Chapter Three
Apple plodded on, cantering when
space allowed, but more often than not, picking his way through the dense
forest. Beauty sat tall in her saddle,
attempting to look confident despite the descending gloom around her. If this creature had the kind of magical
powers that her father's story suggested, she had little doubt that he could
easily be watching her approach into his territory. A long stare in any direction revealed nothing but tall trees,
their leafy canopies blotting out the moon and stars. Without their comforting light, Beauty had been forced to light
the old lantern she'd had the foresight to bring with her.
An owl swooped over head, the tip of
one feathery wing, tousling Beauty's hair.
She gasped in surprise as Apple danced under her, apparently spooked by
the great bird as well. The predatory
bird landed gracefully on a low-hanging branch directly in front of the
startled duo and stared at them expectantly with its golden eyes. Beauty gulped and drew her cloak around her
tightly as the owl bobbed its head from side to side, as if inspecting her from
every angle. Apple, made nervous by the
scare, swung his shaggy head around to look at his mistress, plainly asking
"Well... now what?".
The owl gave a soft hoot, regaining
both travelers' attention, and launched itself back into the night air, only to
land on another branch a short distance away and await them. Deciding that this owl had to be a servant
of the monster's, Beauty followed as the bird repeated its performance again and
again. It was no game, she realized...
the bird's master must have sent it to lead her along. The beast wouldn't want his prize to get
lost in the forest, now would he?
Finally the owl landed, not on a
branch, but on the wrought iron of a tall gateway, covered with centuries of
ivy. With its sharp talons holding onto
the top of the gate, the owl flapped its wings as though trying to take off,
opening the gate with slow, creaking noises.
Apple took a step back uncertainly, perhaps sensing the presence of the
man-beast that ruled over the place.
Beauty swallowed tightly, her heart beginning to tremble as she urged
her normally obedient horse forward. As
they crossed the threshold, Beauty was aware of a massive atmosphere
change. The woods had been frightfully
chilly and her cloak did little to help her fight off the cold... now she was
compelled to remove the tattered garment all together. It was warm and slightly humid inside the
gates and Beauty could hear the nearby sound of flowing water, like from a
fountain or a small waterfall. The
perfumes of thousands of different flowers wafted over her, their scents gently
coaxing her to relax just a little. It
was still dark, for no magic was great enough to stop the natural course of the
sun, but torches were lit in strategic places, just barely illuminating the
cobblestone path Beauty found herself on.
Just then, the gates behind her
banged shut, the clang causing Beauty to jump in her saddle. Oh...
I don't like the sound of that... I must be crazy to do this. She heard the padding of paws in front of
her and Apple whickered nervously, dancing back a few steps. The light of a torch revealed a timber wolf
and a mastiff, the guards from her father's story. Terrified herself that she was about to be torn to pieces, Beauty
patted Apple's neck reassuringly, knowing that the great stallion was liable to
bolt at any moment in the face of these predators.
"Identify yourself." the
mastiff ordered in a surprisingly human voice.
Before Beauty could form a reply,
the wolf corrected his comrade.
"Be civil, you dolt. Have
you forgotten how to treat a lady?"
To Beauty he approached a step further and bent on his front legs
briefly, the four-legged equivalent of a bow.
"Might we inquire your name, milady?"
"Beauty." she
replied. "Beauty Whittbourne... my
father is the farmer who was here several days ago and offended your master so
grievously. I am here to rectify my father's
crime in accordance with your master's request." She had no idea that she was such a competent actress! Despite her near-overwhelming fear, her
voice was steady and, if she wasn't mistaken, regal! Obviously she'd been reading of fairy tale royalty far too much,
if she could portray them this easily.
"Ah, the mistress Beauty...
we've been expecting you. Although I
must admit we weren't anticipating your arrival for a few more days. You were given a week, were you not?"
the mastiff asked, perhaps not completely convinced.
