Who could ever love a beast

Chapter 7

Zayn

I’m working in the garden when I hear the sound of a horse. A white horse is running past me and it goes straight for the water bowl in the garden. ‘Philippe!’ I exclaim walking towards him and petting him in hopes of calming him down. He seems pretty frightened and I need to know what happened. ‘What happened?’ I ask him and that’s when I notice that my sister isn’t with him. ‘Where’s Doniya?’ I ask worried and he seems to know where she is. ‘Take me to her!’ I demand and before I know it, we’re riding out of the village.

We’re riding through a forest and the wind is blowing. The further we go in the forest, the more sheltered it becomes. It looks like no one has been here for ages and I have this feeling in my gut that something bad happened to my sister. I already lost my parents, I won’t lose my sister too! Eventually we arrive at a castle and I jump off of Philippe’s back. ‘Stay here, I’ll be back soon with my sister,’ I tell him and he whinnies. I walk towards the doors and take a deep breath before opening them. I walk inside and see a grand stair case in the hall. I step further into the hall and realize how big it is. I look around for any sign of my sister but no such luck.

‘Look, Louis. A beautiful boy,’ A candle says and the clock next to him looks a little annoyed. ‘Yes! I can see it’s a boy. I lost my hands, not my eyes,’ the clock replies sassily. ‘But what if he’s the one? The one who’ll break the spell?’ The candle continues and that’s when I look into their direction. ‘Who said that? Who’s there?’ I ask and I’m met with silence. A sneeze is heard in the distance and my head snaps in the direction where it came from. I walk towards the table with the candle and clock and grab the candle. I walk up the stairs and the sneezing continues. ‘Uh-oh,’ the clock says and watches as the candle gets further away from him.

‘Doniya?’ I yell and I take a left turn towards the tower. ‘Doll, is that you?’ I yell again while running up the stairs. I get to the top of the stairs and see my sister in a holding cell. ‘Zayn!’ she says relieved and grabs my hands in her own. ‘How did you find me?’ she asks me. ‘Phillipe took me here and your sneezing led me to this tower,’ I explain and her hands feel like ice. ‘Your hands are ice. We need to get you home,’ I state and she shakes her head.

‘Zayn, you must leave here at once!’ she tells me and this time I shake my head. This castle is alive! Now go, before he finds you!’ she continues in a warning tone. ‘Who?’ I ask her and before she can answer a growl is heard. ‘Who’s there?’ I ask. ‘Who are you?’ I continue asking. ‘Who are you?’ A different voice asks in the shadows. ‘I’ve come for my sister,’ I reply to the shadows. ‘Your sister is a thief,’ the figure in the shadows growls. ‘Liar!’ I exclaim angry. How dare that thing or whatever it is accuse my sister of being a thief?! ‘She stole a rose,’ he huffs and a laugh escapes my mouth. ‘Bambi, be careful! You don’t know who you’re talking to,’ she warns me.

‘A bloody imbecile who apparently thinks picking a rose for someone else is a bloody crime,’ I respond sassily. ‘Seriously, does he think he’s the bloody prince of France?’ I continue my sass rant. ‘What did you just say?’ he asks in a dangerous tone. ‘I asked for the rose,’ I reply deciding to keep my sassy mouth shut. I look at my sister in the cell and I need to do something. ‘Punish me, not her,’ I offer. ‘NO! He means forever. Apparently that’s what happens around here when you pick a flower,’ Doniya explains in horror. ‘A life sentence for a rose?’ I ask in disbelief and the figure jumps to the same place I’m standing while roaring loudly. ‘I received eternal damnation for one. I’m merely locking her away,’ he tells me while walking closer. ‘Now, do you still wish to take your sister’s place?’ he asks and I can tell he’s very close to me.

‘Come into the light,’ I demand him but there’s no movement. I grab the candle and move it closer to the figure. He turns into the light and I gasp. Standing before me is a beast, an actual beast! ‘Choose,’ he says into my face and I feel Doniya grabbing my hands. ‘Zayn, I won’t let you do this. I lost mom and dad. I won’t lose you too!’ she tells me firmly. ‘They’re not the only people you lost,’ I remind her and she looks away. ‘Don’t Zayn. Don’t mention him,’ she answers with sadness lacing her voice. ‘I miss him too. You know he was my best friend,’ I tell her and she looks at me with pity. ‘I know you do babe and I know he was and still is, but he’s not coming back,’ she responds and I know she’s right. We better hurry up before the beast gets impatient and my sister seems to read my mind.