Beauty's Beast- The Light

by Sebrena Merly

  Upset as much as understanding, she bit her lip and said, "I know."

  "Move it," Thais's voice commanded from behind the crowd of faeries. Bella lifted her head to see the woman's arms waving wildly. "Furious faerie, coming though. Don't you give me that look!" When she finally broke into the small circle Kataros and Bella were sitting in, she put her hands on her hips and tapped a foot, aiming a glare at Bella. "Just what in the bloody hell did you think you were doing? You nearly got yourself killed, you know that?"

  "Thais," Kataros said.

  She waved her arms at him. "You realize how much strength it took him to even catch you? You're lucky the bastard even did it!" Now she glared at him. "You could have been killed as well, you know. Then where would we be? Yasandre wouldn't be pleased with you."

  His cheeks flushed when Bella narrowed her eyes and stared at him. "Thais."

  Ignoring him, she looked back at Bella. "Do you really want to leave that badly?"

  "I know I should stay," Bella told her, biting her lip as she cringed. She dropped her head back onto the ground, wishing she didn't feel like she was still falling through the air.

  "Oh, now you're all logical, are you." She threw her arms into the air. "I'll never understand humans—even if I was once one myself. First you ignore all the sense and truth, then after doing something completely and dangerously idiotic you decide you were wrong-"

  "Thais!" Kataros snapped.

  She stopped, huffing and frowning. "Sorry."

  He smiled. "That's quite alright. We're all plenty upset. What I'm wondering is why the Fae I sent didn't make it. They should've been there in a matter of seconds."

  "This is why, Highness," someone said from the back of the crowd, and they all parted to let him through.

  He was tall, almost twice Bella's height, with ears that pointed past the top of his head. Though as tall as he was, he was more muscular than thin. So, as unsettling as he was, he was rather appealing. His eyes were fully blue, a dark sort of color, and his hair was equally so, falling to his shoulders in neat waves.

  The faerie had a hold of another, this one as uncomfortably handsome as he. With brown hair and red eyes, he looked far more malevolent than the rest. His ears were shorter, as was he—probably a few inches taller than Bella—but his figure looked plenty capable of causing harm. His form looked very much like any other mans', but it was obvious that he could do far more damage than they could.

  On the other side of that Fae, another one—this one a woman—had his other arm in her own grip. She looked solemn; dressed in all black. Even her hair, falling straight down her back, was this solid and morbid shade. Her skin took on a grey color, all smoky and nearly transparent. Her eyes stood out the most, a yellow-orange, reminding Bella of the women in the forest.

  "What is this?" Kataros asked, looking at the three of them. His eyes settled on the faerie in the middle, who was giving him a dark look. "Avain..."

  How are there so many I've never seen, was all Bella thought at that moment as she studied the scene before her. Then Desiree caught her eye, the noticeable young woman standing off to the side with her fingers held to her mouth, concentrated on Avain. And, for a moment, Bella wondered what look was in her eyes. Pain? Disappointment? She didn't dwell on it long as soon as a voice spoke up.

  "He attacked us when you sent us to help the girl," the woman that had a hold of Avain explained to the demon, sneering down at the Fae in her grasp. "When I had a hold of him, Torrin continued to try to rescue the girl, but she had already fallen."

  Torrin straightened at his name, looking even taller, and Bella felt dizzy just looking at him. "We do not believe he was working alone, Sire."

  Kataros frowned, throwing a quick look at Bella, then stood up, towering over Avain a moment before he looked up at Torrin. "What makes you say that?"

  "From the looks of it, someone struggled with the rope. There were marks on the railing with the makings of a knife. Someone may have attempted to untie the rope, then finished it off by cutting it."

  Horrified, Bella sat up, regretting it when her bruised back sent pain shooting every which way. "You mean to say that someone is trying to kill me?"

  "So now you're scared," Thais said. "A few clans of wolves don't matter, but-"

  "Thais, enough," Kataros said to her, taking a deep breath. He looked at Avain. "It upsets me that you are one of the traitors."

