Beauty and the Beast (Excerpt)
Read by Emma Watson
When his vision cleared, the old beggar was gone. In her place was the most beautiful woman the Prince had ever seen. She was floating above him and emitting a dazzling golden light, not unlike the sun's.
Instantly, the Prince knew exactly what she was, for he had read about such things. She was an enchantress, a woman of magic who would put him to the test. And he had failed.
Falling to his knees, the Prince held up his hands. Please, he said now the one to beg, I'm sorry Enchantress, you are welcome in my castle for as long as you like. The Enchantress shook her head. She had seen enough to know that it was a hollow apology. The Prince had no kindness, nor love in his heart. Magic costs through her and then washed over the Prince.
The transformation began instantly, the Prince’s body was wracked with pain, his back arched and he groaned as his body began to grow. His jewellery popped off, his clothes ripped, the surrounding guests screamed at the sight of their host and fled.
The Prince reached up trying to grasp at a nearby man's hand, but to his horror he discovered his own hand resembled that of a monster. The man jumped away and made his escape along with the others. Amid it all, the Enchantress calmly watched her punishment take effect. Soon the ballroom was empty, save for the staff, the entertainers and a lone dog that belongs to the diva.
As they looked on in shock, the Prince’s transformation became complete, where once they had towered a handsome man now coward a hideous beast. But he was not the only one to have transformed. The rest of the castle and its inhabitants no longer looked the same, they too had changed. The days bled into years, and the Prince and his servants were forgotten by the world. Until finally, the enchanted castle stood isolated and locked in perpetual winter.
The Enchantress erased all memory of the castle and those who were in it, even from the minds of the people who loved them. But there did remain one last bit of hope. The Rose she had offered the Prince was truly an enchanted rose.
"Yes it was an enchanted rose!”
If the Prince could learn to love another and earn that person's love in return by the time the last petal fell, the spell would be broken. If not, he would be doomed to remain a beast forever.
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