24-Jul-2001
Yeah! I finished chapter 3. ::bounces around as if she's on a sugar induced high:: And now for everyone's enjoyment.... Hilde: yet again she wrote a huge long chapter and had to divide it. *yawn* You sound so thrilled Hilde... Hilde: You were up late finishing and I got very little sleep. Oh, sorry.. Hilde: zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...
::puts pillow under sleeping Hilde's head:: And this should be the last of it for tonight. What do people think so far? Hilde: *snore* needs more Hilde..*snore* Um...*sweatdrop*..Later Hilde, you'll get your big scene later. Hilde: ZZZZZZZzzzzZZZZZ
Author: Tigress Pern Title: Beauty and the Beast Archive: GW Addiction Type: drama/fairy tale Warnings: Une+Treize, some OOC Disclaimer: I don't own GW, end of story.
Une dried out her hair as she sat on her bed. Before her, hung on the back of a chair was a dress. They wanted her to go to dinner in that dress. She felt like a virgin sacrifice. The bath had been heavenly with its rose scented bath oils. They were much too expensive, so Father had never bought them for either her or Hilde. When she was ready, large, soft, fluffy towels had soared into the air awaiting her to climb out. Une surmised that these were her maidservants and had allowed herself to be coddled by them for the moment. Then she had noticed the dress. It was simple, white with silver ribbons woven in the bodice. It reminded her of all the dresses the girls in plays wore when they were the sacrifices for a dragon. Yes, she had sacrificed herself for her Father, but was she truly to be eaten by some monster? No. She'd kill the monster first before that. She saw red and glared hard at the dress.
"What is this?" she finally demanded after five minutes of debate. "Am I to be a sacrifice to your master in this? To be eaten as part of dinner? I think not!" With that she leapt up and strode to the wardrobe. Throwing open the doors, she began pulling out different dresses. "I'm not some simple little country waif you can bathe then feed to some monster who happens to like the taste of maiden's flesh. If I'm going to dinner, I'm going in something other than that." Une planned on meeting this beast in the most complicated outfit, so it would take it some time to gnaw through her bodice. Maybe a few jewels would deter it.
At six o' clock Une made her way to the dining room. Her little breeze had returned and it seemed that he wasn't alone this time. A second had joined him and they danced in front of her gently tugging at her skirts every so often. They walked up a set of stairs, then down a hall before halting in front of a set of high doors. The breezes opened them and scooted her in. Holding her head up, she strode into the room and took a chair that was pulled out for her. Thanking the air, she straightened her dress and waited patiently.
Presently she felt the temperature drop and her little wind friends still. Taking a deep breath, she sat up and kept her eyes straight ahead. A shadow fell across the table and slowly made its way down it. Une didn't flinch, she simply waited. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the shape of the beast's head. Her heart clenched for a moment as she realized that she was more frightened than she thought. Attempting to keep her breathing steady and her eyes forward, Une waited as the beast came completely into view. It was large; she had to give it that. About ten feet at least, with a long mane of light brown, no make that ginger hair. From either side of its head sprouted two horns that curved down like a ram's around its ears. Two large canines protruded from its upper mandible and gleamed in the candlelight. It was dressed in a dark blue velvet coat, with black breeches. White lace hung out from the sleeves, flowing over its paws. Or were they hands? Une could not tell. It turned to face her and bowed.
"My lady, my servants tell me that you think I will dine on you rather than with you. I assure, that I will do nothing of the sort." She stared at it, no him, for it was a male voice that resounded from that large throat. "Please do not be frightened, I may be a beast, but I will not harm you. You are the lady of the house now and I am but your humble servant." This was not what she had she had expected at all. He looked at her expectantly and she realized that he was waiting for her to allow him to sit.
"You are my servant, but this is your castle." She protested. The Beast bowed.
"I merely live here, think of me as a dog."
"You are much too large to be a dog." Une replied. "Won't you join me for dinner then, if you are not going to eat me?"
"I would be honored." His chair was pulled out for him by a servant and he sat. He was not quite as tall once he'd sat, but still he was far larger than any man was. "The cooks are excellent, I hope you will enjoy your meal."
"Because it is one I didn't have to cook, I will enjoy it immensely." Une stated beginning to relax a bit.
"Indeed." The Beast replied.
Dishes of all sorts were brought to the table by unseen hands. Une was astounded by the array of foods in front of her. She wasn't sure what to make of it. Wine was poured for both of them, but only Une was served any food. Glancing over at the Beast's place setting, she wondered why the servants weren't serving him anything.
"Are you not hungry?" Une inquired as she waved away a plate of pheasant, deeming that she had too much on her plate already.
"I will eat later."
"Nonsense, this is your home and I am the guest." The Beast shook his head.
"I have told you, you are now lady of the house. I will eat later."
"I don't see why you can not eat now. There is plenty." Abruptly is occurred to Une that perhaps he didn't need to eat. After all he was a magical creature.
