The Beast of Rose Castle

-= 14 =-

"You shouldn't stay here, Beauty," was all the Beast gave in a reply. His head quickly turned away so that she couldn't see his eyes, his emotions warring within him. 

"Have I ever been known to listen to you, Beast?" she asked him with a soft smile slowly curling her lips upwards. 

He turned his head back and his eyes shot to hers. Perhaps he didn't know what loyalty he could invoke in people. Or maybe he had been expecting her to run for the hills at his words. 

Annelie moved a hand up to cup his face as if he was merely a child. His face moved, pressing into her touch like he hadn't been able to stop himself. 

"Why... why do you choose to stay? Am I not a monster? Have I not proven myself to be the Beast you hadn't been able to see all those years ago?" he questioned her, looking frustrated with her and the whole situation. 

"You may be the Beast, but you are also a man, a man that had lost so much. You may act like a monster, but inside you are conflicted over emotions you cannot even comprehend. Though most of all... to answer your question, I choose to stay because you are nice, sweet, and charming. You just try to cover it all up and hide from anyone, trying to swat away compliments as if they are nonexistent," Annelie explained. Even as she figured she was finished, a new thought raced through her mind. 

Her eyebrows furrowed and she leaned in closer to the Beast. "What do you mean, 'all those years ago', Beast? Did I not just meet you a few days ago?" 

It was the Besat's turn to express confusion. Even so, he grabbed her hand from off of his arm and guided her back to the bed. Yet, when she stiffened he shook his head. "Please... I do believe it is my turn to beg for you of something. Just... give me a moment. I promise not to be that monster again," he inserted before her mind could come to any false conclusions about his intentions. 

The Beast sat down on the one side of Annelie's bed. The blonde-haired woman found herself sitting beside him and found that somehow this change in the Beast was comforting. 

He reached over, making her jolt automatically at his sudden closeness. His eyes grew wide and she felt herself tremble slightly in a mixture of fear and desire. His mouth turned downward and his eyes softened when he leaned back to his original position. 

In his hand was his leather-bound book. He began flipping through the pages before stopping at a relatively newer entry. It was one she had yet to read. "If you cannot remember what happened, I would rather you read this then hear my screw up my explanation of what went on. At least this is accurate," he stated with a tilt of his head at the book. 

"Beast... are you positive? It made you so angry that I had touched it before... and I don't want you to be so upset again," she murmured slowly, softly. 

"I'm sorry..." he found himself saying when he opened his mouth. It wasn't what he had been about to say, but perhaps it was the thing he should be saying. "I... I overreacted and I hurt you because of that. Forgive me, Beauty." His eyes were like warm coals, life resurfacing with kindness radiating from the softening look. 

Annelie smiled and the Beast eyes were drawn to the motion. Her smile was the spring after a long winter. Her smile was like the light of the sun after an endless night. Then, there were her eyes. They gleamed like they encompassed the sun. The fields of grass lightened and became a sea of shifting earthy green wonder. "Please, call me Annelie," she instructed the large man who seemed to be stunned beside her. 

He blinked and nodded his head as if coming out of a dream. Then, his brow furrowed and he took in the sight of her sitting there once more. "If I am to call you... Annelie, then you must call me by my name. It is... Vardan," he replied. Before she could say another word, he stood from his seated position on the bed. 

"I will take my leave now. Be sure to take care of my book for me. It is my story, my entire life in words. See you, come lunch, sweet, beautiful Annelie," he added with a nod of his head. 

The Beast, or rather Vardan, turned to walk away. Annelie jolted up from her seated position on her bed, wanting to say something, anything before he was gone. "Ah! I will... I will certainly protect it! Goodbye, for now, Vardan," she replied quickly. 

He froze mid-step at his name being spoken. It was the first time in over two hundred and sixty-seven years that he had been able to hear it. Vardan's mouth curled upward, learning that perhaps she could teach him more than his books could ever teach. "Of course," he responded slowly, then made his way out of the bedroom and into the hall. 

Annelie stood there as his form disappeared out of the door, her mind still whirling and unable to really digest all that had happened. One moment he was a raging Beast, and the next he was sweet and suddenly treating her as his equal. 

Perhaps that was the true difference between the Beast and the Prince that was buried beneath all the layers and walls. It was interesting to be able to see his true reactions, the way his eyes seemed to change as his defenses fell. Of course, she had to still be careful of invoking the Beast inside him that obviously lurked underneath the surface. 

She wanted to know more about the man, the Prince, the Beast, Vardan. He was different and her intellectual mind wished to unwrap all of the layers that he used as his defenses. 

Yet, she had to get used to the fact that she was the girl of the curse. The answers had hit her when she had been sitting there on the bed after reading his entries. If he was the Prince and she was the one who had been able to open the rose-covered iron gate, that meant there was a possibility that he would be the death of her. 

Knowing her future did nothing to stop her from wanting to stay with the Beast. Maybe that was why the ghost who had cursed Vardan had known all along. 

She had known that one day in the future there would be a girl who was beautiful and who could hold her own to the Beast. The ghost knew that once that day came around that things would begin to change for the man, and he would grow to become more and more human. However, she wanted to take that away from him, it was obvious. 

The phantom had been angry at the man who had stolen everything away from her and wanted him to pay. So, she created a living hell for the Beast that left him lost, broken, and filled with hatred. 

Annelie swallowed as she looked at the doorway where Vardan had once stood. Her green eyes closed and she realized slowly that she was falling in love with the man she was getting to know more and more. Instead of opening the book and devouring the words he had written about something in the past, she closed it by her side. 

Her curiosity had faded, leaving her wanting to just rest for a moment. With all the time in the world at her side, she could afford such a luxury. 

So, Annelie laid back on the bed, and closed her eyes, knowing how terrible it was for her to fall asleep in her dress. Then, her mind was dark as she fell off to the abyss that was her own mind, her own dreams which were surprisingly peaceful and cryptic. 

---

A/N~ I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Let me know what your thoughts are on the plot and what you think will happen! How do you think Annelie will face death? How will the Prince, Vardan, save her? Comment down below! I love to read your responses and they make me so happy! 

Oh, and for those who want to know how to pronounce his name... 

Vardan (Vuh-AR-Duh-n)