Beauty and the Beast

"Stay me with flagons, comfort me with apples: for I am sick of love./ His left hand is under my head, and his right hand doth embrace me." - The Bible, The Song of Solomon, ch. 2, v. 5-6

The search through the castle had proven full of fascinating sights, yielding up a library full of books and a room with weapons on the walls, including several swords. Riley lifted down a heavy crossbow and hefted it grimly. His weapons might have been too small to take on a creature the Beast's size. But these looked as if they would do nicely. He would need practice with the unfamiliar piece, though, and he slung it over his shoulder along with a quiver full of bows with the intention of practicing in secret.

He wandered into the room of pictures. This time the eyes were merely flat orbs on painted canvas; there didn't appear to be any movement to them at all and Riley wondered if he'd been tricked by fatigue and unduly influenced by his father's fanciful account of this bizarre place.

He peered closer at them now that the urge to find the Beast was temporarily pushed aside. The looks of all these people were hauntingly similar, just as his father had said. There was obviously a family resemblance and somehow they appeared familiar. He turned the problem over and over in his mind until finally it hit him.

These people all resembled the prince! He had said he was the true owner of this castle and here was the proof. The next moment his assurance wavered. He still wasn't certain whether the prince was real or not. Perhaps, after he'd seen these pictures the previous night, his mind had conjured the scion of royalty and mixed in remembrances of Gavrin to comfort him during the night. A quiet voice deep in his soul whispered that his mind had never been so imaginative before coming to this bespelled place and there was more to the prince than a fevered dream brought on by loneliness and his longing for an old friend.

He left the room, closing the door behind him, and squelched the thought firmly. Yet it stayed in his mind, as the prince's phantom touch had lingered on his skin.

After a while, Riley found himself a trifle bored. He'd thought of himself as a solitary man. Yet he wasn't entirely of Gavrin's temperament. He liked having human company about himself of a times and the silence in the castle halls became oppressive.

He wandered into the grounds, hoping to hear the sound of insects and birds. There were several about, flitting away at his presence, much the way they would have done outside of this enchanted place and he was happy at the sight of their ordinary, non-magical looks. "At least there's something of the normal about this place," he said to himself as he carried on with his explorations.

He thought of the black horse and considered going for a ride on its back. The animal had a curious way of traveling but perhaps that was only for flight outside the Beast's domains. Riley stopped, leaning against a nearby tree, one of many surrounding a small pond, and considered. Would the horse take him back home if he got on its back again? Would it be a breach of his father's contract with the Beast if he fled? How long was he meant to stay with the Beast in any case? Was it for the rest of his life or would the creature release him at some undetermined time in the future?

Riley cursed himself inwardly. He should have asked the Beast these questions this morning instead of allowing his terror at its appearance to overwhelm him. Still, it was certain the Beast would reappear again and when it did... He fingered his bow, remembering his real intention in coming to this place. He was not the Beast's willing captive. He had come here to kill the animal and steal his possessions.

The next moment he faltered, remembering the prince's words. If his nighttime apparition had spoken truly and wasn't merely a dream brought on by being in an odd place, then the Beast hadn't meant to hurt him but had rewarded his family and made them wealthy again. There was no need for robbery on his part. Besides, hadn't it been theft by his father that started this whole foul business? Was Riley no better than that if he killed his host and robbed him?

This was pointless speculation. The prince wasn't real and the Beast was very much so and was holding him prisoner. He stalked through the grounds with new purpose. If the Beast didn't live in the castle proper, then he must make his lair somewhere on the property. His father had said how the animal had reared up out of nowhere to assault him when he'd taken that rose; it was as good a place to start as any.

The rose garden proved to be immense. As soon as he neared the blooms, the intoxicating aroma surrounded him, swept over his senses, making him almost giddy. He shook his head and stepped away. How had his father managed to inhale such a fragrance without falling into a swoon? Indeed his vision seemed to swim just a little. The red plush blossoms reached for him with petals that lengthened and touched his skin. They flowed over his skin, curling around his body with scent and velvet caress until it was like he was being stroked by thousands of tiny, grasping mouths. They ran sensually over his flesh and pressed against his lips with the murmur of eerie laughter.

