Prince Adam and the Beast (fairy tale rewrite)

This castle can't get any worse. I love the stonework and the details and anyone would be lucky to even stand in such a place. But for me, I’ve been trapped in this wretched prison for eight years ever since my fourteenth birthday, when a witch came to my parents' kingdom and cursed me. Oh and did I mention that I look like a big, scary beast? I’ve spent eight years locked in a tower, with nobody to talk to and I’m forced to look at my own horrid reflection every single day. I wish something good would happen to me for once.

—--------Six months later---------

I wake up in my master bedroom and roam the always empty halls hoping something would change today, but deep down, I knew better. Nothing is going to change. I”m going to be isolated here for all my life. And if you’re thinking why don't I just leave the castle, I’ve tried, and leaving is impossible when there is a force field along every wall, door and window of this place. I truly am destined to spend all my life here. There is, however, one thing that could break me from this curse and it's if I find someone who could love me. Which is just another way to say I’ll be cursed forever, I mean who could ever learn to love a beast?

I go back to my room and wander over to the closed off window, wishing I could go out there for even just a minute. To feel the leaves, the breeze and the snowy trees. I begin to turn around back to my forever fortress when I see a glimpse of orange move between the trees, and past the castle walls. I turn back to the window, watching curiously for another movement… but it doesn't come. It must've been my imagination, I thought as I moved away from the window. It wouldn't be the first time after all. I wish with everything I had that I could have someone, anyone to talk to in this lonely castle.

Suddenly, there’s a soft knock on my bedroom door. I freeze and my heart starts to push out of my chest. It must be my imagination again, it has to be. But the knock comes again, a little rougher this time. I force my feet to take steps towards the door and my heart is threatening to burst through my furred chest.

I reach the diamond doorknob and pause; how could there be a person here? The force field, how could they have crossed it? I slowly turn the knob and push it forward. The sunlight from my window streams into the darkness of the hallway. Holding my breath, I push the door fully open to peek my head through but no one is there.

Maybe it really was my imagination. I begin to close the door when I hear a faint clatter beneath me. I look down and on the floor is a little antique pendulum clock. I pick it up and examine it.

“What a curious little thing” I wonder aloud. I have seen this exact clock downstairs on a small table by the entrance doors. But how could it have gotten upstairs?

“Who do you think you’re calling a thing?”

I drop the clock and take multiple steps back into my bed chamber. However, my curiosity gets the best of me and I go to pick up the clock once more. “You…you can talk?”

“Of course I can talk, and you’re lucky I’m made of gold or I would've killed you for dropping me so foolishly, boy.”

I look at the clock more closely and notice there is a woman’s face ever so slightly reflected in the center of the pendulum. As I look closer, her face appears faintly familiar to me but it's too small for me to figure out from where. “Who are you, if I may ask ma’am?”

“ Now ‘ma’am’ is much better, young man. I am Queen Eliza of France.

My blood runs cold. How could this be? It isn't possible.

“Mother?”

“Yes, you foolish boy, I am your mother. How cruel it is for you to not recognize me.”

The witch must have cursed my mother right after she cursed me, but why would she be turned to a little old clock?

“But mother, how did you end up like this?”

She didn’t answer right away. But when she did, her tone was different.

“Same as you, that evil witch cursed me on your birthday.”

Though I was only fourteen when I was taken from my family, I know my mother well enough to know when she’s trying to hide something, but I also know better than to question her words. So instead, I bring up a new question.

“Why had you not tried to communicate with me earlier?”

But she doesn’t answer. Instead, her face simply just vanishes into the pendulum.

“Mother?”

No answer.

I set my mother on my dresser and begin to walk through the corridors once again.

As I walk through the still dark hallways, many thoughts flood my mind. What could she be hiding? And why is she just now revealing herself when she’s been here all these years?

I reach the end of the hallway and turn to the right to continue on walking. But right as

I turn the corner, I stop in my tracks.

“Hello?”

A woman’s voice echoes through the empty hallway. Sweet sounding, innocent. Right before me is only what I’ve prayed for for all of these eight years. A woman with dark brown hair that looks so soft in a blue and white dress. Not only is she just what I’m looking for, (because she could potentially break my curse) but she is absolutely breathtaking.

“Hello.” I respond as I begin to walk towards her, but I pause when I realize my looks would most likely scare her away if I approached her in this beastly form. So, I keep my feet planted on the tile of the floor concealed by the darkness of the night sky.

“Hi.” She says back. And to my surprise, she begins to walk towards me, too quickly for me to be able to back away in time. And as she gets right in front of me, unveiling all of my beastly features for her beautiful hazel eyes, yet she doesn’t as much as flinch. She doesn’t even look away, instead she keeps her eyes locked onto mine.

“Aren’t… aren’t you afraid?”

“Why would I be afraid?” She responds as she takes a step closer to get a better look. I begin to take a few steps back in surprise, but she grasps onto my arm to keep me grounded.

Shocked by her actions, I respond, “Because I’m a horrid beast, anyone would run scared.” I try to move my head back into the darkness, but it doesn't work as she's got a firm grip keeping me right beside her.

“Well I know one thing for certain, I have seen many things in my life, many horrible and terrifying things, but you are not one of them.”

I’m left speechless by her words. I look at her and into her beautiful brown eyes and I see something, some type of pleading in her eyes. Her arm is still wrapped around mine and her gaze still on me, I am about to ask why she’s here but she speaks first as she lets go of my arm and takes a small step back.

“I’m Belle, I traveled here from a small village and I was trying to find my father who I believe got lost on one of his journeys but instead I came across this castle and couldn't help myself not to come in and explore.” She pauses a moment before adding, “I’m really sorry if I’m intruding.”

