11.

Lord Drake paced around his dull, boring study thinking of the slight tingles he was being hit by more than often since the past few weeks.  The weeks that started with that annoying rose girl's arrival. 

She was here.  He knew it.  He could feel it in his bones that it was her. No stars, no.  She just couldn't let him live or die in peace.  She had to torment him again and again, and then again. She to see his torture especially after a day of love. She would spark the candle of hope and then vanquish it so that he waited for his next torment weeping from the injuries of the past. He was nothing but a play toy to her. He knew it. She knew it.

Who would love a beast she had said. It was turning true again and again. The repetition, the misery and the darkness. He was trapped in an eternal curse. To be loved, betrayed, and battle against oneself for eternity.

Who would love a beast?  He thought that often too. Looking down at his pale scratchy skinned hands, a mix between a reptile and human, he shuddered out of disgust.

Who would love a beast?

Who would love a beast!?

Who could love a beast..?

The words taunted him as Drake ran his hands across the rough wooden table and smashed everything to the side not caring about what fell and broke.  Glass items, pens, paper and other miscellaneous things fell down making a person outside alert of their master's distress.

The only thing on the mind of the tormented person were one he had thought for centuries.

Why did she have to do this?

Why him?

Why did she have to make three enchanted roses?

Three Rose's. Two chances of failure, two heartbreaks.

***

Izabelle stood in the middle of her assigned room. Becka had this idea of dressing her up for the dinner.  Who dresses up for a person who can't stand you in the same room as them for more than two minutes? Whatever was the need for this was beyond her.

"Miss Edwards, stop moving. " Becka cried out as Izabelle flinched again.  Becka was putting her in in a stars forbidden dress the size of a tent and and tightening the corset so much that Izabelle thought she was trying to murder her.  It was possible. She did work for this mysterious Lord after all.

"Why does Lord Willington have such mood swings Becka? Somedays he acts like a kidnapper and then have acts of mercy. He keeps everything so private and now he suddenly wants to have dinner with me? Becka! Not so hard. You are killing me with this corset." Izabelle hated these long heavy gowns with a deep passion.

"That's not lady like Miss Edwards. " Becka said pulling another string.  Izabelle shrieked and tried to get out of her hold. Becka was having none of it.

"Enough. He would kill me in ten minutes anyway.  Why are you so dead set on making this death trap tighter?"

Becka sighed at the young girl's complaints.  Usually it was the other way.  The girls always loved to be dressed up and she would be complaining in her head. 

"Why are you so set on ruining my work Miss Edwards. It was so hard to get Dr-Lord Willington to agree to this and now you-" Izabelle cut off Becka's babble making her come to a halt.

"Hold that thought. You made him agree to this farce?" Becka cursed under her breath and looked down at the wood covered floor coming up with what to say. Then turning to face Belle, back to her previous task of playing with the strings of her corset,she replied. 

"Nothing. I said nothing.  Now now, you are ready.  Let's take you to the Lord, Miss Edwards. " Becka said brushing off her question feeling it was the best course of action.

"I do not think so." Izabelle spoke standing Her grounds. "You did say something dear Becka. Hurry now, Tell me." Izabelle ordered.

She felt a little bad ordering the old woman to tell her something but she was already annoyed by the death trap around her chest and stomach. Too add to it the fact that she was supposed to eat in this was unfathomable. Her mother would often get her dolled up however she never pressured her into tightening it more than a little. It had been about three years since she had to wear a gown such as this anyhow.

"Oh my stars! Look at the time.  You would be late! I assure you Lord Willington will not be rude this time.  Now hurry along." Becka dived out of the room and with a candle, she followed the old persistent woman out of the room to the main dinning hall.

The lights in the dining hall were still dim but an improvement from how it would be on other days. Numerous small candles were lit around the room giving it a sweet yellow tone. Flowers were arranged every few feet and a pleasant floral scent enveloped the room. It was obvious to her that a lot had been done to restore the room to its glory. There seemed to be no speck of dirt and everything was well arranged.

Becka took Belle across the huge table in the centre to one of the better lit ends. 

"The Lord would be coming any minute now Miss Edwards. Hope you have a pleasant dinning experience." Becka said hopefully and left the room in a hurry leaving Izabelle to watch her retreating back.

Izabelle looked around her more. There were a few candles in the middle of the table too, and now that she was scented she could make out an aroma of scented candles in the midst of the floral scent. It was pleasant, present but not over powering. She hadn't realized till now how pretty this haunting place was. She could imagine the huge chandelier above to be lit all around and bring a healthy glow to the place.

?

"Miss Edward, Good day. " Lord Willington's voice snapped her out of her question and relaxed demeanor.

"I wish you the same Lord Willington." She replied not wanting to argue even though the word 'why' was on top of her tongue ready to be spoken. 

He was cloaked, was the first thing Belle noticed. He sat far away, with a good distance of seven seats between them and his side was, much to her dismay, not lit up like hers was.

"So Miss Edwards, tell me about yourself?" The Lord asked after he had clapped twice signaling the kitchen staff she hadn't noticed working in the manor before.

"There is not much to tell about me. I am but an ordinary girl, my Lord.  I mostly spent my day helping out with family business and odd jobs, evenings with some local patients and nights with my books." Belle said ending the topic. Nothing was more awkward than telling about herself. Could people not find more original questions?

A tall, lanky man she had never seen before, he looked similar to ember, put down a plate of soup in front of her to start off and another went up to Lord Willington' and did the same.

"Patients?" Lord Willington questioned not wanting the conversation to cease even though Belle thought if they continued they would, like always, end up in a terrible disagreement.

"Well yes.  The herbalist in our town said he would teach me if I helped him out." Izabelle said putting the spoon in the soup and spinning it around not wanting to really be there. She could smell the tomatoes in it. The reddish orange looking rather pretty against the white with blue patterns China bowl. "So you like medicines I presume miss Edwards?" The Lord kept the discussion going on again. A miss who knew medicine was not a common occurrence.

"Yes, I do. But why don't you tell me about yourself Lord Willington? " Izabelle questioned trying to change the topic and keen to know about the mysterious persona in front of her. She picked up the soup in her spoon and dark it at the same time he answered.

"There is nothing much to tell about-" Lord Willington started but was no sooner cut of by a squeal that came from his dinning company for the day. "What is this soup made up of?" Izabella said as she dropped the spoon on the ground making a sound which echoed around the hall. The China spoon shattered into pieces.

The soup she had just tasted was tasted was oddly salty metallic which resembled a lot like blood.