Caged In
By: Alyssa Labrador Sykes & Danae Reid
Prologue
Once upon a time, in a far away land, lived a beautiful girl named Rose. She had long silky red hair with big green eyes, the colour of a leaf. Her pale skin complimented her natural beauty. She fell in love with a handsome, rich prince named Lucas. She loved him not for his character, but for his title and wealth. The prince was well aware of that fact, so when she asked for his hand in marriage, he refused her. Enraged, Rose went to her mother, the Enchantress Celeste, and demanded her to punish him. The Enchantress loved her daughter greatly, so she cursed the prince to become a beast. She uttered the curse of counting crows, and it was so.
Chapter One
After he transformed, the Enchantress gave him a rose. She said that he must either fall in love or agree to marry her daughter for the curse to break. But, he must do it before the last petal falls. The Enchantress disappeared in a puff of silver glitter. The Beast was furious. He destroyed his chambers, and howled in frustration. His servants heard him and hobbled to the west wing to find him. They had turned into animate objects as part of the curse.
The Beast rampaged around the castle shouting profanities.
“How dare that spoiled brat demand her mother curse me! She’s such a little…”
“Now now dearie,” soothed Mrs. Potts, “How do we even know her daughter is behind this?”
“Oh I know, Mrs. Potts, she wanted my hand in marriage but I refused her because she is utterly insufferable and loves me not for me, but for my title”, grumbled the Beast.
But in fact, Mrs. Potts did know. She simply chose not to make assumptions and upset the Enchantress more, since no one knew if she was listening.
Every week following, the Enchantress paid them a visit. And every week, she asked the same thing.
“Have you decided to marry my daughter yet?”
And every week the Beast replied “I will not”.
Chapter Two
Nearby, there was a small village. In that village, lived a simple town girl, named Belle. She lived with her father, since her mother died when Belle was very young. She was in the midst of doing her daily chores; getting groceries, tending to Ms. Heaths garden, and going into the woods to pick raspberries for her father. They were his favourite.
On that fateful day, she took a particularly long walk, as she was picking the best and juiciest berries for her father. Suddenly, something caught her eye. It was a majestic palace. Belle stood in awe of the looming towers and flawless turrets. She couldn’t help but notice that the portcullis was open. Now, Belle was a very curious creature, so she couldn’t help but venture into the splendid courtyard of the castle.
All the frosted trees were sparkling in the sunlight. The flowers looked as though they were fabricated from glass. Snow was like a fluffy white blanket on the courtyard
“My my, what a strange phenomenon! Snow in June!” Belle thought aloud, admiring the light dancing off the snow.
Chapter Three
Inside the castle, the Beast moped about the West Wing. He peered out his foggy window, in hopes of seeing movement. The Beast could not begin to fathom the sight he saw. He saw a beautiful girl, wandering around his abandoned courtyard. The mighty creature was stunned by her beauty and manner, but he was also afraid. Very afraid. He quickly sent for his most trusted servant, Lumière. He requested that he find out what that girl was doing so far into the woods.
Lumière hopped away to seek out the girl. When he got outside, he made his way to the closest pedestal to her. He gave her a big fright when he said hello. She was so startled, she dropped her basket full of raspberries onto the frozen cobblestone. Speechless, Belle stared at Lumière. Who knew candles could talk?
“ You can talk?” whispered Belle, frightened.
“What? You've never heard a candelabra talk before??” Lumiere jokingly remarked.
“I can honestly say that I've ever had an encounter like this before.” Belle admitted
“Say, why are you so far out in the woods? We usually don't get many visitors, actually, we don’t get any at all!”
“Who's we?” Belle inquired with great curiosity.
“Oh um…” stammered Lumière. His waxed face was slowly started to melt, as he was heating up, realizing his mistake.
“Well?” Belle asked impatiently.
Lumière soon learned to never keep a lady waiting, for Belle strolled past him and headed toward the castle doors, to find out herself.