“No, no. I have never had a visitor here before and it is nice to finally see someone.”

She looked a little surprised at that but she goes on. “Oh, okay. I’m glad to be here then, maybe I could stay here for some time while I search for my father. Can I know what to call you from now on?”

“Oh, I’m Prince Adam from the nearby Kingdom of Roseville. But I’ve been trapped here since I was fourteen with this curse that keeps me in this beastly appearance.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry Adam, that sounds awful. Is there any way that I could help?”. She takes my paw into her hand and begins caressing it gently.

I hesitated if I should tell her or not. What if she gets nervous and leaves? I decided to keep that a secret for now.

“No, there isn’t anything you could do, I’ve tried everything.”

“Hmmm well, I will try to help you in any way I can.”

---------A couple weeks later---------

Belle and I have gotten closer and much more comfortable around one another. We have started having dinner together and playing games around the castle, and her father is now staying with us at the castle; we had found him near the entrance of the castle looking for shelter.

Eventually, I had even told her about the one impossible way to break the curse and about my mother. Although, my mother still has yet to reappear in the pendulum since that one night.

Tonight, Belle and I made plans to have a fancy dinner and later to dance in the vacated ballroom. After dinner, we go to change into clothing more suitable for a dance. When Belle came out of her room and walked down the staircase, I was left breathless. She was in a beautiful corseted yellow gown that had sparkling gold details along the trim. She looked so amazing.

Finally, we danced. We waltzed around the empty ballroom until our feet become numb.

It was the best night of my life. I can’t wait to see where things go with Belle, I really think she could be the one.

---------One month later----------

I think I’m going to propose to Belle and ask her if she will be the one to finally break my curse.

---------One week later---------

Our wedding is today. The day my curse will finally be broken is here; I’ll no longer be trapped in this castle and I could go back and rule my Kingdom in Roseville.

Belle looks absolutely beautiful in her dress as she walks down the aisle. We are having the wedding be held in the castle, as I of course cannot leave till the curse is broken and we have decided to only have her father as a guest and when we arrive at the kingdom, we can properly celebrate there.

Finally, the moment is here. We say our vows, our I do’s and we share our first kiss as husband and wife.

When we release from our embrace, I feel a rush through my veins when she says I love you, and then I am gently lifted into the air as beams of light cover me. When I am set back down, I am finally back to my human form and in front of me is my wife, who I wanted to spend the rest of my life with until death does us part.

I look around at the castle and the once gloomy corridors are now filled with sunlight and hope. As I look around, I see my mother, in her human form, coming towards us. Her curse as the pendulum clock must have broken at the same time as mine did. Although I still don't understand why she was cursed.

---------Two weeks later---------

We are now officially moved back into my kingdom and my aunt is awaiting us when we arrive. My wife, my mother and I enter the beautiful kingdom, although we are stopped immediately by the palace guards.

My mother is then taken away to another room in the arms of two guards.

“What’s happening? What are you going to do to her?”, I ask.

No one answers. No one even looks in my direction. However, I do notice that as my mother is being dragged away, she is smiling the happiest she ever has in her life. What was happening?

“Mother?”

Just then, my aunt runs over to me and Belle, blocking the view of my mother as she was taken away. She smiles towards Belle but then pulls me aside with a worried look on her face.

“Honey, that isn’t your mother.” Her face looks pained like she’s been through so much since I last saw her eight years ago.

I stare back at her. “What are you talking about?”

She closes her eyes for a moment before continuing. “Adam, your mother was killed the same night you were cursed and taken to that castle.”

My body freezes. No. No, it can’t be.

“Adam, honey, the witch has been posing as your mother.”

I think about this and honestly it made sense as to why she didn't say a single thing to me those eight years except that one night. Along with why she was acting so cruel towards me.

The next day, the witch was taken in for a beheading and she was killed, never having to be feared again.

---------A couple days later---------

Belle and I are out by the garden, enjoying the winter breeze and the snowflakes dancing through the sky. The last couple of days have been rough with finding out about my mother and with adjusting to the changes to my lifestyle. Staying cooped up in a castle for almost nine years isn’t as fun as it may sound.

But I am just glad to have my amazing bride and savior by my side.

Belle had gone off to collect some flowers so I had settled myself on a nearby swing as I waited for her to return. I began looking off to the castle that was once my home and I never realized how close it was to my kingdom. On the outside, it looks so dark as if it holds some evil spirit, but on the inside, it felt like the safest place on Earth to me.

Then, I felt something sharp hit my neck. I look up as I feel the pain searing through my neck and my vision begins to blur but not before I saw what was the cause: Belle.

My eyelids drop and my last thought is how could I have been played so easily, by someone who I loved most?

~~~~~Belle’s Perspective~~~~~

Honestly, that was much easier than I thought it was going to be. Finally, with Adam gone, my father and I can have what we came for: all the riches and pleasure this kingdom has to offer.

Honestly, I feel bad for Adam, I was starting to really fall for him, but my one true love will always be wealth for me and my father. We’ve lived in that little broke town for too long and were always begging for scraps, but that part of our lives are over. Now, we will savor the sweet taste of riches and never be looked down upon again.

It was such a marvelous plan too! To go to the castle and pretend I was just some lost innocent girl and it was so easy to fool him. When in reality, I knew all about his curse and how it could be broken and from there the master plan was made.

I would arrive and play as an innocent and then I’d get closer with the furred Prince til we’d get married, and then move back to the kingdom, and finally I’d kill him. So now, I am the heir to all the riches and to the throne of the country.

Poor Prince Adam, a shame he got in the way of my plans. But how could he have known that I was the real beast that should be feared, not him.

Nothing will ever stand in the way of my or my father’s happiness, I will always make sure of that.