The Haunting Tale

Chapter 6: The Castle

Noah was stunned at the beauty of the palace. It looked like a haunted house, the castle was black and dark blue. With the green sky and eerie sound of the wind and owls hooting, along with the sound of the hooves from the skeleton horses, the castle looked even scarier. But he felt the calm and beauty of the scenery, too. The green-ish in the sky was enchanted, the sound of the trees moving with the wind made Noah felt so calm. And besides, it was Diana's castle, what could go wrong?

The carriage stopped, Noah and Diana walked out of it. As they did so, before Noah could take the last look at the carriage, it had disappeared.

Noah looked at the castle again, he wondered what was inside. Maybe something magical would happen.

Noah took Diana's hand, he looked at her with awe. Her black hair waved as the wind blew, her hazel eyes sparkled. Diana stared at him, he had the most lovely blue eyes she had ever seen. His brown hair was messy, but for Diana, it made him looked cuter.

They stared each other for a while... too long.

Diana broke her stare, "Um... The sky looked beautiful, isn't it?"

"Uh... Yeah..." Noah stopped looking at her face and turned to the castle. His heart beat fast when he looked deeply at Diana. He also felt the warmth inside his cold body. It was love. Something that Noah was looking for all those years. Despite his good-looking, no girls in New York were interest in him since he was too nerdy and coward and awkward, too. But Diana was different, he knew it. She was always nice to him, and she tried her best to make him happy, although she didn't know it was his birthday. She was caring, and she didn't care that Noah was a man who acted like a five-year-old when he was excited for something new. If there was only one word to describe Noah, it would be "childish", but Diana thought it was adorable.

In Unholy Forest, where fairy tales were real, many princes tried to win her heart, but non of them succeed. They were all handsome, and many princesses felt envy. But Diana should be the one who envy them! The princes she met were show-offs and idiots. They only care about hunting and killing animals, then making coats with animal furs, which made Diana feel sick. Diana loved reading, she always talked about it, but all of them just avoided the topic and changed the subject, mostly about themselves.

Noah wasn't like any princes. He didn't have muscular torso or big bicep, but he had a big heart. Like a child, he was always curious. He would ask whenever he saw something new, and Diana would always be ready to answer all of them. He was shy and awkward, but Diana didn't care, she knew he would be less like that when he got used to Unholy. He was a nerd with passion for adventure, that was what Diana wanted in her life.

And the most dreamy part: Before Noah approached to Unholy, he had followed her. Her!

It was destiny to love Noah, she believed. But she hesitated a moment later. What if she wasn't good enough for him? Did Noah really loved her?

Diana broke the silence, "Before being a princess, I was an ordinary farm girl. One day, I found this castle and decided to live there. I made new friends there, and I married a prince. But... a fire happened, I was inside this castle. I was burned, along with my home and my servants. The prince escaped, but he didn't call for help or save me. I was sick and pregnant... He left me... How fool was I."

Noah's emotion rose, "I'm-I'm sorry. That's sad..."

"I thought it was true love when I saw him. I was wrong, very wrong. He only cared about himself, he never cared anyone. He had a stone heart, like a beast."

The word "beast" hit Noah hard.

"Are you the Beauty And The Beast?" asked Noah. Diana nodded.

"That is sad," Noah felt a single tear on his cheek. "What about the baby?"

Diana didn't say anything. She always wanted to have kids back when she was alive. She wanted a girl, to be specific. She would dreamt of decorating a baby room for her, sewing dresses, playing hide and seek at the garden. She would imagine that her daughter would be the fairest of all. But the dreams had turned into ashes. This was why Diana was always picky about love... Until she met Noah.

"You don't have to tell me, I know it was hard," Noah grabbed her hand and looked at the green sky. He looked back at her and gave her a little smile, "So, you said you were Beauty And The Beast, that means you have enchanted objects, don't you?"

Diana chuckled, "I'll take you inside and you'll find out by yourself."