Beauty's Beast- The Light

by Sebrena Merly

  She gaped. "Your mother could see the future?"

  He stared at her for a moment, then pointed a thumb over his shoulder, towards the balcony. "Videns used to be hers. It switched sides, of course-"

  "Are you saying that orbs can decide for themselves?" Bella asked, standing on her toes to peer over his shoulder, staring at the broken doors with wide eyes. "Like people?"

  His fingers pinched at the bridge of his nose. "I keep forgetting that you're new to all of this." Then he looked back over at her. "Orbs tend to attach to whomever they belong to, and they choose the one that they belong to. Videns belonged to my mother, but he seemingly switched to my sister." He stared down at his feet. "It died the day of the war. But then...everything did." Before Bella could ask any more questions, which she tried to do by raising one of her fingers, he turned back around and started walking again. "We should continue."

  The orb—or, rather, Videns—looked exactly the same as when Bella had found it. Only, this time, the smoke jumped around when she came into view, swirling wildly in no particular pattern.

  "It knows you're here," the demon told her, clasping his hands behind his back as he stared intensely at the crystal ball, walking up to the table as he looked it over.

  "How can it know that?" Bella asked.

  "It's already connected to you," he told her. "The moment you touched it, he reawakened. Of course, you didn't complete the process."

  "Because you interrupted," she remembered, earning a scowl.

  "I was taken aback," he said, seeming to roll the words around his mouth before continuing. "Most people listen to my every word without question."

  She smiled cheerily. "I'm not most people."

  "Clearly," he replied flatly. Then he stepped back a few feet. "You can complete the process now, if you would like."

  Shifting, she looked from him to the orb and back. "I don't know..."

  "Wouldn't you like to see your father?" he asked.

  Her breath caught in her throat, and she bit her lip nervously as she studied the orb. "It can do that?"

  "Think of it as a window to the world," he told her. "He can show you the past, present, and future, all judging by your thoughts." He cleared his throat when she took a hesitant step towards the table. "It isn't just your direct thoughts that he considers, but the ones that linger in the back." When she looked at him questioningly, he smiled. "I'm sure you will come to understand."

  When he said nothing more, she continued towards the crystal, digging her fingers into her sweaty palms nervously when the orb slowly started to glow. Then, giving Kataros a hesitant look, which he returned with an encouraging one, she grabbed the orb, picking it up with both hands and holding it close to her.

  Immediately, the glow brightened, as if trying to start from where it had left off before, brightening until Bella felt like she would have to look away. But she kept her eyes on it, squinting them slightly as she peered into it. All she saw was blue light and smoke; nothing more. But the longer she looked, the more it changed.

  Images passed in front of her. Or, rather, she was living those images. It took her a moment, but she soon realized that they were memories—her memories. They started from when she was really little, as far back as it could go, which she found amazed that her mind could even remember. She even saw a flash of a woman's face, and not just any woman. Her mother.

  It was jumbled, her memory as a child, since she could barely comprehend some of the things that happened, so they passed in a blur, showing her scenes that she remembered and relished, and scenes she couldn't even remember but couldn't believe she could forget. Her father as a young man, her mother in her death bed, townspeople when they were younger, Mudo when he was a pony. Even Jared when he was somewhat decent. These memories passed to more memorable ones, ranging from when Bella was about five, to when she was around ten, and flowing faster until the present day.

  Feeling like she was being jolted back, Bella stumbled back a step, Videns still in her grasp, and she gasped at the openness of her mind, the strange feeling that she was holding more in her head than she could handle. It was almost overwhelming.

  "Are you alright?" Kataros asked, striding over to her. Before he could make it within three feet, however, a light flashed from Videns, and he was thrown onto his back.

  "Kataros!" Bella exclaimed as he groaned, rushing over to him. She balanced Videns in one hand as she helped him up with the other. "What was that?"

  "Videns," he explained to her, eyeing it cautiously. "He doesn't like me."