"Unavoidable circumstances led
me to leave immediately upon hearing of my father's tale." she dodged the
question.
The two canines regarded each other,
certain she was hiding something... but chose to let it go for now. "As you wish, milady. If you will just follow me, I will show you
to the stables. You can house your
horse there. Then, if you wish, I will
lead you to your rooms inside the castle... or wherever else you would care to
be taken. I don't doubt that the master
will want to see you as soon as possible." the wolf offered with a slight
bow of the head.
"Yes, please." Beauty slid
off of Apple, who quickly nudged her in the chest for comfort. After a few strokes on his velvety nose,
Beauty took up his reins and led him past the mastiff, who continued to stand
guard near the gates. She could hardly
believe that she was in the middle of a magic palace, following a talking wolf,
and about to meet a hideous beast. With
any luck, her royal performance would hold out. She glanced behind her, to see the mastiff sitting with an almost
military posture.
"I don't think your partner
likes me very much." she told the wolf.
"Miguel? Don't mind him, milady... he takes his job
far too seriously."
"Miguel? You all have names?" she asked before
thinking.
"Naturally, milady. Pardon my rudeness for not introducing
myself before." he backtracked a few steps until he was standing right
next to her. "I am Sir Christian de la Montclaire... Captain of the Guards. My comrade back there was Sir Miguel del
Renolada, my second-in-command."
"Sir? You're knights?" she repeated. "In that case I apologize for my haughtiness before. I did not know that you were nobility."
"Milady, in my case, I think we
can dispense with the traditional 'peasant groveling'. For the time being, I am an animal... and
last I checked, animals were not able to be titled."
Christian
grinned wryly.
"Well, seeing as how you still
talk and behave like a human, I shall treat you as one, Sir Christian."
Beauty said confidently. If all of the
castle's inhabitants were as amiable as Christian, she could handle its
master. "Did you say that you were
human once, Sir?" she asked, determined to lean more.
"You are a perceptive creature,
aren't you?" he commented.
"Yes... we were all human at one point."
"Why do I get the feeling that
I'm here for the purpose of putting things back in the correct order."
Beauty thought aloud.
"Only time can tell that,
milady." Christian shrugged as much as a wolf can, stopping to sit in
front of a long row of stables, filled with sweet-smelling hay. Apple perked his ears up at the aroma, all
but jerking Beauty's arm out of its socket in his attempt to plow right into a
large bale.
"Here now, you silly thing...
let get my bag off of you first." she scolded the unconcerned stallion.
"He's a fine steed,
milady. You needn't worry about his
upkeep... the stable workers will take care of him." Christian said,
scratching his left ear lightly.
"Dare I ask what kind of
animals they are?" she smiled.
"Squirrels, butterflies,
raccoons, and rabbits for the most part." he supplied, standing once
more. "Come, milady... my master
has surely heard of your arrival by now and will want to see you."
"How could he learn so
fast? Aren't you the only one who's
seen me?" she asked.
"Little birds." he
grinned, pleased with his little word play.
"We have lookouts who are quite speedy with news of visitors. Never stand in the way of a determined
kestrel."
"I'll remember that. You all seem to be of one species... yet my
father described your master as... well... a monster." she whispered,
afraid of anyone but Christian hearing.
"He is not any animal that I've
ever heard of, milady." he admitted.
"More of a... mongrel of all assorted creatures. Not to frighten you any more than I'm sure
you already are, but most of his aspects are those of great predators; bear,
wolf, panther... it's hard to say. But,
I wouldn't be afraid of him, milady... he may look fearsome, but he's quite the
noble soul."
"Right..." Beauty muttered sarcastically to herself, somewhat insulted by the thought of the beast being noble. "I'm all aflutter." Squaring her shoulders, so as to appear brave, she followed Christian with a sure-footed step. There was no way that she was going to let on to this creature how frightened she really was. If he thought that he could threaten her father and all but abduct her, he had another thing coming.