Riley Finn tottered and collapsed, his weapons clattering unheeded on to the ground.

__________

"Riley." He groaned softly, a weird pounding sensation in his head, and clenched his eyes tighter. A cool hand ran across his forehead and the voice came nearer, whispering into his ear. "Riley, wake up."

Riley started and opened his eyes. The Beast was gazing down at him, the tiny red eyes fastened to his own. "You really shouldn't let yourself sleep in the open during the daylight like that. It's not the safest thing in the world to do."

Riley sat up, groaning at the pain in his head, so much stronger now that the cool hand was gone. And why had he felt a hand? Wasn't he alone with the Beast? He frowned, trying to order his thoughts. "What happened to me? I was in the garden..."

"And you passed out from sunstroke," the Beast commented. Its tail lashed and Riley wondered at the creature's agitation. Was it actually...concerned about Riley?

"How did I get here? Did your servants move me again?" Riley glanced down at his body in a panic. Thankfully he wasn't naked this time. But he still didn't feel entirely at his ease with the Beast only a few feet away. He'd tucked a knife deep into one boot as safety in case he lost his bows again. But he couldn't feel it nestled against his ankle and once again his other weapons were missing. Then he noticed the crossbow and arrows laid across a nearby chair. He kept his eyes carefully away from them, however.

Riley turned from the Beast's searching gaze. He swept aside the blanket and attempted to stand. The room swam for a bit and then steadied itself. The Beast stood up on all fours and Riley stopped, wondering if it meant to attack him now that he was so weakened. But the animal merely brushed its head against Riley, nudging him back to the couch. "Riley, you shouldn't try to walk. You are still so weak; you could become truly ill if you move about too much."

Riley flinched at the feel of the creature's hide. In truth it wasn't repulsive, the silky fur about its neck feeling much like the skin of other animals he'd hunted and slain. But it was terrifying to have his captor so close and he longed to have his weapons in his grasp. The feelings of helplessness and vulnerability returned and his fists clenched.

It was as if the other sensed his unease for the Beast moved away from him. Riley continued to walk about the room and this time the Beast made no move to help, only watched him with anxious eyes. Riley thought the creature would spring to his aid if he started to totter and steeled himself to walk without staggering.

He looked about himself. This place wasn't his own bedroom; instead it appeared to be a sitting room of some sort. A wall was covered with a glass-enclosed holder of plates, cups and utensils. It was cozy instead of fancifully tricked out like the rest of the castle and he wondered how he could have missed it. Then again, the place was huge and he hadn't managed to explore it all before going outside to track the Beast.

Reminded of his original intentions, he turned around to see the Beast once again watching him. Really, it was nerve-wracking to have those red eyes following his every move and Riley stepped casually closer to the bow resting on the chair. If he could only grasp it, he might stand a chance of felling the creature. The chair was close and the Beast didn't stand between him and it. But a closer look showed him the arrows had been removed and replaced in the quiver. There was no chance he could grab it, re-arm it with a lethal shaft and kill the monster before it pounced.

But once again it showed no sign of attack. Indeed, he'd been rescued and treated when he might have been left to die or attacked in the open. Riley didn't like this; he liked nothing about his current situation. This monstrous creature didn't act like a monster. It didn't behave as he'd been told or as it should. Nothing about this world made sense and all at once Riley was fed up with it.

But what could he do? He thought for a moment as he leaned against the windowsill, avoiding the sunlight that beamed through it. He was a Finn and Finns could think themselves out of anything. The opportunity he'd lost to question the Beast earlier had returned. Time to make the most of it.

He crossed his arms and stared at his captor. "Beast, how long am I to remain here? Is my captivity eternal or will you release me?"

The Beast lowered its head. "I do not wish to keep you against your will, Riley Finn."