  "What?" She looked down at its seemingly innocent form. "Why?"

  "If I'm correct," he said, "it activated your memories. As it is, all orbs share their owner's memories and thoughts. Clearly, you don't like me all that much."

  She thought about it, then—unable to help herself—she smirked and set Videns on her hip. "No, I really don't suppose I do."

  He nodded grimly. "I thought so." He nodded at the orb. "Would you mind backing off with that thing? It looks like it's going to go for another round."

  Sure enough, the orb was beginning to spark, flashes of light fluttering around its form, so Bella did as suggested, though not without enjoying the idea of it not liking the demon. It wasn't like she hated the creature, but he did get on her nerves. Plus, it felt nice to have something else connecting to what she felt, even if it was a crystal ball.

  She felt like it understood her.

  "Did you see anything?" he asked her. "Other than your memories, of course."

  She thought a moment, then shook her head. "Was I supposed to?"

  He shrugged. "There's no telling when or if you'll see anything at all. It's all a matter of your inner thoughts." He nodded at the orb. "Give it a try."

  Hesitantly, she looked into the ball, squinting at it. After about two minutes of this, she sighed and looked back at the demon, feeling nothing more than ridiculous. "It's not working."

  "Did you really direct a question?" he asked. "Did you truly focus on it—feel it? It doesn't work by briefly touching on the subject, Bella. You've got to really feel the question as if it's something you can hold. Breathe it in."

  "How do you know so much about this sort of stuff," she asked, "if you've never used one of these?"

  He sighed impatiently. "I may not be a Seer, but that doesn't stop me from paying attention to what should be looked after. Learning that which you do not know is highly important, especially in this world. And just because I've never been a Seer does not mean that I've never used an orb before."

  She perked up, curious. "You can become a Seer?"

  "If an orb attaches itself to you, then yes. And you're no longer a Seer once it connects with someone else."

  She frowned. "How does it do that?"

  His shoulders rolled. "Someone new comes by. If an orb feels an even stronger connection with them, then it will switch companions."

  "Is that what happened with your sister?" she asked. "Her connection was stronger than your mother's?"

  He nodded. "Good to know you catch on quickly. And you've obviously got the makings of a Seer, waking up an orb like that." He lowered his head, peeking up at her carefully. "You know, no Seer has ever been human."

  She scowled and looked back down at the orb. "I'm sure it's just-"

  "Coincidence?" he asked, cringing when her scowl deepened. "Bella, these kinds of things just don't happen."

  "Maybe it sensed something from the past," she insisted. When he frowned, she explained, "Like the emotions in the dining room. Maybe some of it is lingering around here, and I just brought it in or something."

  He shook his head. "The past doesn't work like that."

  She huffed. "Let’s just get this over with." When he raised his eyebrows, she placed a hand on her hip. "I'm not a Seer."

  He smiled tightly. "We'll see about that." Then he nodded at the orb. "Give it a try."

  Bella met his daring gaze. Then, unable to shove aside her pride, she held the orb in front of
her face and stared into it. Then she let one word float around her mind, forcing it to be the strongest thought of them all.

  Papa.

  Snow fell before Bella, a blizzard that wildly pulled at everything, tearing at trees until they knelt under the pressure. It seemed that she was at the base of a mountain. She couldn't be too sure, since she had never actually seen a mountain, but it looked like the ground got higher and higher at parts until, in the distance, it passed well enough into the sky that she couldn't see the top. Aside from that, nothing but snow, ice, and trees coated in those elements.

  It was a wonder that anything was alive at all.

  Despite all this, Bella couldn't feel it. It was the strangest sensation; being in the center of a storm, yet not being affected by it. She remained in the Summer warmth, unaffected by any breeze no matter how big or small, though she could hear the storm as if it really was right in front of her.

  She wasn't sure why she was there at first. Her memory was boggled, twisted into something she couldn't make sense of. Then she slowly regained consciousness of who she was and why she was there. Her father, however, was nowhere to be seen. Not at first, anyway.