"I'm afraid I cannot grip utensils. My dining habits are rather sloppy as consequence. It would disgust you I'm sure." As if to prove his point, he lifted one paw and shook the lace away to reveal sharp claws. "They're much like a dog's, unretractable I'm afraid. Makes grasping things very difficult. At least with a goblet, I may cut it between my fingers." Une understood.
"Then I hope you may at least be able to join me in a glass of wine and perhaps conversation. Your servants appear to lack the ability to speak." The breezes about her suddenly halted and she could almost feel them glaring at her.
"They have other ways of communication." The Beast replied smoothly.
"So I have noticed, but silence can be deafening." Une stated carefully picking at her beef and mushrooms.
"That it can."
"Is that why you asked my father for one of his daughters? To have someone to hold a verbal conversation with?" The Beast took a sip from his wineglass. He was quiet for several minutes before he answered.
"It is a reason, but not the only one." Une arched one brown eyebrow.
"And what are the others?"
"It is no concern to you. You simply need to know that I did wish to have some, as you put it, verbal conversation. Speaking in silence can be tedious occasionally." Une didn't understand what he meant by 'speaking in silence', but she could guess. After all he was a magical creature and he had magical servants. Logic told her that the communication between them also had to be magical. Therefore he must have grown bored and wished for some mundane speech. This meant he would most likely grow bored with her soon enough. After all she was a mortal and what did she have to offer a fairy creature? Fairies were supposedly fickle creatures anyway.
The meal continued pleasantly. Une made comments about the chateau and what she had seen. The Beast, as he insisted she call him, explained that there was much left to see. That she did not doubt as she remembered how the chateau looked when she walked up to it. It was the largest building she'd seen since the one trip to the capital. The castle the queen lived in was larger than this, but it could not rival the splendid gardens. The gardens here looked more beautiful than her memory of the royal castle's.
As dinner drew to a close, Une decided that she liked the Beast. He was an excellent conversationalist and despite his appearance, well mannered. She briefly wondered if all fairy beasts were as gentile as he was, but then she remembered stories of dragons and discarded the notion. The servants cleared away the dishes and poured both of them one last glass of wine. As soon as the wine bottle was whisked away the entire room suddenly seemed to hold still. It was as if the entire army of invisible servants were holding their breaths, waiting for something. The Beast cleared his throat and looked at Une.
"I must ask you something my lady."
"Please, my name is Une."
"Yes, there is something I must ask you Lady Une." Une sighed wishing he hadn't given her a title she did not deserve. She was a poor merchant's daughter, not a noble.
"Yes?"
"Will you marry me?" The air was so still with anticipation that Une could barely breath. How many times had young men asked for her hand in marriage? She'd turned them all down; she had loved none of them.
"I can't." The Beast's face betrayed no emotion. "We have just met." Une quickly added. "I can't make that sort of decision based on one meeting. As polite and gentlemanly you are, it is still our first meeting." With that she rose, said good night to the Beast and left the room.
The next morning Une slipped out to the stable to check on Aries. The chestnut seemed content munching on grain in his bucket. He paid her no heed as she stepped into the stall. Staring at the horse, Une patted him on the neck and spoke softly.
"How do you like it here? After one night I must admit I am astounded by everything and I haven't even explored the chateau. The Beast is not nearly as frightening as Father made him out. Perhaps it is his manners, but I do not fear him. I can't explain why, but it is like Hilde's Virgo and Leo. They are large animals that to some may appear scary. Yet they are gentle and well trained horses who would never harm a person, at least not on purpose. Occasionally they'll step on your foot if you're not watching." Aries snorted and turned his head to look at her. "I feel that the Beast is a bit like that." Aries shook his head and snorted again. "Do you not believe me? Well, you are entitled to your opinion. I will remain here until the Beast grows tired of me then we'll go home." As she said those words, Une could have sworn that she felt a pair of eyes on her. Whirling around, she sought a glimpse of the invisible stable hand, but as it was invisible there was nothing to be seen. Grabbing Aries' halter she led the horse out of the stall mumbling something about going for a walk. A lead rope appeared on a hook near the stall and she snatched it. Clipping it to Aries' halter they headed out for a walk in the gardens.
Une was a practical person by nature and she felt as if she were in the right believing that the Beast would eventually send her home. His behavior last night had squelched any ideas that he was looking for a human meal. He had even said all he was looking for was companionship. Suddenly she wondered if he would have taken her father if he'd come alone. Something told her that he was more interested in female companionship though. Magical folk were like that, she reasoned remembering stories of frog princes and cinder maids that her mother had told. Now she would be living her own fairy tale as it were, with a real Cerebus who guarded a magical castle.
"I'm beginning to feel like Persephone from that Greek legend. Except Hades was simply the ruler of the underworld, not a monster." She paused here trying to remember her lessons. "At least I do not believe so." Thinking of Persephone caused her to recall the Beast's proposal the night before. "Why would he want to marry me?" At this moment Aries chose to yank on his lead rope and lunge towards a patch of enticing green grass. "Here now!" Une called using every ounce of strength to hold the horse. "I won't stand for this type of behavior from you!" She glared at the horse who only flicked his tail in response. Sighing, she led him over towards the grass he so wanted to eat and let him grab a mouthful. Then she urged him onward.