“Wait!” shouted Lumière unexpectedly, “Let me show you around.” Lumière slowly led Belle away from the castle doors. Lumière took Belle on a tour of the vast courtyard. They walked in silence for a few minutes, while Belle examined the well-tended courtyard. Belle was quite impressed by the dancing flowers in the whistling wind, and the crawling vines that made their way up the side of the tall palace sides. Belle sat on one of the frozen benches and lifted Lumière up onto it as well.
“So,” Lumière blurted, breaking the silence, “What's your name?”
“Belle. My father is an inventor, we live in the village nearby. It's called Villeneuve. It’s quite small, actually, but i don’t mind it.”
“So if you're from a town, what are you doing so far out in the woods?”
“I was picking raspberries for my father, they are his favorite, but then I caught a glimpse of the castle, and I couldn’t resist. That’s how I ended up here.”
“Ahh I see. Well you might as well stay the night. It's already dark, and it will take you awhile to get back to Villeneuve.”
“Well, it is late, and I don’t think I could find my way back, I suppose I could stay… But what is your name?”
“They call me, Lumière. I'm the Prince’s master of chambers, and I am at your service Mademoiselle.” Suddenly, a very loud, roar came from the west wing.
“Oh dear, I wonder what it is now.” Lumière held his head low and sighed for the great embarrassment the beast had caused him.
“What was that?!” asked Belle in fright. Trembling, she jumped off the bench and started backing away slowly.
“Wait! Don't leave, nothing is the matter.”
Belle finally agreed to stay the night, and with that she cautiously followed Lumière into the castle. He put her in one of their finest rooms. Inside the walls were painted a sleek gold colour, to match the gold and white curtains, that covered the frosted window. There was an oak dresser and a tall, light brown mirror. In one of the corners, there was a huge closet, that had nothing but a layer of dust. The floor was covered with carpet, and there was a large bed situated in the center. Belle sat down onto the neatly made bed, staring at the wondrous luxuries.
Meanwhile, Lumière went to inform the Beast about the girl.
“Please Master, there is no need for this foolish behaviour of yours! She is simply staying the night so she doesn’t get lost going home! Her name is Belle, and she is quite lovely and..”
The Beast paid no attention to Lumiere. He stormed out of the room and barged into Belle’s. Belle shrieked and backed into a corner.
“How did you find this place?” When she didn’t respond, the Beast marched up to her, flung her over his shoulder, and marched off.
The Beast threw her into the dungeon and locked her up. Belle sobbed. She couldn’t stop herself, she just cried silently in her cell, until sleep over took her.
Chapter Four
The next day, Belle woke up back in the golden room. Her brown locks were in a neat plait. Her face had been washed and she was wearing a nightgown. A silky, long nightgown. She was so confused of the happenings. First, a talking candle, then
a beast, and then she woke up in a different room than the one she fell asleep in.
Suddenly, a crisp, loud knock broke her thoughts. She opened the mahogany door to reveal a tea cart with a teapot and a teacup. The cart rolled itself in and came to a halt in front of the dresser.
“Good morning dearie! How did you sleep?” the teapot asked.
“Um very well thank you, but how did I end up back here?”
“Oh! Silly me, after you fell asleep, we all carried you back here. Madame Garde de Robe dressed you in that nightgown, and Chip and I plaited your hair! I hope you don’t mind” the teapot explained while pouring tea into the teacup.
“Oh no I don’t mind, uh… what am I to call you” Belle requested, picking up the teacup. She noticed there was a slight chip in it.
“Golly me! How could I be so rude! Pardon me, my name is Mrs. Potts, and that his my son Chip”
“Hello!” Chip exclaimed.