  Johnathon lay in the snow, just three feet to her right, nearly hidden from sight. He wore nothing but a pair of trousers—shoes and shirt missing. The scratch on his chest was now—somehow—just a scar, risen only slightly. His eyes were open, blank, and staring at the sky above him, which was hard to see past the blizzard.

  Bella let in a sharp breath, rushing to his side. Though she did this, she couldn't feel the ground below her. It was like she had simply glided over, and when she tried to grab her father, she seemed to pass right through him.

  "Papa," she whimpered.

  He moved, startling her, and lifted his head, gazing around-almost as if he had heard her. "Bella," he whispered, staring off into the distance. Then he shuddered violently, turning onto all fours and making strangled noises in the back of his throat. His head slowly lifted, and his eyes met Bella's, staring straight into hers.

  Then his face contorted, he let out a scream, and everything disappeared.

  "Papa!" Bella found herself screaming, struggling in someone's grasp. She stopped, going limp, not quite sure of what had just happened and what she was doing. She couldn't even remember opening her mouth to say anything, let alone moving from her place. But there she was, back on the balcony in the East Wing, back pressed to Kataros's chest, one set of fingers digging into his arm while the other clutched Videns.

  "Bella?" he asked uncertainly. Bella wasn't sure, but she could have sworn he sounded concerned. He turned her over, staring at her intently. When he saw her open, confused eyes, he took a deep breath and straightened her out. "Welcome back."

  "What happened?" she asked, staring at the sky, which was brighter than she last remembered. "How long was I gone?"

  "You weren't gone," he told her. "You were right here the entire time, just looking ahead of time. You had just looked into Videns when you started panicking. I had to hold you in place to keep you from falling over the edge."

  Bella peered over at the railing, which revealed a drop just a few yards higher than the one in her room, and shuddered at the memory of her fall. "Thank you."

  "It's the least I can do," he replied, waving a dismissive hand. "It only lasted five minutes. Normally, the first time ranges from thirty minutes to an hour—sometimes even a day. In this case, I suppose you're lucky. You could've came back and we could be battling the Northern wolves."

  "Wolves," Bella said, eyes widening. She grabbed his arm, which made him jump. "My father! He's turning into one of them!" At least, she assumed he was. She couldn't imagine transforming into anything without it causing severe pain.

  "So, it worked?" he asked. "You saw your father?"

  She nodded. "I don't know where he was—some sort of mountain. It was snowing..." She frowned. "Do you think I saw him in the Winter?" Her eyes widened. "Maybe I'm supposed to stop it—to help him!"

  He shook his head. "Bella, it's nearly impossible to look so far ahead unless you're highly experienced." He frowned thoughtfully. "Maybe he's somewhere North."

  "But that's ridiculous," Bella insisted. "He's at home—in Ash. And you say nearly impossible. Maybe I'm one of the few."

  He raised an eyebrow. "Now you believe you're different?" When she scowled, he threw his hands into the air. "Bella, you're going to have to come to terms that not everything goes according to your petty plans. Besides, he had plenty of time to leave Ash when I sent him there, and what you saw was the near future—which gives him plenty of time to travel that far North. Not only that, but he's not all too human now, which makes him twice as fast." He trailed off, staring thoughtfully past her shoulder. "A mountain, you say?"

  She nodded. "Does it mean anything?"

  "There are mountains everywhere," he told her. "But if it's the mountain I think it is, then maybe. And if it is, it means that he is not in the Light." He frowned. "But what would he be doing all the way out there?"

  "Kataros," Bella said. When he didn't respond, she raised her voice. "Kataros!"

  He jumped slightly, and looked at her. "What? What is it?"

  "You're scaring me," she told him. She huffed when he looked away again. "You have something on your mind—I can tell. What aren't you telling me?"

  "If your father is going where I think he's going," Kataros said, carefully meeting her eyes, "it means he's being called. Something is drawing him there."

  "And what does that mean?" she asked.