He seized on that. "Then you'll let me go in time?"

"No. I made a bargain with your father and you are part of that bargain. If you wish to leave, I must take one of your sisters instead or your father."

Riley's teeth gritted although he tried to remain calm. "Then I am a prisoner."

"Yes, but the castle and grounds are yours to explore. You need not feel caged."

"But I am in a cage. A gilded one with invisible bars. But a cage nonetheless. And I am kept here against my will," Riley spat out, his face twisting in unhappiness and frustration.

"Yet you could have let one of your sisters come. And I believe you came here with a purpose. That certainly suggests free will." The Beast glanced at the bow and back at him again. This time the piggy eyes were shrewd and Riley's mouth went dry although he tried to keep his face and stance relaxed. The Beast had guessed his intentions and now would punish him for them.

The animal rose to all fours and Riley lunged for the weapon. He grabbed it and raised it above his head, determined to bludgeon the creature even if he couldn't shoot it.

The Beast showed not the slightest bit of alarm. Instead it said mildly, "Since you seem to have recovered and are already dressed for hunting, I've no objections to your moving about. Join me in the arbor and we may take down a deer or two." He sprang to the door, paused to let it open by one of his unseen servants and vanished.

Riley stood still in bewilderment. Surely the Beast must have realized what was actually in his mind. His gesture with the crossbow just now held a visible threat; why hadn't the monster tried to take him down? But it seemed it had other plans in mind.

It didn't matter. He fitted an arrow into the bow and held it up. He'd been given another chance to kill the creature and this time he would not fail.

__________

He hadn't thought to ask the Beast where this unknown arbor was. Yet the moment he left the castle, the trees loomed up straight and tall only a few feet from the front doors. There was no sign of the Beast and Riley hesitated. Here was more magic at work and the lord and master of the grounds was doubtless far more in his element than Riley. Still, he was armed and the creature wasn't. Slightly cheered by this thought, he stepped into the dense thicket.

The Beast reappeared almost immediately by his side and rumbled in its deep voice, "I smell deer." Indeed the creature was slavering, froth dripping from its tongue, and Riley smiled in grim satisfaction. Now this was the behavior he expected from an animal. There was no false elegance about the creature this time.

It wore no clothes as it had inside; perhaps it felt they would be an impediment to free movement. It began flitting in and out of the trees, its movement almost too fast to be tracked and Riley felt an upsurge of frustration. Was the animal never to remain still long enough for him to destroy it?

The next moment the Beast reappeared by his side. "Listen," it breathed.

In spite of himself, Riley found himself obeying. He lifted his head tensely. He could hear nothing. Indeed, the forest was eerily quiet with nothing like the fervent buzzing of insects and the call of birds that he'd heard earlier. But the Beast flicked its ears at some sound he couldn't hear and whispered, "Get on my back."

"What?" Riley stepped away from him, puzzled and alarmed at the request.

"Get on my back. I've scented it." Its eyes turned up at Riley, begging and demanding at once, and Riley found himself wavering. This was something he hadn't expected. But he'd agreed to come hunting and he didn't want to seem a coward in front of this creature. The Beast flattened itself to the ground and Riley swung one leg gingerly across that ruffed mane, straddling the huge back.

The Beast was slightly humped, nothing like a horse, and the fit was awkward. Then Riley dug his hands into the monster's ruff and bent forward a little. The seat was all at once more natural. But he'd barely settled into it before the creature between his legs gave a great surge and ran in swift strides along the ground.

This was nothing like the ride on the black horse. Without a saddle, he could feel every twitch of muscle and sinew bunching between his thighs, the rubbing irritating and yet oddly agreeable. Branches lashed at Riley and he could feel their sting on his back. But he could see the trees as they flew past them and the sensation of the ground beneath the Beast's paws as he ran. The Beast bounded into a clearing and Riley saw their quarry.

