When Bella reached the dining room, she was astonished by its interior. It was dark, with only two candelabras lighting up the room, situated on opposite ends of the long dining table. The fireplace at edge of the room glowed brightly, leaving a softened edge to room, almost alleviating all her tension.
No one else was in the dining room and Bella let out a sigh of relief. Turning to thank Chip for bringing her here, she realised that he had vanished.
Shrugging it off as one of the magical abilities she assumed they had, she walked towards the table, taking a seat at the edge of one end of the dining table that looked that it could seat over twenty people.
The table was lined with dishes of various cuisines, its scents intermingling in the air to exude an aroma that simply called to Bella's appetite. Forgoing any manners that may have been ingrained in her to wait for the Beast, she cut out a piece of the apple pie in front of her, hoping to placate her empty stomach that was aching from only having an orange since last night's dinner.
Just as soon as her knife speared through the enticing pie, Bella was struck with the horrible realisation that someone was staring at her.
Looking up, she was faced with the majestic size of the Beast, staring at her with curiosity. As though a reflex, the fork and knife in her hand fell, and her mouth gaped open.
Bella watched with frightful fascination as the Beast, instead of moving closer to her like she thought he would, took a seat at the other end of the table.
Folding his hands, his posture straight and oozing confidence, he gently picked up a spoon, sliding it into a bowl of French onion soup that was placed in front of him. He looked up and caught Bella staring, making her avert her eyes immediately.
How could such a giant be so graceful? How could a beast act so humane? Why was she even being allowed to dine with him?
It made her more curious than anything, and the books that she read always taught her that satisfying her curiosity triumphed over everything else.
"Thank you for inviting me to dinner," she began politely, the apple pie completely forgotten despite her raging hunger. "I have a few questions though."
At the Beast's nod, she continued. "I do not understand why I am here. I mean, I do know that I am supposed to be here to take my father's place but I do not understand why I am being treated so fairly. I woke up in the dungeons but now I have my own bedroom and you are inviting for dinner. I feel like a guest, instead of a prisoner."
He huffed in her direction, swallowing his food before monotonically reply, "You are not a prisoner."
Despite his obvious attempt at a soft voice, it booked loudly across the room and Bella struggled to keep in a scream of surprise.
When she gathered her wits again, her eyes were alight with hope. "Does that mean I can go home?"
"No!" The immediate yell took her by surprise and this time Bella did let out a squeal. The Beast thumped the table, causing the contents of his bowl to spill onto his neatly pressed black trousers.
Despite the stain on his trousers, he clumsily made his way towards Bella, ignoring her fearful eyes, until his face was less than an inch away from hers.
"You cannot leave the castle! Explore the rooms, the gardens, the lakes but you will not step a foot out of the castle gates! Understood?"
At Bella's shaky nod, he straightened, giving her a last look filled with what she could identify as anger and pain.
As soon as he made his way out of the room, for despite his humongous size, his footsteps were surprisingly soft, Bella let out a soft groan.
Her temporary hope was unfound for she could never leave. Then her eyes fell on the feast before her. Well, at least she wouldn't let the food here go to waste. With that in mind, she picked her discarded cutlery, and let a piece of the apple pie melt in her mouth, filling it with rich cream and biscuit crumbs.
Delicious.
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The Beast Inside | ✓
Romance"I'm here to take the place of my father," Bella said, her heart pounding with fear. The beast smirked, his face the epitome of evil. "Well then, I hope you enjoy the dungeons because from now on, that is going to be your home forever," he whisper...
