Caged In- Beauty and The Beast
Page 2
“How dare you! My angel has done nothing to you! She offered her heart to you, and you refused her!”
“Celeste, she never loved me, she just loved my title and riches”
“No! I don’t believe you”
“I understand that you love your daughter, but it has also blinded you”
“Are you telling me, that my daughter is evil?”
“No of course not! I don’t think one can be evil, simply that she needs to learn how to love. I have, and I don’t think that would’ve happened without the curse. So thank you Celeste”
“You’re, you’re thanking me for making your life miserable?” Celeste said in disbelief, “But I’ve been horrible to you!”
“Yes, but I never would’ve met Belle if it wasn’t for you. What you did is inexcusable, but I am still grateful”
“I understand. You have shown me a great deal of things that I could’ve done better when raising my Rose” Celeste sighed, “I shall change you back into a prince”
But no sooner had she said that, than the last petal fell. The whole castle shook as the curse took place. The Beast growled, backing away and clawing at his face. Just at that moment, Belle ran in.
“RROOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRR”
Celeste slowly started to back away, but then remembered her promise. If he falls in love, the curse shall be broken. And so it was. She waved her icy wand, and uttered a magic spell.
“Quod statim factum sit adhuc! Quod statim factum sit adhuc!”
A cloud of smoke enveloped the room. When the smoke cleared, the Beast was gone and a man was lying on the ground. The Enchantress turned to Belle, bowed her head, and disappeared in her signature puff of silver sparkles. Belle rushed over to the strange man, and kneeled beside him.
“Lucas? Is that you?”
The man slowly opened his soft brown eyes.
“Belle?”
“Yes, it’s me Lucas” Belle grabbed his hand.
“You came back” he whispered feebly.
“Of course I did, I couldn’t leave you”
“At least I got to see you, one last time” he whimpered.
“No, stay with me. You’ll be okay. Everything’s going to be okay” tears streamed down Belle’s face as she stroked his cheek.
Another strange man walked into the room at that precise moment.
“Belle! Oh it’s so good that you are here!” the man exclaimed, as he rushed over, “It’s me, Lumiere! The curse is broken!” he looked down at Lucas and gasped.
Belle looked up at him with tears, her warm brown eyes dulled with sadness and pain. Lumiere called for a person named Cogsworth, who promptly entered the room. Lumiere motioned for him to come over. Lumiere explained to Belle that Cogsworth is the royal doctor. Cogsworth examined Lucas, who was writhing in pain.
Belle stood up and called for Celeste, “Celeste! Please, we need you! Something went wrong”
When her plea went without answer, she sank down onto the floor and wept. She wept for her father, who she hadn’t seen since she came, she wept for her dress, but most of all, she wept for Lucas. Suddenly, a warm hand touched her shoulder. She looked up, expecting to see Lumiere, but instead she saw Celeste.
“What have you done to him!” Belle yelled, as she stood up.
“My child, I have done nothing. You were not here when the curse was broken, so it was not completely fulfilled. Yes, you love him, yes he loves you, but your presence was absent when the petal fell”
“Well, you didn’t go by your promises! You said one petal per visit, yet you took two off last visit! I demand that you restore it!” Belle wailed.
The Enchantress silently walked to the rose.
“This rose was a model of my daughter. Completely beautiful on the outside, ugly and bare within. She will be most unhappy with my decision” Celeste confessed as she plucked her wand out of her boot, “But she will find another purpose, another reason to live” The Enchantress waved her wand, uttered a few magic words, and disappeared.
Lucas moaned, causing Belle to turn her attention to him. His soft brown eyes fluttered open again, but this time they didn’t close. They stared at each other for what seemed like an infinity. Lucas tried to get up, and Belle rushed over to help stabilise him. He hugged her tightly, cherishing the feeling of her being in his arms. Belle was so overcome with joy, she held onto him, never wanting to let go.
Chapter Eight
They celebrated the end of the curse with the whole staff. Belle and Lucas also got married at this party. They drank champagne and ate the finest meal. They exchanged wondrous gifts and chatted for hours. Lucas and Belle were very happy.
Until, the castle went dark. All the candles had been blown out, and an eerie green light filled the room. The guards rushed infront to protect the prince and princess Suddenly, a man appeared. A short stout man, with elfish features, and murderous gleam in his eyes. He raised his wand and zapped all the guards, and turned them into silverware once more. He zapped all the other staff, turning them permanently into the objects they were before. Belle and her prince stood alone, surrounded by all sorts of silverware and furniture. Lucas pushed her behind him.
“Well well well, if it isn’t Prince Lucas, how lovely to finally meet you. And I must say, your wife is rather fetching” the man cackled.
“Who are you and what do you want!” Lucas demanded.
“I want what my weakling wife couldn’t do. I want revenge for my daughter! I am the great and powerful Lefou!” he smiled triumphantly.
Belle and her husband burst out laughing, because Lefou literally meant “the fool”.
“Stop laughing! You should be cowering in fear! Because unlike my soft hearted wife, I get the job done” he exclaimed as he swooped down and pushed them over. He then flew back up, hovering above them, “This is for my Rose!” he yelled, striking the couple with a flash of lightning from his wand. Belle and her Beast had died a painful death.
Epilogue
In a small cottage, near the edge of the forest, was where Rose lived. She had heard that the prince and his wife had been murdered by her father, as revenge for her. She couldn’t handle her grief, for she truly thought the prince would marry her. Rose ignored her parent’s protests and ran out of the cottage, hair flowing behind her. She ran and ran until she came upon the edge of a cliff. She closed her eyes and jumped into the abyss. Her parents were inconsolable. They never left their cottage for anything ever again, and never used their wands, even when their son Gaston needed their help in conquering the nearby village of Villeneuve. And that is the story of a simple town girl named Belle, and a prince named Lucas, who were caged in by others for too long.
The End