Beasts and Maidens

by M.E. Timmons

  Chapter 9

  When they headed to the dance floor, Selene realized that she had forgotten about Amber and Lloyd. She looked around for them, and was happy to see that Lloyd was dancing with his wife and Amber was off to the side talking to someone. Selene was relieved that nothing had happened, and she was a little startled by the realization that she had expected something to.

  “Is something wrong?” Jenson asked, noticing that she was distracted.

  “Not anymore,” Selene said, smiling.

  There was still a fast song playing, so Selene showed Jenson a few of the steps to the dance, and he caught on quickly. He moved fast, and he danced like he had done it before. By the time the song ended he was breathless and grinning.

  “Can we do that again?” he asked.

  Selene laughed. She was glad that he liked dancing, since she did too. “I’m afraid not. They’re starting a new song, and it isn’t nearly as fast.”

  Jenson looked around and saw that the other couples on the floor were moving closer together and swaying gently to the music. “Would it be entirely inappropriate if we did that too?” he asked.

  “I think it would be,” Selene said. “The others who are dancing are married couples, and we aren’t even supposed to know each other. We should sit this one out.”

  They went over to an empty table and sat down. A lot of people were looking at them, including Dahlia, who was dancing with her father. Selene saw Amber looking over at them as well, and then Amber got up and joined them at their table, smiling at Jenson, though she turned to Selene.

  “Are you going to introduce me to your friend?” Amber asked her. She sounded like she was offended that she hadn’t done so already.

  “Oh, um, this is Robert,” Selene said. “Robert, this is my friend Amber.”

  “Are you really a widower?” Amber asked, not bothering with any small talk. She was looking at Jenson with far more interest than Selene liked, and Selene was shocked by her lack of tact. Being a widower would mean that he had lost his wife, but Amber wasn’t thinking about that at all. She was only thinking about what it could mean for her.

  Even Jenson looked a little surprised by how forward Amber was being. He looked briefly at Selene for guidance, and she just nodded, frowning. “Yeah, I am,” Jenson said.

  “Have you given any thought to remarrying?” Amber asked, leaning in closer.

  Jenson’s sky blue eyes went wide and he sat back in his chair. “Um, I only lost my wife a year ago, and I loved her very much, so no. I’m not ready to move on.”

  Amber looked disappointed. “Well, if you ever-”

  “Want to dance, Amber?” Selene interrupted. She knew that Amber was very beautiful, so she was really starting to get annoyed that she was showing interest in Jenson. She didn’t even know him well enough to trust him around strange girls, and Amber always seemed to be on the lookout for men lately, eligible or not.

  “Not at the moment. I’m kind of tired. Why don’t you go ask Dahlia or Henry? They’re sitting down.”

  Even Jenson knew what she was trying to do, so he intervened. “I wouldn’t mind dancing again, if you’re looking for a partner,” he said, smiling at Selene.

  “That would be lovely,” Selene said.

  They got up and left Amber there, looking angry that she didn’t get the time alone with Jenson that she wanted. Selene was starting to wonder why she was even friends with Amber. She had changed a lot in the last few years, and she was becoming far more self-centered and vain. She wasn’t nearly as sweet as she used to be, when she and Selene were better friends. Selene thought that maybe her aunt had something to do with it. She was probably spoiling her and giving her a superiority complex.

  “Is she always like that?” Jenson asked while they were dancing.

  “Nowadays, I suppose she is.”

  “I hope most women aren’t like that. I’ll admit that she made me feel pretty uncomfortable. I’m not used to being around women at all.”

  Selene grinned. “No, most women aren’t like that, but you probably should have said you were still married. Now they all think you’re an eligible bachelor. I suppose if I’m not careful one of them will steal you from me.”

  Jenson laughed. “You know that’s not going to happen. For one thing, you are the most beautiful woman here by far, and secondly, you know what would happen if I went after someone else. I didn’t completely hate being a beast and things haven’t changed a whole lot since I’ve been normal, but I’m not eager to look like that again.”

  “I am not,” Selene said, referring to what he had said about her being beautiful. She was blushing, even though she didn’t believe him. “Amber is far prettier than I am, and so is Dahlia. You must be blind, or else you’re just trying to get on my good side.”

  “I wasn’t aware that you had a bad side,” Jenson joked. “Besides, I was telling the truth. You’re prettier than all of them. If you can’t see that, than you must be the one who’s blind.” He started leaning in, and Selene was thankful that she had the good sense to push him away discreetly, even though she didn’t want to. He seemed to realize that he shouldn’t kiss her there, and he leaned back again and put a little more space in between them. “I hope the plan you and Tornado made works. Then maybe we can be together like we’re supposed to, and hopefully even get married. I hate having to sneak around.”

  Selene sighed. “So do I. Sometimes I almost think it would be easier if we just told everyone the truth, but then the watchers would probably arrest me for being in the forest.”

