.

She cackles, a low wicked sound that grows more crazed as she gets to her feet. She brushes the dirt and dead leaves from her cloak, shaking her head. She turns towards him, leaning on her cane as she laughs, tilting her head back to reveal her blackened teeth.

His horse rears as the sound grows louder, and he is thrown from the saddle and lands in the dirt at the old woman's feet.

He rises up to his knees furiously, just as the old woman reaches beneath her cloak and pulls out a sharpened wooden stake, slashing it down the side of his face as she continues to laugh madly. He falls onto his back, placing his hand on the bleeding cut that burns his skin.

Searing pain spreads across his face as blood runs between his fingers and over his lips, dripping onto his blue overcoat. He can feel the curse as it courses in his veins burning a path through his body, marking him with its evil. He cries out against the agony of it, willing the pain to stop.

"Please," he begs at the old woman's feet, turning onto his side as his muscles contract violently. "Forgive me, dear lady. I shall give you anything that you ask for."

The old woman stops laughing, her stark eyes looking straight ahead. "It is too late for that now, boy. I have marked you. You are cursed. Now everyone who looks upon you will know what a monster you are, Garrett Thorne. And when the moon rises, you will embody the evil that lives inside you, and all will know that you truly are a beast."

~~~

Ten Years Later…

Beth pulled the curtain back from the small window and stared out at the endless forest. The carriage bounced along at a slow pace, the road beneath them muddy due to the melting snow, making it impossible to move any faster. The sky was overcast, the crisp morning air seeping through Beth's gloves to her already numb fingers. She tugged her cloak tightly around her neck, shivering against the chill as she dropped the curtain.

Sitting back in her seat with a frustrated sigh, Beth shook her head, wishing that they could go faster. For days they had traveled in this same manner, the washed away road and constant snow making for a treacherous journey. Urgency knotted in her gut as they slowed even further, the carriage dipping sideways as it maneuvered along the forest path.