Beauty and the Lazy

Chapter 1: Once Upon a Time...

Once a upon a time in a far away land

A prince, with his 6 younger siblings, lived in a shining castle. Although they lived in peace, the prince committed a heinous crime that caused him to lose the people close to him.

One night, the prince was greeted by an elder woman seeking shelter from the bitter storm. She offered a single rose in return. The prince coldly rejected her, not wanting to let anyone in.

The woman warned him not to blindly shut people out. The prince, annoyed, rejected her again when the woman suddenly started changing forms to reveal a beautiful Enchantress.

The prince was bewildered and tried to explain himself, but it was too late, for she knew that there was no love in his heart. As punishment, she turned the prince into a beast and placed a powerful spell on the castle and all who lived there.

Regretting his actions, the prince isolated himself in his castle with a magic mirror as his only window to the outside world. The rose, she offered, was truly an enchanted rose for it would bloom on his 18th year.

If he could learn to love someone and earn their love in return, before the last petal falls, the spell would be broken. If not, he will remain a beast for all eternity. As the years passed, the prince fell into despair and lost his will.

For who could ever learn to love a monster?

______________________

Birds flew in the morning sky, happily chirping their wake up call to the people below them.

A young boy walked out of his little cottage, little ways from the small village he called home. A basket in hand, he headed off to the main square when he heard the morning bell chime in the distance. Everyone started emerging from their homes, going their own ways. The villagers saw the boy and happily greeted him while walking by.

"Morning Mahiru!"

Hearing the call of his name, the boy turned around and waved back at the man, "Morning Mr. Baker!" He happily smiled before turning back around and continuing on his way. The villagers said their greetings to the boy, Mahiru, who notice him heading over to market.

Mahiru headed over to a certain stand, with a certain someone standing behind it. The man heard footsteps behind and turned to see Mahiru wave at him from a distance in the crowd, "Ah! Morning Mahiru!" He greeted, waving back at the boy. He warmly smiled, stopping in front of the stand.

"Morning, Mikuni. Have anything new today?" He said, looking around the stand. The man, Mikuni, smiled and lightly shook his head, "Not today, sorry. But, look at Abel's new outfit! Thought she should go for a more spring look!" He chanted, holding up a small female doll with a frilly pink dress. Her hair was put up in a small bun with a flower pinned to it. Mahiru gave him a weird look, earning small glances from passing villagers in their direction. Mikuni noticed his stare and gasped in horror, "Don't look at Abel with those lustful eyes!"

"I wasn't looking at her like that!" Mahiru let out a tired and irritated sigh, placing the items in his basket. He placed down the payment for his things, "I honestly don't know why I bother to keep coming here."

"Cause I give out the best deals in the whole countryside! Also, I keep hearing gossip about you and housework, not really surprised by it." Mikuni said, taking the boy's payment and placing it in a small box under the stand. Mahiru nervously smiled, "Not like anyone else is gonna take care of the house... Well thanks for today, I'll see you tomorrow!" He said, waving at Mikuni before taking his leave.

Outside the village, a small group made their way, with a few deer and small bags hanging off on their horse's saddle.

"Tsubkuyn~! The way you shot that deer was amazing!!" A pink haired man yelled, happily cheering behind a short raven haired male.