A herd of deer was there, already in motion as they scented the beings hunting them, and Riley thought they would never catch up to them now. But the Beast's muscles bunched under his hands as he put on a burst of speed and he managed to separate one from the herd. The deer, a fine pricket by the antlers, charged down a small hill and the Beast turned to intercept it. Riley saw himself before what looked like a sheer drop and couldn't help a wild yell as the Beast jumped the enormous distance and landed on all fours.

The deer continued to elude final capture but the Beast would not relent. Riley remembered his place in all this and clenched the Beast even tighter between his legs. He managed to free one hand and clutch at his bow. He hadn't had time to train with it and it was heavy and unfamiliar to his fingers. But he had to take a chance; the hunter he was had been frustrated long enough.

The arrow flew from the bow and lodged in the pricket's neck. The animal staggered and almost fell. The horned creature gave one last desperate leap sideways but the Beast was ready for it. Its body leaped into the air and it was all Riley could do to hang on. Then it came down on the pricket's back and Riley heard the crunching of bone as the Beast broke its neck.

The Beast settled on its kill and waited for Riley to descend from its back. Once he clambered off, Riley tottered a little. The ride had him disoriented, dizzy, breathless and with a strange excitement strumming through his veins. The ride on the black horse hadn't left him nearly as exhilarated like this and he gasped hard as he leaned against his mount.

The Beast butted him with its head and bared its teeth. Riley swore he could see satisfaction in its hairy face as it shook its head from side to side. "Riley, we did it!"

"No," Riley grunted. "You did it. 'Twas you who got it down."

"No, it was already wavering and weakening from your shot. I might never have caught up to it if it weren't for you. This prize is rightfully yours." The Beast grinned and shoved the carcass over to Riley with its snout.

Riley stood over his kill and eyed it uncertainly. It was his; the Beast had said so. Yet the camaraderie he might have had with Michael and Gavrin was stifled under the weight of his situation. The fiendish thing holding him prisoner was responsible for bringing down the game and he suddenly hated the sense of obligation he felt. He and the Beast weren't hunting partners. They weren't even friends and this whole hunt, done out of mindless pleasure, no longer appealed to him. His lips thinning, he kicked the deer's body with one of his boots and said coldly, "Do you think I'd eat the meat of this poor creature? After you've touched it with your filthy paws?"

There was a stunned silence and the Beast looked at him. Riley didn't know how it was but he could see hurt and misery deep within the creature's eyes. It didn't say another word. The hunched body gathered itself and leapt off through the trees.

A sense of shame gripped Riley. He fought against it; this monster was his captor not his friend and deserved no consideration. He shouldn't care about its feelings. Indeed, it was nothing more than a disgusting, brutish swine. It wasn't human and had no more feelings than a stick of wood.

But his conscience whispered to Riley that simply wasn't true. Against his will, he remembered what Gavrin had taught him. He'd said to Riley that animals showed the same tender care of their young and mates that humans did. If they couldn't express love and emotion through word and song like humans, that didn't mean they were without feeling and a sense of obligation. And the Beast, with its consideration, its clothing and mastery of the castle and its hidden helpers, was no mere animal of the fields.

He wanted to call the Beast back. He wanted to reverse time and undo what he had said just now. But the words were spoken and nothing could recall them. Riley Finn regretted few things he'd done and said in his short life but those spiteful words from him had to be added to the list.

He sighed and looked down at the deer's carcass. The thrill of the hunt was gone and nothing remained now but to cut up the remains. Then he remembered where he was. In all excitement of the hunt, he had completely lost his bearings and he glanced around him in a growing sense of panic. He didn't know these woods at all or what other animals might be lurking within their depths. What if there were wolves or even bear here? He was almost certain he could deal with any creature as long as it wasn't the master of the castle. But he didn't like being lost and alone.

He began gathering up branches and sticks to prepare a fire. Darkness would be falling soon and temporary shelter and a fire would be needed at least. Hopefully he remembered enough of building a shelter so that he would be protected from wild animals.