  His lips twisted to form a gruesome grin, a half-smirk sort of look, one that reminded Bella of a far more demented version of Jared—if that was even possible. Something about him was completely off. "But it doesn't come as a shock, does it?"

  He sighed, shaking his head as he stared down at his feet. Then he met the faerie's snide smile. "Ah, Avain. Many things I thought you capable of, but this..." His head tilted. "Tell me, how long has this been going on?"

  "Long enough," he replied, lips puckering lightly as his shoulders rolled. He grinned. "You think me a fool? I'm not going to tell you things I know I shouldn't."

  "You're not a fool," Kataros told him with a small nod. "But I know you well, Avain—you'll do well to remember. You have always been mischievous, and are keener for violence more than others. You have done well to attach to your Fae ways."

  "We are the Fae now, so why not act like it?" His gaze flickered over to Bella, red looking her up and down, and his mouth twisted into a sneer. "We aren't human."

  "Yes, but we're not monsters either," he replied. "I can't picture you doing this to stop war, nor to help the Northern wolves, so there must be something more behind it." When Avain avoided his gaze, he stepped closer, peering into his face. "There's something more to this, isn't there?"

  Avain slowly looked up, victory shining brightly in his eyes. "More than you will ever know." He looked at Bella, who shifted uncomfortably under his gaze, digging her fingers into the dirt and tangling them into the grass. "This human—this abomination—will die sooner or later." Then he looked at Kataros, lips pulling back to reveal sharp, grinning teeth. "And the world will fall on you."

  The demon stood there for a moment, considering him. Then his fist flew out, striking Avain across the mouth, hard enough for Bella to hear a loud crack. He stepped back, examining the faerie's bloodied, smirking face with disinterest before gritting his teeth and turning away. "Take him to the dungeon. Lock him in one of the cells."

  Cackling, Avain turned his head over his shoulder as the two Fae dragged him away, shouting, "This is just the start! You're so blind to it all—you don't even know what you've gotten yourself into! It's so much bigger than some simple war!" His voice faded, cackling following soon after.

  "What is he talking about?" Bella asked Kataros, one of her own knots growing in the pit of her stomach. She watched Avain's shouting and struggling form as he disappeared inside, then looked back at the demon.

  He shook his head. "I don't know."

  "I always knew we shouldn't trust some of our companions," Thais said, shaking her head in disgust. "But Avain?" She looked at Kataros, worry and pain in her eyes. "It makes you wonder who we can really trust."

  "I never really did like him," Eriq said, and Bella turned to see him standing behind her. He bent down and wrapped his arms around her, helping her to her feet, and smiled at her complaints. "Makes you think twice about climbing down a balcony, doesn't it?"

  She threw a thumb in Kataros's direction. "He locked me in my room."

  "Don't you pin this on me," he told her, brows raised. "Any idiot would have known better than to think they could climb down a balcony without any problems." Before she could complain about his calling her an idiot, he stared up the length of the wall. "You would have better luck trying to fly."

  Bella thought about that for a moment, frowning; then she looked up at him. "My screams were loud, weren't they? And my shouts as well?"

  Much to her annoyance, he looked amused. "Very."

  She peered up at her balcony, which looked even further away from the bottom than it did
at the top. "Why didn't Janine try to help me?"

  Kataros opened his mouth, looking uncertain, then looked at Thais, who watched the both of them with narrowed eyes. Then, without another word, they both started for the castle, Eriq stumbling after them, and the rest of the faeries started disappearing one by one. Bella was the last to stand there, staring up at the balcony with a deep frown, unsure of her own ideas. Then she ran after everyone.

  They were all already out of sight, and Bella was sure that they were already at her room. By the time she made it, she noticed Kataros, Eriq, and Thais standing in front of her wardrobe with a few others. The closets doors were hanging wide open, and Janine was nowhere in sight.

  Bella's face fell, and she felt her hope drain away. "Please tell me it wasn't her."

  "Of course it wasn't," a highly agitated voice said, echoing through the room. "I'm glad to know you think so highly of me."

