34

The beast woke up before Izabelle. It was nearing the day's end and in the horizon far away the sun, shinning bright reddish orange, was halfway set.

The first thing he notices was his unfamiliar environments.  As if sensing him awake, Red entered the room.  It didn't take long for the beast to figure out the one in front of him held magic. A witch, he thought and his eyes hardened although he maintained his composure sitting upright and holding the edges of the bed tightly. It didn't escape his mind that she held a tray. It didn't take a genius to figure what was in it for him. She knew his curse and he knew that from just a look.

"Who are you?" The beast all but stopped himself from bellowing.

The second thing that got his attention was the lack of a certain travelling companion. The episode of the day before came rushing to his mind. He had all but been defeated at the paws of the Guardian wolves of the forest.  Any thing he thought about his strength was shatter there and then when the wolves over took him in matter of minutes.

Why?  Why couldn't he overtake them?  He was helpless anyway. Why did the world have to make him feel more helpless?  Three week and he would die, he knew that and yet he was sent here unprepared with a small beacon of hope.  Hope, it's such a terrible word. Maybe it gives a little joy, a tiny bit of joy that just brings a hundred time more sadness.  Hope is like a carrot in front of a donkey to keep the donkey walking. The donkey looks at it like an idiot hoping that if only he could step a little more that tasting carrot would be his to eat only he doesn't know that someone else was pulling the strings and no matter how further he went he wouldn't be able to grab it. And all the while he would only think what could I have done to grab it?

"Fret not young one." The witch said as she saw the beast looking around suddenly, utterly distracted.  "She is safe, fed and Sleeping next door. Although you shouldn't wake her for a while."

The way not waking up was said was enough to make it clear to the beast that he had no choice in the matter. Without much argument knowing that she may not be in good health herself the beast went to the next best thing. The witch was yet to answer.

"Who are you? " he questioned again.

"My name, dear prince, is Red. " The witch said handing him the goblet she held on a tray.

"How do you..? " The beast looked at her and as he had guessed the goblet was indeed that of blood.

"The curse. When I touched you I got a glimpse of its nature.  Knowing the rest is not difficult when you have been a witch for an long as I have been. " Red said taking a seat on the cream and purple coloured chair nearby.

The beast hadn't realized how parched he felt.  The goblet was big and he couldn't wait to drink.  Unfortunately, he couldn't.  A thought lingered in his mind.  Was it drugged?  If it were the case they could have had him when he was resting.  Do they have a superior motive?

"Your face says it all my Prince, fear not, the drink is safe.  If you doubt it, I could have it tested. " The beast looked the witch in the eye.  Red was it?  He remembered hearing the name somewhere but could not recall.  But from the power she gave off and the low self esteem he had at the moment he could not think more.  Grabbing the goblet firmly, he put his mouth on the wide edge of the vessel and surped down the thick red metallic content in one go until the last drop.

"Now if you like, you can take a bath, and I fix get you something to eat." Again, the beast had no choice in the matter. Izabelle would have laughed had she seen the beast in such a manner, so docile. However  inside the beast was a tornado.  All he was thinking was the past, the present, the future and death. The helplessness he felt as he could not stand against the wolves even though the curse gives him power. The helplessness he felt having to live inside this rose petal filled hourglass that has him caged and on a run to find something, someone, somewhere without much proof of its existence.  The beast had been caged for a long time.  But this was one of the times he truly felt caged.

*

Until next time,

Love,

Princess_arielanne