The Beast of Rose Castle

-= 25 =-

He had almost not made it to his lovely Beauty, almost left her for dead. Somehow, he had found the strength to go out, to find her, and he would find the strength to bring her home, to her home. 

Long strides took him to her side and his hand brushed against her pale, so very pale, cheeks. "My Beauty," he stated as if mesmerized by the very sight of her. Before anyone could protest, he wrapped her up in his arms, taking several furs with the movement. He turned around and passed by the woman who had been nursing her. Missus Circe only nodded, a grim look in her eyes as she knew how very weak Annelie had been growing. 

Hope was the only thing the girl had left, and the Beast who was willing to go to any length to save her. He left the room and continued forward, past the children who parted for him at his approach. 

Cassius turned and nodded, silently giving into the fact that Annelie was not to be his and was, in fact, the myth that walked Rose Castle's grounds. The Beast did not give any movement, but his eyes met Cassius' for a brief moment, and there was a thankfulness that had entered the dark eyes. Then, they moved away, and to the front door. 

Then, the Beast left the orphanage and began to go home. Each step grew more and more tiring and his lungs felt as if they were being burned with every gasping breath that sucked in less and less air. 

Vardan felt as if he was choking on invisible tendrils of smoke and pain blossomed in nearly every inch of his body. Yet, he didn't stop the fight onward, knowing that the castle could save the beautiful woman in his arms. He realized with sudden clarity that he would gladly give his life in exchange for hers, for his Beauty's. 

Maybe she would look back on her time with him fondly when he was gone, lost by the wretched curse. That made him smile as he accepted that the damage being done to his body would be damage he would never be able to overcome. He had to travel too far outside his boundaries for far too long. It would be over, that much he knew. Yet, he hoped he would be able to see his Beauty one last time before he breathed his last, aching breath. That such hope kept him calm and that such hope gave him a bit of light that he clung to. 

Will she mourn my loss? I don't wish to cause this enchanting woman any pain, he thought. Somehow, I still hope above all else that she will be happy in my castle once I am no longer around. She will fight the servants, but they will make her stay, treat her right. She will not long for a thing. My Beauty can be safe and she can be happy. 

His mind raced over things as he smiled weakly. The memories of their short time together moved through his mind. Somehow, in that short amount of time, she had gotten through to him. Perhaps she thought him cold, even then. Yet, he cared for the girl he risked his life for. Maybe she will be able to see that I do care when she gets better. Maybe, when the castle's healing grounds fix her, give her a chance of living once more, she will realize how very much she means to me. 

The gates were before him, the roses weak. They trembled with every harsh wind, sending petals cascading to the ground. Vardan pressed his back against the closed gate, ignoring the pain of the thorns stabbing into his skin. The doors creaked open, letting him inside the grounds. 

Time paused as he stepped onto the land and he felt Annelie's hands twitch and clench onto his shirt. He rushed forward, able to breathe only marginally better, but wanting to get her out of the cold. She needed to be cared for. 

As his dark eyes looked up, he noticed the servants who waited anxiously for his arrival back. "Master!" Liyor exclaimed, looking at the ragged appearance of the large man. It looked like he had been through the underworld and back again to reunite them with Annelie, reunite himself with the girl. "Bring her inside!"

Then, they all funneled through the door, in a mess of servants exclaiming and voices rising. Vardan ignored it all, focused only on getting Annelie to her room. He ignored the worried looks at him as he huffed up the stairs, dots appearing in his vision. When he arrived at her room which was across the hall from his own, he pushed opened the door and stumbled inside. His body ached in ways he couldn't explain, and his mind was becoming mush in his head. 

Still, he brought Annelie to the bed, placing her on it and covering her with heavy, warm fur blankets. His hand moved to her cheek as he fell to his knees beside her bed. As the dark spots in his vision continued to expand his mouth moved with words he had never spoken before, with words that he doubted he would ever be able to speak. "I love you." 

---

There were dark dreams of the icy cold and a woman cackling. A wind whipped around Annelie's blonde curls, sending them up in a wide array of motion. The air seemed to rip at her skin, causing deep gouges to form. Harsh screams left her throat, again and again, as heat tried to burrow under her skin and into her bones.

The pain was agonizing and so utterly consuming. It was like a hungry monster, blowing fiery breaths onto her body before swallowing her down into the molten heat below. More screams escaped her as her throat grew sore and her voice grew too weak to put up another protest. 

Hands were all over her, touching her, ripping at her skin with every movement. The cackling haunted her every moment. Flashes of dark eyes and dark hair floating in the wind around a figure that was hunched over slightly. 

Red eyes met Annelie's and the girl couldn't even scream. Instead, all she could do was hope that the woman wasn't intent on hurting her. Before she could even begin to think anything else, a white form hurried through, grabbing onto Annelie's face and wiping away at the hot sweat that had trickled down from her forehead. "You will be alright," was all she said, having not seen the dark woman or the red eyes that seemed to be filled to the brim with insanity and rage. 

The light continued to grow, edging onto her vision more and more. 

It was only as things began to come into focus that she was able to notice that she was lying in a warm bed, in the middle of the room she had come to accept as hers. Navini was turned away unfolding a perfectly folded blanket to only redo the motions again. When the servant girl tried to refold it for the fifth time since Annelie opened her eyes, Annelie opened her mouth. 

Only a croak left her, but that was enough to have Navini spinning on her heels. Dark brown eyes met Annelie's and a sigh of relief left the woman as she strode forward. Yet, that relief held a deep sadness and the servant's lips were downturned. Annelie tried to ask Navini what was going on, moving her lips in the pattern that would normally announce her confusion. Only a whisper of a breath left her. 

"Oh, don't try to speak Annelie," Navini exclaimed. "You are far too weak to do that." With a nod of her head, Navini turned to start to call out for someone. Annelie's hand shot out and grabbed onto Navini's wrist. 

'What's wrong', she mouthed. Navini's eyebrows furrowed, and Annelie tried to mouth the words again, slower. 

Realization grew on Navini's face and the girl turned away. She pulled her hand away, able to escape Annelie's grasp with just a small tug. Navini wrung her hands and looked down at the ground. She swallowed before letting out a soft sob. "The Master- he is knocking at death's door," she whimpered out. Annelie's eyes widened and her heart nearly stopped in her chest. Vardan, she thought.