Beauty and the Beast

Rose Thief

Dr. Erskine didn't even mind how cold and wet he'd gotten; all he could think of at that moment was reaching the castle doors. The grounds were quickly being covered in a blanket of snow; despite the freezing temperatures, there was a wide garden in the courtyard with lovely white roses. Someone must have still lived there in order for the plants to thrive in such conditions.

Upon seeing them, the tired traveler instantly remembered the promise he'd made to Tara. I doubt she has a white rose in her collection. The village doctor mused to himself, gently picking one from the stem and placing it in his pocket. Won't she be surprised when I tell her where I found it!  He shouted and called as loud as he could, pounding on the mahogany doors with his fist. No one answered, but to his surprise, the heavy double doosr had been left slightly ajar, leaving just enough room for him to squeeze through. "Hello? Anyone home?" Erskine said, peeking around in the dimly lit space. As Tara's father journeyed deeper, he noticed that there was a room just at the end of the hall with a fireplace. Judging by how chilly it was, it hadn't been lit in some time. 

All of a sudden, out of the corner of his eye, Erskine saw the flicker of shadows on the wall, and heard the faint sound of whispering. "Anyone there? Please forgive me for intruding on you like this!" the stranger proclaimed, stopping just inside a small study room, "I got lost and happened to see your castle. It seems that there will be a terrible snowstorm tonight--"

"No need for apologies, kind sir!" A heavily accented voice echoed, "please stay for as long as you need!"

"How kind of you!" The reserved old physician looked around, trying to place the direction of the voice. He peered back down the hall but no one was there. No matter. He knelt down to the fireplace and lit it with the very last match from his breastpocket. As the spark began to grow, he sat down in a slightly weathered armchair in the corner. Whoever lived there must not have many servants, as the table and the shelves were rather dusty. That was strange; surely a person who owned a castle was wealthy enough to afford a servant or two. Erskine shrugged at the thought, yawning and leaning back on the comfortable leather. In a few minutes, he began drifting off into a light sleep. Little did the weary traveler know that he was being watched.

"Honestly Glysmere, how could you be so reckless? Thanks to you leaving the entrance open, there's some old stranger sleeping in the master's chair! When he sees this, he'll turn the both of us into kindling!"

"You worry too much! There's no need for his highness to find out about this."  At that moment, a tall shadow fell over the coffee table where a candelabra and a miniature clock sat. It stood over them for a minute and before looming over where the man lay stretched out in the Victorian chair. 

"Comfortable?" came a deep voice.

"Oh yes, quite comfortable, thank you." Dr. Erskine's eyes fluttered open for a second and closed. When he opened them again, he let out an audible gasp, leaping up and out of the seat. There in front of him was a tall figure, with blue, rough skin and bright scarlet red eyes glowing in the dim room. He had long ebony hair that fell on his broad shoulders. It had the form of a human, but its skin and eyes were something monstrous. For a moment the doctor thought he was dreaming, but as the creature moved closer, shouting at him, he realized he was wide awake. 

"What are you doing here?!" 

Dr. Erskine was too shocked to speak, as the Beast cornered him up against the fireplace. His voice might have abandoned him, but his brain was working just fine. Reaching behind him, he grabbed a spoke and stuck it in the fire and yanked an ember out, flinging it into the creature's face. It fell backwards, yowling in pain as the man ran away, back down the hall and out of the castle into the swirling blizzard. The weather might have been hazardous, but anything was better than being locked up with that thing.  The older man was racing toward the castle gate, when out of nowhere, a sharp icy sting shot through his left leg, causing him to fall awkwardly to the ground. Erskine looked down at his leg that had been magically encased in a small block of ice; the Beast had caught up to him!

"You didn't answer my question!" the brute exclaimed, lifting him up effortlessly by the collar, "What did you come here for? Jewels? Gold?" He rifled through his pockets, searching for any incriminating piece of evidence. Instead of valuables, all he found a single white rose.

"A rose?" The raven haired creature murmured, looking confused at the flower.

"Please! I didn't mean any harm. The rose was just a gift for my daughter, " the villager pleaded, "I never would've picked it had I known--"

"Daughter?" the strange man repeated, raising an eyebrow, "You have a daughter? Hmm, perhaps I might have a use for you." The Beast snapped his fingers, and the ice cube melted away from his leg, but the Beast had no intention of freeing the poor man. Without loosening his grip, he dragged the traveler back inside, and up the stairs to the dungeon.