__________

He awoke in his branch shelter and experienced an overwhelming sense of relief. It was pleasant to wake up where he'd fallen asleep and not in another place not of his choosing. Perhaps the Beast had decided to leave him alone after their last unhappy meeting. His spirits sank a little when he remembered his meanness to his host but he steeled himself against it.

There was a smell of venison nearby and he sniffed appreciatively. The moment recalled his injury in the woods with Gavrin and Riley was once more assailed with homesickness, this time fiercer than it had been. He sighed and a voice called out to him. "Riley. Are you awake? I can hear you moving in there. Would you like to eat now?"

It was the prince and Riley sat up hurriedly. He hadn't thought of the other all day, so caught was he in his contemplation of the Beast, and he felt obscurely guilty. But why should he? He wasn't even certain the prince was real.

That musical voice called to him again and Riley decided to come out. If this was all only a dream, there was no harm in indulging himself in it. He crawled out of the enclosure and sat down across the fire from the prince.

The stylish attire the prince had sported the first time they met was gone. Now he wore simple leathers in dark browns and blacks. He almost blended into the trees. If it weren't for his pale face, Riley might not have seen him at all. "There you are at last. I thought you meant to sleep the night away," he said, the amusement back in his voice. Riley didn't know why the other man found him so humorous. But he wasn't as offended by it as he was last night.

"The night is meant for sleeping for mankind. That doesn't seem to be the case with you, though. I've seen you twice now and both times at night. Don't you ever sleep, prince?"

The prince nodded. "I do indeed. I sleep during the day, however. There's little for me to do in it and I'm not bound by the rules of other men." He cocked his head. "And I've asked you to call me Liam."

"Forgive me if I'm a wee bit standoffish in my ways. As you said, I'm naught but a sheep farmer's boy and we don't hobnob with royalty as a rule," Riley said dryly.

"You throw my own words back at me. Touché."

Riley blinked. "What's a tooshay?"

"It's a fencing term." At Riley's blank look, the prince added, "Didn't you ever learn how to handle a sword?"

Riley snorted. "No. That sort of thing's for true gentlemen who like the idea of killing men for sport in duels and such. I've never killed a man in my life and I don't intend to start now."

"Yet didn't you once tell your sister you were going to join the army?" the prince said with a raised eyebrow.

The other man stared at him grimly. "My da said the Beast knew things about his life that he couldn't have known without magic. Have you been keeping watch on my family, too? Are you and the Beast plotting together against me?"

"No, Riley, it's not like that. I'm just as lonely as the Beast and all the more so since I once knew human company and am now bereft of it. It is far harder to lose a thing you've once possessed than never to have had it at all. So I entertain myself with viewing the outside world." The prince sighed, the sadness Riley now knew to be as much a part of him as his fleeting, slight amusement.

No! This man didn't deserve sympathy any more than the Beast did, even if he was also a prisoner. Riley closed his hands into fists. "I'm glad the troubles of my family are such entertainment for you."

"Riley, will you persist in reading ill intent or spite into everything me and the Beast do? No harm is intended to you or yours; I swear it. Watching the world-it is all the pleasure I had left to me. Until now," he added.

Those dark burning eyes were once again on his and Riley's heart bounded. This was almost like his time with Gavrin in the forest and he remembered how the prince had approached him at their last meeting. The memory of that hand on his chin and the pale face nearing his rose in Riley's mind and he turned his eyes away, his mind swirling with confusion. He shouldn't feel this way, not about another man, especially when that man wasn't even real. How real was any of this anyway?

The prince was speaking to him again and he forced himself to concentrate. "Would you like me to teach you to fence, Riley? You could bring a sword with you the next time you're in the cabin."

"I don't want to fence. Besides, why should I go to the cabin? Can't you come to the castle?"

The prince's eyes flickered in the firelight. "The castle and its grounds are the Beast's domains. I can only come to you when you sleep in the cabin or out of doors as you did tonight."

"Why? Is this another part of the enchantment?"