  He took a deep breath, and said, "It means he's going to die."

  13

  A fire sparked in the castle, the sort of fire that no one can see but it's clear as day. First starting somewhere in the East Wing, and spreading from there, it caused up a small stir; like a flare of anger thrown in with a side of despair. Again, they heard the girl's cries. Only, this time, she wasn't crying for her father's life. She was bursting with the energy of worried daughter; a daughter who called for blood instead of basking in uselessness. And they knew then that she was unlike any other.

  * * *

  "Bella, panicking won't help anything," the demon said as he scrambled after her, stumbling over the broken furniture in the trashed room.

  She stopped, whirling around, a fierce, wild glow about her face. "This is panicking?" She shook her head. "You haven't seen panicking yet." Then she turned back around and, ignoring the demon's calls, strode out of the room, walking quickly down the East Wing and exiting to the West.

  All the way, Kataros was right beside her, trying to tell her to remain calm and not act too rashly. But she ignored him, continuing on until she reached the main hall and stood at the top of the stairs, staring down at the room.

  It should have been empty to her. She shouldn't have seen anything at all. Or, if she did, she shouldn't have been able to take it so well—the sight too much for just any human. But she wasn't just any human. And the room most certainly wasn't empty.

  "I want you to listen, and listen close," she said to all of them, nearly shouting, looking over the Fae carelessly, her overwhelming human panic masked by her overriding fear of losing her father. "A group of you will go out and find my father. You will leave as soon as possible, and you will not harm him. He'll be somewhere North—where snow and ice cover every inch of life—at the base of a mountain. When you find him, you will bring him here. I don't care how you do it, and I don't care if it's difficult, but it will happen." She went down a few steps, gripping the railing under white knuckles, ignoring the feeling that Kataros was watching her with a baffled expression. "If I so much as see a scratch on him, there will be punishment. And you can be very well assured that it will be done by me."

  A wave of silence swept the room when she was done, everyone staring at her like she was the most alien thing in the world. Some of them, it seemed, looked like they wanted to aid her, though others didn't look as tempted to do so. It was something in her voice, somethi
ng that reminded them very much of their Princess from so long ago.

  Bella wanted to say more. Now that she had said all that she felt she could, her strength was slowly starting to drain, being replaced with the soreness in her back, gaining fear of the sight before her, and weariness of the current events. So she just stood there, expecting to be struck—right there and then—for speaking to them like she was some worthy companion of theirs, someone high in status and reputation.

  Like their Queen.

  "Very well spoken," Kataros murmured, having had come up beside her while she had been distracted, his back turned to everyone else, of whom were all still gaping at her. "For a human, that is."

  She glared at him, not in the mood to argue, and said sourly, "Thanks." Then she waved an arm in their direction. "Can't you just order them? You are the Prince, after all."

  He shook his head sadly. "Bella, I am not the only Prince that commands the Fae. Some of these people are mine, yes, but not all. A few of them never were human, and are only here to be sure that I don't cause disruption." He glared down at the crowd. "Some work for the Queen."

  "Your mother?" she asked.

  He hesitated, then nodded. "Her. But she and I are not the only family that descends from royalty." When Bella frowned, he shook his head. "Let's not get into this. I don't like talking about it."

  "You don't like talking about a lot of things," Bella muttered. She frowned at the room full of Fae. "Why are they just standing there?"

  He blinked. "You actually see them?"

  She stared at him. "They're right there, so of course I do." She made a face. "Can't you just answer my question for once?"

  He turned to the crowd. "Do as she says, but be wary. This man has been infected with the venom of the Northern wolves, and you don't want the same for yourselves."

  "How many do you want out there?" someone asked.

  "A group of ten should do it," he responded. "Travel with a coach pulled by several horses. Dragging him would be more difficult than locking him in one of those. He'll be just beyond the border of the Light." At that, there were raised murmurs and arguments, several of the Fae throwing the demon dirty looks, which scared Bella.