They walked around the chateau once, not exploring much, but getting feel for the size of the area. There would be plenty of time to venture out to the peripheries later; today Une simply wanted to view the closest gardens. She had plenty of time and she knew it. Escape had never crossed her mind; after all it was her request that had gotten her father into this mess. She should be the one to solve it. Hilde's idea of a fairy prince hidden within the castle intrigued her and Une decided to find out what was really going on. There was something about the chateau and its guardian that piqued her curiosity.
"Well, I'm committed to being here so I must make the best of it." Une said as she put Aries back into his stall. "I'll come by later after lunch and take you out for a ride." As she left the stall door slid shut silently at the same time the stable door opened. Thanking the stable hands, wherever they were, she headed back to the chateau.
There were many odd things about the castle. For instance no matter where she was Une could always find her room. After the first day a beautifully carved wooden nameplate had been attached to her door, so she never mistook it as any other. No matter how far she thought she was away from it, by turning a corner she could find it. This became a bit of a problem as she tried to learn the lay of the chateau. It was as if the place would rearrange itself at her conveince, which irritated her. Une was not used to having every little wish granted and frankly liked a little hardship in her life. Otherwise it was too soft and was more like a dream than reality.
It took her several sharp words with her stable hands to get them to leave the polishing of Aries' saddle and bridle to her. Although she noticed that they still repaired them and secretly polished the buckles.
She never had to clean anything, which she hadn't done anyway before her father's ruin, but now liked to do. It made her feel alive. Her handmaids, two distinct little breezes that seemed to always be in her room fussing over something, didn't seem to understand why Une wanted to make her own bed occasionally. The Beast appeared greatly amused one evening after she had been there a week, when she told him about having a fight over bed sheets with them.
"I don't find it in the least bit amusing Beast." Une snapped. "I can do those sort of things for myself." His mood sobered a bit.
"But you are the lady now and it is unnecessary for you too do such menial tasks."
"Yes they may be menial to you, but they make me feel independent and useful. I always helped my father with the household after my mother died. When we left the city the duties changed, but I was still helpful to my family. I do not feel useful here."
"But you are, maybe not in the way you were at home." The Beast replied gently touching the wineglass in front of him with one claw. "I doubt I could get any of the servants to comply with your wish to polish silver." A slight smile curled his lips showing more sharp teeth than Une was comfortable with. "They would probably have a nervous breakdown or at the very least hysterics. Perhaps you can find another avenue to put your energy into that is, ah, useful?"
"Perhaps." Une muttered as she stared down at a bowl of soup in front of her. Around her several covered platters swayed back and forth as the breezes carrying them waited for her to order the next course. One overanxious plate of salmon uncovered itself so that Une might partake of its savory aroma. The Beast growled and muttered something Une didn't understand, sending the plate skittering back towards the kitchen.
"You shouldn't let them push you around."
"I'm not." Une stated sending him a sharp glare. "I'm fully capable of handling this myself." To prove it she pushed aside her soup and ordered the salmon back. The plate happily leapt forward, settling down in front of her. The little breeze then handed Une a fork and knife to cut it. Une had early on refused having her meat cut for her and the servants were glad to oblige her. The Beast watched her calmly, trying to hide the smile that threatened to spread across his face. Whether she realized it or not, she had become the lady of the house. Ah, Lady Une, you have the servants under your thumb and you don't realize it, he thought as he studied her. Your presence is like a breath of fresh air to this chateau to all.
As the meal concluded, Une prepared herself for the Beast's question. Every night it was the same one and every night for a month she had turned him down. She just wasn't sure she was ready to marry anyone. The Beast always looked sad afterwards. He was gentlemanly enough to always bid her goodnight with as much dignity as a suitor could after being rejected. Une normally returned to her room and curled up with a book, but it never helped lessen the misery she felt.
"Lady Une, will you marry me?"
"No. I wish you would stop asking me. I hate to see the disappointment in your face." The Beast looked shocked for a moment.
"I cannot help but ask." He replied slowly. Une rose from her chair.
"Then I will ask you something in return. Will you allow me to visit my family? My little sister Hilde, her birthday is approaching. She will be sixteen and I would like to be there for her." Blue eyes looked at her then dropped. The Beast straightened the lace of his cuffs not wanting to see the look of hope on her face. A hope that he was about to dash.
"No, I cannot." Une felt herself stiffen. Flexing her hand in an attempt to divert her attention away from the thought of crying, Une bit her bottom lip. "I wish I could, but I cannot." Back rigid, Une silently walked away from the table. She strode past the Beast and out the dining room doors. She paused at them to say good night then left without another word. The Beast remained in his chair, staring at his paws.
"Good night Lady Une. I'm sorry I cannot grant your wish."
End Chapter Three
Tigress Pern