Beauty and the Were-Tiger *COMPLETED*

Chapter 5: Entering the West Wing...run away!?

Words count: 1943

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

In the bright hallway after leaving the dining room with Ghost, MC and Adabelle walking down a hall with Samson. Ghost is lecturing. "As you can see, the pseudo façade was stripped away to reveal a minimalist rococo design. Note the unusual inverted vaulted ceilings. This is yet another example of the neo-classic baroque period, and as I always say, if it's not baroque, don't fix it! Ha-ha-ha. Now then, where was I?" Ghost said. 

He turns to find the heads of the suits of armor have turned to follow Adabelle. "As you were!" He said. They all snap back to face forward. "Now, if I may draw your attention to the flying buttresses above the--mademoiselle?" He asked. Ghost turns back to the group and is one girl short. He sees her beginning to climb the grand staircase. He and MC run up to her and jump in front of her, blocking her progress upstairs. 

"What's up there?" Adabelle asked. "Where? Up there? Nothing. Absolutely nothing of interest at all in the West Wing. Dusty, dull, very boring." Ghost said. MC has been shaking his head, but Ghost nudges him and he nods in agreement. "Oh, so that's the West Wing." Adabelle said as she put her index/pointer finger to her lower jawline. MC put his hands on his hips as he leans in towards Ghost. "Nice going!" He said. Ghost cowards down towards the stairs. "I wonder what he's hiding up there." She said. "Hiding? The master is hiding nothing!" MC said. "Then it wouldn't be forbidden." She said. She steps over them, but they dash up and block her again.

"Perhaps mademoiselle would like to see something else. We have exquisite tapestries dating all the way back to..." Ghost said. Adabelle again stepping over them. "Maybe later." She said. MC with Ghost, again dashing and blocking. "The gardens, or the l-library perhaps?" He asked. Now, with incredible interest as she leans down towards them with a smile on her face. "You have a library?" She asked.

Ghost was thrilled that he has found something to interest her. "Oh yes! Indeed!" He said. "With books!" MC said. "Gads of books!" Ghost said. "Mountains of books!" MC said. "Forests of books!" Ghost said. "Cascades..." MC said. "...of books!" Ghost said. "Swamps of books!" The orange with black lines candle said. "More books than you'll ever be able to read in a lifetime! Books on every subject ever studied, by every author who ever set pen to paper..." The purple/black clock said.

MC and Ghost begin marching off, and Adabelle begins to follow, but her curiosity overtakes her, and she turns back to the West Wing. Her excitement begins to dwindle, though, when she enters the hallway leading to Tygra's lair. As she walks down the hall, she stops to look in a mirror that has been shattered into several pieces, each one reflecting her concerned look. She reaches the end of the hall and finds a closed door with gargoyle handles. She takes a deep breath, then reaches out and opens the door.

Inside of the lair, where Adabelle begins to explore. She is truly shocked by everything she sees that fabrics were torn and everything else were destroyed. She wanders around, looking, and knocks over a table, but she catches it before it crashes to the floor. She then turns her head and sees a shredded picture on the wall. We can only see part of a portrait. It is the same portrait that was shredded in the opening. Adabelle reaches out and lifts the shreds of the picture to reveal the prince that has orange with black stripes, no horns on his head and two pointy ears...but the only thing that is odd are the eyes. She turns her head and sees the rose under the bell jar. She walks over to it, her eyes transfixed. She reaches out, then lifts off the jar, leaving the rose unprotected.

She reaches up, brushes back the strand of hair that has been repeatedly falling on her forehead, then reaches out to touch the rose. As she nears it, a shadow falls over her. Tygra has been on the balcony and sees her. She gasped. He jumps back into the room, then slams the jar back on the rose. He then turns his attention to Adabelle. Tygra was growing angry as he stood behind the glass jar and Adabelle.