Belle pulled the cup away from her lips to examine it. Sure enough, there was a little face on it. Mrs. Potts showed Belle that a gown was draped on the bed. It was a gorgeous red, with white fur trim around the wrists. It had a large hood also with a white fur trim. Belle rushed behind a changing screen to put it on. It was a perfect fit! When Belle walked out, Chip pushed a pair of white boots towards her. She pulled them on and followed the tea cart out the door.
They lead her to an immaculate dining hall, buffed and polished like new. She saw two table settings, one for her and one for the Beast. Belle took a seat in one of the throne like dining chairs. Shortly after, the Beast stalked into the room and forcefully sat in the other chair. Belle didn’t have enough time to wish him good morrow, when the serving doors burst open and all the plates and silverware danced into the dining hall. Soon, all the servants were singing them a song while serving their food. Lumière tried to juggle thimbles, but one of them fell on his head and extinguished his flame. Belle was shocked when the Beast started laughing.
When the performance was over, Belle started to make conversation with the Beast.
“Hello, I’m Belle what is your name?”
“I’m the Beast” he replied gruffly.
“Well surely that isn’t your real name! After all, you couldn’t have been a beast from the start”
The beast was very surprised by her actions. She was so kind and polite. He decided he would try to get to know her.
“My name is Lucas. Belle is a very interesting name, I’ve never heard it before. It’s quite lovely”
Belle blushed. This was certainly not the same creature who threw her in the dungeon.
“Thank you, that is very kind. Your palace is very marvellous, and so big! I would get lost if it wasn’t for Mrs. Potts and Lumiere”
“Thank you. What do you like doing in your spare time?”
“Oh! Um, I love to read” Belle replied sheepishly. In her village, everyone found her so odd because of her love for books.
“Really? I haven’t read in so very long! Why, I do believe my library is fully stocked, would you like to come see?”
“Oh yes please! Our quaint village library has quite a limited supply” Belle stood up and started picking up her plates. She then carried them to the kitchen and left them in the sink. Belle followed the Beast down the corridors into a massive library. Belle froze, completely awestruck. She had never seen so many books in her life!
“Do you, do you like it?” the Beast stammered.
“Like it? I love it! It is solely the most amazing thing I have ever seen!”
“Well if you like it that much, it’s yours. If you are willing to stay, of course” the Beast cautiously asked.
“Oh yes please!”
“But there is something you must know, every week, an Enchantress comes. Her name is Celeste and you must hide when she comes. She is the reason of my curse. Her and her daughter. She is due to arrive this afternoon, so you must be prepared and stay out of sight”
“Okay”
Chapter Five
Afternoon came too fast. The whole morning, Belle read stories to the Beast, about damsels in distress, and knights and ogres. But soon enough, the time had come for Belle to hide. The staff made a secret room in the library for Belle to hide in. At precisely noon, Belle entered the secret room with a few books and her lunch.
A few minutes later, a puff of silver glitter appeared, and the Enchantress materialised in the throne room. She and the Beast had their usual conversation, and then she disappeared in another puff of silver glitter.
They went through the same routine every week for six months. It has worked so far. And through every passing week, Belle and the Beast became closer and closer. By the sixth month, they were almost in love. Almost.
Their plan would’ve kept working, if the Enchantress hadn’t broken her routine and come a day early.
The Beast and Belle decided to have a miniature ball for just the two of them. The staff planned it all, and made Belle a gorgeous yellow ball gown. They pinned up half her hair into a bun with a gold leaf ringlet around. The Beast was completely awestruck when she entered the ballroom. They danced and danced, until all the candles blew out and their warm glow was replaced by a cold blue light. The Enchantress appeared. She was livid.
“How dare you!” she shrieked as she swooped down and lifted Belle up and carried her away. Belle tried to get free from the Enchantress’ tight grip, but it was no use. Celeste carried her away from the palace to the other side of the woods. Belle peered down and noticed her yellow ball gown that the staff worked so hard to make, had ripped. She felt just awful. But she also noticed a long row of freshly grown raspberries. It was summer time, since she was no longer in the atmosphere of the kingdom. Staring at the raspberries down below, a sudden thought came upon her.