"Riley, haven't you guessed this is only a dream you're having?" The hidden mirth had returned to the prince's voice and yet there was the same undercurrent of sadness that never truly left him.

"You mean none of this is real? Are you a fantasy in my own mind then?"

"I didn't say that. These places you see are very real. I'm real and so are you. You fell asleep in this place, didn't you? And that's your deer meat roasting on that spit, isn't it?" The prince pointed to the meat, momentarily overlooked. "There is nothing false about that."

Riley's brow creased in confusion. "But you say this is all a dream."

"Just because something is considered a dream doesn't mean it doesn't really exist. The Beast could be considered a thing of nightmare and yet he is solid enough. Would you place such trivial limitations on reality, Riley Finn?"

Riley didn't like this. It was too much like a riddle and he liked things set up plain and sensible. He was a sheep farmer's son, after all, and flights of fancy didn't appeal. "You're talking too strange for me. If this is how royalty behave, I don't care for it much," Riley grumbled.

"Forgive me, Riley. It wasn't my intention to confuse you. Perhaps you'd feel better after you've had some food." He gestured to the side and Riley saw a blanket spread on the ground with two plates (one empty and one with fruit and vegetables upon it), cups, bottles of wine and knives set upon it. He hadn't seen it there before and the feeling of peculiarity of this place returned in full force.

Yet he had supped with the prince last night. Why should this be any different? He picked up the empty plate and watched as the prince picked up the plate with the fruit on it and began to consume a crisp apple with golden skin with those sharp white teeth. He had taken two bites from the deer's meat before he noticed the prince wasn't touching any of it. "Won't you have some of the venison, then? If the grounds are yours in name, as you told me, then this meat is yours even more than the Beast's."

The prince glanced longingly at the meat Riley offered him and then looked away. "I-I don't eat meat."

That floored Riley. In all his time in the world, he'd never heard of such a thing and wondered if the other man was touched in the head. "Not eat meat? Why on earth not, man?"

"I haven't touched meat since..." A muscle in his jaw flexed and the prince stopped speaking.

"Since when?" Riley prodded. He shouldn't be curious about this man. But he found the prince more and more intriguing with each encounter and this latest mystery didn't seem like something that needed hiding.

The prince shook his head. "I'm not allowed to speak of it. Let's just say I committed a grave crime once and am now being punished for it."

"The punishment being that you're the Beast's prisoner?" Riley probed.

"Yes."

Nothing more was forthcoming and Riley prodded harder. "And this part where you can't eat meat? Is this a vow or a curse or a part of your punishment?"

"It's-it's..." He faltered and the anguish in his eyes deepened. "I cannot speak of it, Riley! Only know the taste of meat is hateful to me. I long to eat it as I once did and I cannot!" He turned away and Riley was astonished to see his shoulders shake. Was the man crying? But grown men didn't cry. It wasn't the manly thing to do and Riley was at a loss to deal with this harsh show of emotion over something so trivial.

"No, don't fret yourself about it. It only means more for me," he joked. "Besides, you're not missing much." That was a lie he knew even as he said it and he was glad the prince wasn't looking at him to see it on his face.

"You're right. It doesn't matter." The prince's voice was smooth again without a hint of his earlier pain. When he turned back towards Riley, there were no traces of tears on his cheeks, although his eyes glimmered suspiciously. He eyed Riley and the other man shuffled under his searching gaze.

"What? What is it?"

"Perhaps it's possible to get a taste of what I've been missing," the dark-haired man said, his voice sighing over Riley like a caress. He stood up and stepped around the fire to stand beside Riley, moving with that same sinuous grace he always displayed.

The hunter was uneasy again with the prince's nearness. The situation was too much like what he'd felt once with Gavrin, yet the tension was so much greater than it had been with his old hunting companion. His heart was pounding and he didn't know why that should be. This man was a figment of his imagination, barely more real than the Beast itself; Riley shouldn't feel this way from a mere dream. And yet within the dream the reality of this place seemed undeniable. Riley could taste the fat and flesh of the deer in his mouth, feel the heat of the fire and the warmth of the man crouching next to him. But all of this was nothing but a fantasy of the night.