  Bella sucked in a breath of relief, fighting the sudden urge to grin.

  "Someone opened the doors to keep her in," Eriq explained to Bella. He ran a nervous hand through his green hair. "They really thought all this through."

  "I don't think they expected the situation," Thais told Kataros, as if she had already suggested it and was trying to insist upon it. When he shook his head, looking her way, she sighed. "They brought a knife, Kataros. If we didn't even think she would pull the stunt she did, then what makes you think they would? They were more than likely expecting to find her in here."

  "I know it's smart to consider," he told her. "I just don't like it."

  "Either way, they wanted her dead, so what difference does it make?"

  Kataros stared at her for a moment, then looked away, his shoulders rolling.

  "Did you happen to catch a glimpse of them?" Thais asked Janine.

  A sigh carried around. "No, I was busy. I wanted to be sure that Bella had enough rope before climbing down. I thought she may even avoid climbing down until she had enough of it."

  "You were going to help me escape?" she asked curiously, touched.

  "Yes, you stubborn little child. I may have been against it, but I left to go get more. I figured you would attempt it, but I thought you would at least wait a little longer for me to return."

  She looked at the other faeries, then gazed around the room. "Return from where, exactly?"

  "Never mind that," she replied. "Can someone let me out of here, please?"

  "How do we know she wasn't a companion of the traitor?" one of the others asked.

  "I beg your pardon?" came the reply.

  Kataros looked at the faerie. "Though it's a fair question, Janine is one of my most trusted allies. She is one of the closest, if anything."

  "And so was Avain," another one pointed out.

  He looked them over, raising his brows. "Janine is completely different than Avain. We may all be Fae, but we obviously all have our different personalities, and Janine's stands out just as much as Avain's." He turned to the wardrobe and closed the doors, stepping back to make room for Janine to exit them.

  "Thank you," she told the demon, bowing her head, and he returned the gesture. She frowned at the other Fae. "Do not judge those you do not know." When they only returned the look, she grunted and looked at Bella, placing her hands on her hips. "I trust you had an exhilarating day today?"

  Bella thought about that for a moment, then scowled. "Very funny."

  "Not really," she replied, stepping up and examining her. "If I didn't know any better, I would say you were an absolute lunatic—but, please, stop me before I start stating the obvious." She frowned, looking her over. "Now your dress is ruined."

  "I'm fine, thank you," Bella said wearily.

  She smiled cheerfully. "Well I'm certainly not the one who nearly killed herself."

  Throwing her arms in the air, Bella sighed. "Yes, I'm an idiot. Can we change the subject now?"

  "It's not a matter of whether or not you're an idiot," she said. "It's a matter of whether or not you make good decisions. And, if I'm correct, you made a very bad one." She looked at Thais. "I'm guessing you don't know who did it, since you were so keen on my seeing them."

  She shook her head. "No, but Avain helped them by distracting a couple guards."

  Smiling grimly, she looked at her feet. "Yes, I caught that. It's just a little hard to believe..."

  "Well, believe it," Eriq told her cheerily. Then he looked at Kataros, frowning worriedly. "His little...friend won't be the only one."

  He nodded. "I know."

  "So who, exactly, was Avain?" Bella asked them.

  "One of my most trusted allies," he told her. "Obviously a mistake. I always suspected that he wasn't the best to rely on, but I wasn't expecting this."

  "Expect the unexpected," Thais murmured. "Always expect the unexpected."

  "Avain may have betrayed us," he continued, "but it won't simply be to help the Northern wolves—or to avoid a war." He narrowed his eyes. "There's got to be another reason he would do this."

  "Kataros, we understand that this is hard," Thais said, grabbing his shoulder gently.

  "No," he said, shrugging her off. "It's not just that; it's what he said. There's more to this. We just can't see it." He looked at Bella. "I'm guessing it has something to do with her."

  "Me?" She shook her head, sighing in frustration and crossing her arms over her chest. "Kataros, I'll believe that I'm slightly different than most women. But this? What would I have to do with anything?" She shook her head again. "Maybe he's just trying to make you paranoid, and he's just working for the wolves—or trying to keep us from starting that war." Even if there was obviously something disturbingly wrong with him.