  Jenson frowned. “We can’t let that happen. The penalty for being in the forest is getting sent to work in the mines for two years, isn’t it?”

  “Yes, and I’ve heard it’s a horrible place to be. Most people don’t even survive, which is why only prisoners ever end up working there. It doesn’t make any sense to have such a severe punishment for something that shouldn’t even be a crime. Everyone knows that the beasts are safe. The only thing wrong with them is what they look like, and I don’t understand why that should matter so much.”

  Jenson gave Selene a look of admiration. “I wish everyone could be like you,” he said. “Not only do you care about the beasts, but you’re also doing something about it. I doubt that anyone else is.”

  “Of course not. Everyone is raised to hate the beasts because of what they look like. That isn’t the real reason why they’re stuck in the forest anyway. It started out that way, back when people thought they were dangerous as well, but it’s been hundreds of years since people really believed that. There’s a different reason why things have stayed the way they are.”

  “What reason might that be?” Jenson asked, interested. He really didn’t know. He thought the beasts were just kept in the forest because of the way they looked, and he had never really understood that either.

  “When the beasts were exiled and put in the forests, it was the women who were left who took charge,” Selene explained, leading Jenson back to an empty table since the song was finished. “Some were happy about the change. They hadn’t liked the way things were before because they had no power. After the curse started they realized that they had a way to control the male population and hold more power themselves. Such women are still in charge today. Mayor Thornwood is a perfect example. She’s definitely going to be an obstacle.”

  Jenson sighed. “I didn’t know that things were so complicated. Does everyone now about that?”

  “No, but some do, though they don’t talk about it. I’ve just talked about it a lot with Tornado.”

  Jenson nodded, thinking. It was almost a minute before he spoke. “Were things so bad before?” he asked. “I’ve read a lot over the years, but I haven’t found much information about what the kingdom was like before the curse. Were things better or worse than they are now?”

  “That’s a good question,” Selene said. “According to what I’ve he
ard things were far worse before the curse, but I don’t know if that’s true or not. That could just be information spread by the people who want things to stay the way they are. There are plenty of tales about men being greedy and violent and free of moral values. Judging by the men and beasts I’ve met, I’d say they stories greatly exaggerated.”

  “But what if it’s true? Wouldn’t it be better to keep the men in the forest?”

  Selene was surprised. “How can you even ask that, after being stuck in there your whole life? It just isn’t fair. Anyway, I don’t think things would be any worse than they are now. We’ve got plenty of problems because of the shortage of men, like a shrinking population and a lack of strong workers. Besides, the only men I know who I don’t like are the Greenwoods.”

  “I’m glad you think the best of us,” Jenson said, smiling.

  Selene laughed, and then she looked around. People were still watching them closely, though no one else was approaching them. “I’m going to go dance with someone else,” she said. “If I spend all night with you people are really going to talk.”

  Jenson understood, and he nodded. Selene got up and danced with her new brother-in-law, and he stayed where he was, hoping that no one would bother him. Luckily, no one did, though Amber kept her eye on him.

  While Selene was dancing with Henry he asked her about Jenson (or Robert, as he referred to him). He wanted to know why Selene had been spending so much time with him, though he didn’t ask that outright. He just asked what “Robert” was like, and what Selene thought about him. Her answer was vague and unsatisfying, but he didn’t press her.

  Jenson left shortly after. He just waved goodbye to Selene since she was talking to Dahlia, and then he slunk off, heading to a spot where no one would see him entering the forest. Selene hated seeing him go, and she felt a strong urge to go with him, but it was getting late. She hoped she’d be able to go to the forest in the morning, but she still had a lot to do to help her mother make potions.

  When the wedding party did finally end, the whole family, plus its new member, went back home together. Frieda and Velkan were exhausted, and they both went to bed right away. Despite being up most of the night before, Dahlia still seemed to have some energy left, and she was smiling and laughing happily with Henry. They headed upstairs as well to go to bed, though Selene doubted they would be sleeping any time soon. She followed them upstairs only to grab her nightgown and a change of clothes for the morning from her dresser, and then she went down to the couch, which would be where she’d be sleeping until they had more space.

  She put on her nightgown and laid out some blankets and a pillow. When she was snuggled up under the blankets, she really hoped it wouldn’t be long before they made the addition to the house, since the old couch was hard and lumpy. She twisted around to try to find a comfortable position, but eventually she gave up and just lay on her back, staring up at the wooden boards and beams of the ceiling above. She was tired, but she still felt too awake to fall asleep.

  She thought about Jenson. She could hardly believe he had actually been at the wedding; it all felt like a dream already. It hadn’t been hard to convince people he was someone else. Sure, they were still suspicious of him, but no one had accused him of anything. Selene started thinking of other possibilities, and she fell asleep soon after as exhaustion overtook her.