La Bella y la Bestia

The Hidden Castle

Alvarez's journey started smoothly as Maria trotted gracefully along the dirt and gravel beneath her hooves, until they came to the forest.

The forest had been said to be haunted by the ghost of the dead princes or the witch of the forest that was said to seek out horrid, selfish boys and turned them into puppets. Now, Alvarez, being a man of science and invention never paid much heed to these fairy tales, but as he walked through the pitch-black forest, illuminated by only the frail light of Alvarez's lantern, as he heard owls hooting what sounded like a warning, wolves howling in the distance, and the mist and fog almost forming into a human shape. Alvarez grabbed his map, and squinted to get a good look at it. "We should've been there by now," muttered Alvarez, before he looked up to see a sign with faded letters and some boards broken off.

Maria looked at the sign and turned left, just Alvarez pulled on her reigns to go right. "Let's go this way," he said, but Maria kept pulling towards he chosen side. "Let's go this way, Maria. I-I have a good feeling about it," Alvarez continued, as Maria looked at the dark mist on the right side, and the clear open path of the left side. "Vamos, Maria! It's perfectly safe, and it's probably a shortcut. Nós estaremos lá em nenhum momento ," Alvarez said, finally pulling her to the right.

Some time continued to pass as they aimlessly looked for another passed, when snarls and growls of wolves filled their ears. "What was that?" Alvarez inquired, as Maria began to walk backwards. Fear boiled in the mare as she took many trembling steps backward, as Alvarez continued to try and calm her, before they bumped into a hollow tree filled with bats. Maria, startled, began to run at full speed before stopping at a cliff.

"Steady, girl. Steady. What's gotten into you?" Alvarez said, trying to sound calm though anxiety was starting to take over his usually level-headed mind. Suddenly Maria threw Alvarez off her back, as his  lantern's fire went out leaving him nearly blind. Small shadows moved in the darkness, and he quickly looked around. The shadows came closer and closer until they revealed themselves to be the wolves they heard earlier. With no weapon or way to defend himself, Alvarez retreated from carnivorous animals but to his misfortune began to the smell of his succulent flesh. The wolves, practically nipping at his heels, Alvarez fell down a steep hill where he came across a huge, iron-bound gate surrounded by a wall of thick stone. Seeing a chance at salvation, he grabbed the gate's bars, and cried, "HELP! Is somebody there!? Please, help!?" At first there seemed to be no answer, but once the wolves were ready to pounce on him, the gate opened and he fell through. Using his right foot, Alvarez quickly shut the gates before the wolves were able to make him today's next meal.

Alvarez gave a sigh of relief, before looking up to see what was behind the gate and what it was protecting. This turned out to be a large and frightening castle that made him seem like a worm in comparison. The main gate was being held by two columns of white marble, there two towers that seemed to reach the sky, windows with a diamond-shaped design, and two different types of roofs that seemed to decorate the castle with a dome and triangular-shaped design. As he admired the architecture of the castle, rain began to pour down chilling him to the bone and soaking him instantly. He raced to the castle's main door and pounded on it for perhaps a servant or the master himself, praying that he or she was a kind and gentle person who would take pity on him.

The door creaked open, allowing Alvarez to take a few cautious steps inside. He noted that castle had probably seen better days, as cobwebs and dust greeted him once he stepped inside the red, green, and white corridor making him wonder if anyone actually lived here. "Olá?" he called as his echo greeted him.

"Ve~Perhaps he lost his way in the woods?" an Italian-accented voice suggested, but he could not see someone.

"Not another word," a quiet, almost-whisper like voice with a Greek accent responded. "Be quiet, he'll go away."