  He smiled sadly, walking up to her and grabbing her shoulders. "He was telling the truth."

  She glared at him. "I won't believe it."

  The demon pursed his lips, this time smiling openly. "You're very stubborn, Bella. That's not always a good thing."

  "Apparently I'm only capable of bad things then," she replied, drawing back and turning away, looking at the door and wishing she could run out of them, without being stopped, and run all the way home without any problems. But she knew she couldn't. "It's certainly better to believe that than the alternative."

  Kataros's strange hands closed over her shoulders, and he spun her to face him. "You're different, Bella. Sooner or later you're going to have to accept it. I felt it the moment I came across you, and I feel it right now. I know you do too—now more than ever. Why can't you just accept it?"

  She bit her lip, tears welling up in her eyes, and peered up into his face. "I just want my life to go back to the way it was." I just miss Papa.

  "I know," he said, and—at that moment—Bella knew that he really did. He sighed, then looked at the floor, turning his head slightly. "Thais, be sure that no one enters the East Wing."

  "We never do, Sir," Eriq reminded him.

  "I know," he said with a sigh. "But I want to be sure that they don't—no matter what they hear. I don't want anyone to be startled and come running to aid."

  "What would we hear?" one of the others asked.

  "Maybe something, maybe nothing." He looked back at Bella, letting go of her shoulders and stepping back. "I'm taking you to see Videns."

  12

  There had been some confusion. Everyone wanted to know when—and how—Videns had come back to life. Kataros made sure to avoid bringing Bella up, simply saying that it worked and there was nothing more to it. Naturally, Bella was given some suspicious looks, but they didn't press into the matter. Then Kataros and Bella had left, both entering the East Wing alone. It felt as unsettling as the first time. There was still a story to tell, and everything was still a huge mess. Of course, they didn't stop by all the rooms, but continued quietly all the way to the room at the end of the hall.

  Strangely enough, the place never lost its tormented touch.

  "What happened here, if I might ask?" Bella asked finally, unable to stand the eerie silence and wan
ting to know—more than anything, at that moment. It seemed that not knowing would drive one mad, making them think up infinite possibilities, though Bella felt content with waiting for her answer, which came sooner than expected—though she hadn't actually expected an answer at all.

  "A war," the demon replied, gazing around the room. "It mostly lingered in this Wing, as it's clear to see. The occupants won, but just barely. Some of the damage is just from me."

  Bella nodded thoughtfully as they picked their way around the room, then pointed at the painting of the boy and the girl she had so thoroughly admired the first time she had set foot in the room. "Were they the occupants?"

  He stopped, then looked to where she was pointing. After a moment of silence, he turned and started on his way again. "Yes. Yes, they were."

  "Who are they?" Bella asked.

  "The Prince and Princess," he replied. "If that wasn't already obvious." His tone had a bite to it, something harsh and rude, though sorrow was etched in behind it. Bella couldn't tell if it was regret or something else.

  "I'm sorry," she said.

  "For what?" he asked wearily.

  "This is clearly a very touchy subject for you," she told him, frowning. "You faerie's take apologies very seriously, don't you?"

  "We just realize how pointless they sometimes are," he replied, glancing at her over his shoulder. "Just as we do gratitude. Some find it insulting, but those of us that remember being human don't think much of it..."

  "I've been meaning to ask about that," Bella said, tilting her head as she watched him. "How, exactly, did you become this way?" When he stopped and looked at her, she blushed and ducked her head. "I mean, I know a witch cursed you. But..."

  "My mother," he said, startling her into looking up at him.

  Startled, she held a hand to her chest. Then she lowered her hand and collected herself. "I beg your pardon?"

  "My mother," he repeated. "She was the witch that cursed me."

  She stared at him for a moment, baffled, then said, "Why would she do that?"

  "She hates me." He shrugged. "She's a witch. She doesn't need a reason. Though, she probably saw something in the future she didn't like."