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Post by Belle on Feb 19, 2006 11:01:32 GMT -5
-The next night-
Belle hopped up onto Layla's bed and sat down. "Layla?" she asked, tugging on her friend's hand. "Can you tell me more of the story? You had just started telling me about the girl. That she had a magical voice." Belle was fairly anxious to find out how the prince and the maiden met.
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Post by Layla on Feb 20, 2006 20:05:56 GMT -5
Layla leaned back against her pillows, and tapped her chin reflectively. "Well, let's see . . . oh yes, I remember. One day as the girl was walking through the village square, enjoying the beautiful day, browsing through the merchants' trinkets, and so forth, she overheard a conversation between a group of burly men. At first, she began to move past them, content to go on her way, but then they said the magic words: "the beast." You see, Belle, by then some years had passed since the curse on the beast had first occurred - and since then, he had become quite the town legend."
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Post by Belle on Feb 20, 2006 20:11:41 GMT -5
"How many years equals some years?" Belle asked. "The beast still has plenty of time to win her, right?" She felt pity for the beast and didn't think he deserved to be cursed forever. "And does she have a name?"
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Post by Layla on Feb 23, 2006 22:06:23 GMT -5
Layla shook her head sadly, "I am afraid, Belle, that the beast was running out of time. According to the curse, which had been laid upon him on his eighteenth birthday, he had to find a woman to truly fall in love with him before his twenty-fifth year. Easier said than done. So horrified was the prince with his appearance that for two years he remained locked up in his castle - and then, after that period of time he finally ventured outdoors, only to be seen by the villagers. Now, the prince hadn't been transformed into just any regular wolf - he had become this enormous, mangy, grotesque creature. It terrified the villagers - and they wanted him dead. After that experience the beast again became a recluse, knowing that if the villagers caught sight of him he would be as good as dead. In any event, by the time the girl, whose name happens to be Christine, heard those men speaking in the square, the beast had just turned twenty-four."
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Post by Belle on Feb 23, 2006 22:09:27 GMT -5
"Oh no," Belle cried, looking terrified for the beastly prince. Tears started to well up in her eyes and she struggled to keep from crying. "The poor prince." She sniffled a little bit, before searching for a tissue. "How does Christine meet the prince? And what was his name before he got called Beast?"
OOC: I would laugh if Layla said Sky XD
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Post by Layla on Feb 23, 2006 22:20:31 GMT -5
"Well, after Christine overheard those men's conversation, her curiosity was piqued. She had heard many frightful stories about the beast, whose name, unfortunately, is entirely unknown. She had heard people say that the beast ate children and livestock, that he prowled around the edges of the village at night, waiting for unsuspecting victims to attack. But for some reason, Christine just couldn't believe the stories - she just couldn't grasp that such a beast truly existed. It just seemed too inconceivable to her that anyone would purposely hurt someone else - I might add that Christine was still very idealistic at the age of eighteen. She refused to believe that a bad soul existed in the world - and she was determined to prove herself right by seeking out and befriending "the beast" in order to show the world that he was nothing to fear."
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Post by Belle on Feb 23, 2006 22:23:05 GMT -5
"Oh, she's one of those," Belle said, nodding a bit. "A starry eyed dreamer. Always the best kind of heroine." She settled back down in Layla's lap, content that the maiden would befriend the beast before the time ran out and there was a lovely happily ever after.
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Post by Layla on Feb 23, 2006 22:36:56 GMT -5
"One cold evening not too long after the beast's twenty-fourth birthday, Christine's parents left for a fortnight long trip to visit relatives in another province far, far away. Deciding that the timing was perfect to seek out the beast, Christine, after wishing her parents farewell, crept out of the cottage, saddled her horse and went down the path that lead toward the dark woods. You see, it was common knowledge in the village that at the other end of the woods was where the beast resided in the old unkept castle that had once belonged to the prince. The villagers never realized that the prince was still very much alive - indeed, they thought that the beast had slipped into the castle one night many years ago and slaughtered him. No one suspected that the beast was actually the prince."
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Post by Belle on Feb 23, 2006 22:39:45 GMT -5
"I can just see his reaction when he learns about that," she laughed. "And I can see the people being dumbfounded and shocked to learn that the beast they thought killed their prince was really their prince all this time." Belle bit her lower lip and looked up at Layla. "The beast won't hurt Christine when she first meets him, will he?"
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Post by Layla on Feb 23, 2006 22:53:48 GMT -5
Layla flopped back against her pillows, staring up at the ceiling, a small frown almost imperceptibly creasing her brow. "Well, it had been four whole years since the beast had had any interaction with humans; his servants were of no consolation to him as they too had been transformed - most into various household objects. So, the beast wasn't exactly all sunshine and smiles - in fact, he was quite the opposite. Six years total as the beast had dampened his spirits and made him gloomy, withdrawn, temperamental, and a complete recluse. As far as he was concerned, he was doomed to forever more live as a beast and so, as the years passed, he lost all his hope, and finally gave in to his animalistic side, leaving his refined princely mannerisms behind in the dust."
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Post by Belle on Feb 23, 2006 22:58:28 GMT -5
"Oh dear, I'm predicting much blood spillage," Belle said, shaking her head. "Hopefully, he won't scare her off or hurt her too badly." She paused and looked up at Layla. "Music's said to soothe the savage beast.... do you think it'd work with that prince?"
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Post by Layla on Feb 25, 2006 0:50:51 GMT -5
Feigning disappointment, Layla pressed her lips together and shook her head in exaggerated sadness. "I don't think it would work, Belle - at least not right away. You've got to remember that by the time Christine set out to find the beast, he had already been cursed for many years. That's more than enough time for him to have grown more than a little bit cynical. So I'm afraid that it was going to take something more than just music to lift his spirits."
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Post by Belle on Feb 25, 2006 7:48:29 GMT -5
Belle bit her lower lip and looked up at Layla. "He won't try to kill her, will he? Surely he'll sense something special about her and let her live, right?" Belle found herself entirely grateful that her Beast was far more civilized.
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Post by Layla on Feb 25, 2006 9:54:34 GMT -5
Layla paused for a moment as she pondered Belle's question. "No, the beast may be many bad things, but he's not a killer. That being said, he'll be more likely to ignore her than anything else." Raising a brow, she added, "You can be the judge of whether that's a good thing or a bad thing."
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Post by Belle on Feb 25, 2006 9:56:52 GMT -5
"Well, it could go either way," Belle said. "Good that he ignores her and therefore doesn't harm her, but bad because that means he's losing his chance to break his curse." She looked up at Layla. "So, how does he meet her? Does she sneak into his bedroom once she enters the castle?"
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