In the Beast's Shadow

For many years, I lived alone—shrouded in darkness and bitterness—within the cold confines of my castle. The curse that bound me was not only upon my body but upon my soul. I was once a handsome prince, but pride and cruelty twisted me into this beastly form. My claws, fangs, my towering, fur-covered frame—these were all reminders of the monster I had become.

I remember the moment the curse fell. An enchantress, guised as a frail old woman, came to my door seeking shelter. I had rejected her harshly, disgusted by her humble appearance. But in the rejection, I unknowingly condemned myself. She transformed me, saying coldly that my outside would now reflect my inner person. Coldy, she whispered, “Only through true love and being loved as such in return, can you break the spell. And if you fail before the last petal of this magical rose falls, you will remain a beast forever.” With that ominous proclamation, she vanished from my domain.

At first, I thought the solution she provided was rhetorical. Who could love such a monstrous creature? The reflection in my shattered mirror was a beast, not a man. I retreated deeper into my fortress, growing bitter and wild.

Days bled into months, and months into years. Petals from the enchanted rose continued to fall. Loneliness became my only companion. The silence echoing with my regrets and anger.

Then, one evening, she came.

Her name was Belle.

She was not like the others who fled in fear upon seeing me. Her eyes displayed no revulsion, only a curious light. When she first arrived, I was wary, snarling behind my locked doors. Yet, something in her kindness and courage softened a corner of my heart long thought frozen.

Belle was unlike anyone I had ever met. She did not see me as a monster. She saw the man inside, even when I struggled to see it myself. She laughed despite my gruffness, spoke despite my silence, and stayed despite my absence.

I remember the first time she wandered into the great library. I watched her from the shadows, fascinated by how she treasured books, how her fingers traced the words like they held magic. It was a side of life I had forgotten—the joy of learning, the warmth of stories.

Day by day, I tried to be better— not only for her, but for myself. I learned patience, gentleness, and hope. I shared with her the beauty hidden in the castle, the songs the enchanted servants sang to chase away the darkness. And sometimes, when I thought no one was watching, I let my inner, true self show— a man, who longed to be free once again.

But doubt still gnawed at me. What if the curse could never be broken? What if the enchantress was playing an elaborate trick on me, creating false hope? What if she left and I remained a beast? The fear made me lash out once again, pushing her away from me to protect her from my monstrous nature.

One night, after a storm shook the castle and the sky wept with thunder and rain, Belle confronted me.

I had been pacing the West Wing, watching the rose tremble with each passing hour, its petals fewer than ever. My reflection in the broken mirror stared back at me with hollow eyes. I feared that I had already lost her—that my chance at freedom was slipping away like smoke.

But then she came.

She stood at the doorway, soaked from the rain, her eyes locked onto mine. My hollow eyes staring out, her soft, kind eyes looking back. There was no fear in her face, only something softer— pain, and something deeper still. Love, perhaps, though I dared not believe it yet.

“Why do you keep pushing me away?” she asked, her voice shaking—not with fear, but with pain. “Why do you think you’re not worthy of being loved?”

I turned away from her, ashamed, “Because I am not,” I whispered, “Look at me. I’m not what you deserve. You deserve a man who can care for you and love you wholeheartedly. I was cruel when I was a man, and now I’m… this. This form isn’t a curse. It’s a reflection of who I truly was. Perhaps who I truly am.”

Belle didn’t flinch. She crossed the room with steady steps and stopped just a few feet from me.

“That might’ve been true once,” she said. “But not anymore.”

I turned away, jaw clenched, not with anger, but with emotion, “You don’t know the things I’ve done.”

“I know enough,” she replied. “I’ve seen you offer kindness when you thought no one else was watching. I’ve seen you hold back your anger, even when it costs you. That doesn't erase your past, but it paves your future.”

I didn’t speak for a moment. The wind outside howled through the broken windows, and the last petal of the rose quivered underneath the glass. I could feel the time closing in.

“You think I have changed,” I said finally. “Maybe I have. But if I have, it’s only because of you. You made me remember what it’s like to be human—without ever asking anything in return.”

She looked at me then, not with pity, not with fear, but with the calm strength that silences doubt in your mind.

“I didn’t come here to change you,” she whispered. “I stayed because I saw someone worth knowing. That’s all.”

I stared at her then. There was no grand speech. No declarations or promises. Just a steady truth in her words, the kind that cuts deeper than any curse.

I stepped towards her, uncertain. “And if that's not enough? If there’s not enough time left?”

“Then at least you won’t have to spend it hiding.”

The rose’s final petal fell.

I thought it was all over. My time had finally come.

But instead of darkness, there was light.

A pure, godly sort of light.

It wasn’t loud or dramatic. It was like a quiet shift— like breathing out after holding your breath for too long. The pain came and went in a blink. The weight back on my back, my shoulders, my mind— gone.

When I looked down, my hands were no longer clawed. My body, no longer twisted. I was myself again. But I was no longer the same man who turned away that old woman all that time ago— but someone shaped by every day that had passed since then.

Belle gave me a small, knowing smile. “Told you,” she said quietly.

And for the first time in years, I let out a small laugh.

The curse was broken. The castle was healing. And so was I.

I got my second chance.