“My poor father must be worried to death of my absence of return. And what will happen to Prince Lucas? What have I done?! I must get back to him in time to save him.” After a while, Celeste dropped Belle onto the hard ground with a big ‘thud’.
“No one gets in the way of my daughter's happiness. NO ONE!” yelled Celeste in a rage of anger. And with that she disappeared in a puff of silver glitter, once again. Meanwhile, the Beast was howling in tears, for he realized what it felt like to lose someone important to you.
“It's okay. We'll get her back. Ok? soothed Mrs. Potts.
“No! That evil monster has taken everything from me. My charm, body, character,.....Belle.” the Beast hung his head in defeat.
“ You really did love her, didn't you?”
“Yes I….” He was cut off by a puff of silver glitter.
“Celeste, YOU! You've taken everything from me, what else could you possibly want?
“ I want you to marry my daughter. That's what I want!”
“How many times do I have to tell you this, I WON'T MARRY YOUR DAUGHTER!” By this time the Beast was so upset, he started throwing things all around the palace. Lumière and Mrs. Potts had tried to calm him down, but it was no use.
“My, my, you put on quite a show. It would be terrible if,.... Oh I don’t know… You turned into a real beast. Or if something happened to that wasteful town girl” stated Celeste with a smirk on her face.
“ You wouldn't. That wasn't part of the deal. You better not hurt Belle!”
“Oh, that won't be a problem. It'll happen all on its own.” And with that she disappeared once again in a puff of silver glitter.
“What did she mean by that?” questioned Lumière.
“I don't know, nor do I care. I can't believe I got myself into this mess.”
“I'm sorry to interrupt, your majesty, but you may want to come see this” informed Mrs. Potts. She led the Beast and Lumière to the glass room which held that rose, that would affect the Beast’s life forever. The Beast opened the doors, and slowly walked toward the flower.
“What?! There's only one petal left! But this doesn't make any sense. I should have 2 left. The petals only fall when the Enchantress comes
for her weekly visits.”
“My guess is she took another off when she came back from carrying Belle away.” replied Lumière
“She's not playing fair!”
“This is Celeste we are talking about. What did you expect?” Mrs. Potts commented.
Chapter Six
Back in the forest, Belle was having her own temper tantrum.
“Uuuggghhh!! I hate that woman! That, that witch!” Belle screamed into the trees, “I love him! More than her daughter is capable of”
She realised that if she just stood around screaming, it would do no harm but give her a sore throat. She ripped off her long ball gown, so she was only wearing a white silk petticoat. She took off, running through the forest. She soon happened upon a farmhouse with horses. She begged the farmer to borrow one. He immediately agreed. So, Belle hopped on a horse and raced to the castle, hoping to make it.
The horse galloped through the trees, rarely stumbling or tiring. Belle prayed and prayed that the Beast was okay and that she would be on time. The wind whooshed through her hair, feeling colder by the minute. She was close. The horse stumble on a tree root, flinging Belle straight off and into a ditch. She clambered out, mud on her face and dress, twigs in her tangled hair.
She didn’t care, all she wanted was to get to the Beast. Suddenly, a dainty snowflake landed on her nose. Belle looked up, and saw the castle. She ran, faster than ever before, running under the portcullis, through the courtyard, and into the ballroom. There she saw, the Beast.
Chapter Seven
Meanwhile, the Beast was staring dolefully out the window, watching the snowflakes fall. Suddenly, the mundane sound of the twinkle of sparkles broke the silence.
“What now Celeste? You have taken everything from me, what else can you possibly do?”
“Oh mon chère, there is a many things I can do”
“Look Celeste, I really didn’t mean any disrespect when I turned your daughter down, I just wanted to marry for love, and in all honesty, your daughter is a brat”
Caged In- Beauty and The Beast Page 1