Then why was he so afraid?

The prince cupped his chin as he had before. "Let me taste this, then," he whispered and pressed his lips to Riley's.

The kiss was shocking. But even more so was the desire that surged through Riley Finn to meet it. The prince's tongue flicked at his lips and they automatically parted as Riley moaned. It explored his mouth, probing delicately in the corners to chase the taste of venison on his tongue, the salt from his hidden tears added for flavor and Riley trembled with the force of passion that swept through him.

He was reclining on the ground without realizing it, the prince's body resting on his. His left hand grasped his head, holding it in place, as his tongue continued brushing over Riley's. His other hand swept down the strong surging body beneath his and clutched at Riley's ass, drawing the other man off the ground and against his own form. The dark hair fell over Riley's face, forming a curtain around him that cast him into instant darkness. It was as if the world were being shut away until there was nothing left in it but the two of them.

The man on the ground grasped the prince's waist, holding the dark-haired man to him without Riley being aware he'd done so. His hips were arching up, thwarted pleasure making him want to feel more of this man, his strength, his body, pressing against him. With a start, he realized the prince's hardened manhood was rubbing against his own and there was a swelling in his own breeches to match it.

The prince drew his face from his finally and Riley whimpered unhappily over the loss of those knowing lips. He could see the firelight dancing across the other man's face and the wildness in his eyes, in the pupil's that were dilated with pent-up longing. "Riley, I-I..." He appeared at a complete loss for words and yet blissfully happy, too.

"Prince, I-I, this is so..." Riley faltered, his chest heaving as he gulped for air.

"Am I never to hear you call me Liam?" the prince said. The habitual melancholy tinged his voice but, for the first time since they'd met, it was slight and without the underlying bitterness. He brushed Riley's hair back from his brow, infinite tenderness shining in his black eyes.

Riley gulped, his mind racing with what was happening to him. Somehow he felt as if using the prince's name would be more than losing their formality. The kiss had been potent but the calling of the other's true name would bind him in a way he didn't quite understand. Yet the step had to be taken. The mystery of the prince had layers and depths to it. He had secrets, one of which he'd refused to tell Riley just now, and saying his name would be the first step to unveiling them. Riley didn't know how he knew it; only that it was so.

"Liam," he whispered and the prince smiled and kissed him again.

__________

He awoke again in the castle, shaking with the force of his latest vision. That embrace had been the most wondrous and terrifying he'd ever known. It excited and troubled him at once. But it was wrong for him to enjoy such a thing, wasn't it? The prince-Liam-was a man and two men together didn't enjoy such pleasure from a kiss. It wasn't allowed and forbidden by every canon Riley knew. But that hadn't mattered to him when he'd returned the prince's kiss. And he had returned it-quite thoroughly, too, if he was honest. It had been like everything he'd been denied with Gavrin because of the man's shyness and refusal to speak of what he truly wanted.

Liam had also made it seem entirely natural, so much so he hadn't even asked Riley's permission before assaulting his lips. Riley thought he should feel offended by that but he didn't. Liam displayed the same easy grace in the kiss he showed in everything he did, making it seem so right. Surely, in this place where all the rules of man seemed suspended, a simple embrace couldn't be so very wrong-could it?

He curled in his bed as he tried to resolve this new dilemma. The Beast was his captor yet Liam-and he was calling him Liam in his mind now, Riley noted-was proving a different sort of jailor. What else lay ahead for him and Liam if the dreams progressed in the future? But Liam had said Riley would see him only if he slept in the open. Perhaps he should avoid doing that until he'd thought through these chaotic new feelings of his. Yet he couldn't avoid a sting of regret and inner taunt that the last thing he wanted was to avoid another heated embrace.

His mind made up, Riley decided he might as well rise from his bed. He wondered if dream food were as filling as real food. Judging by the way his stomach rumbled, he didn't think so. He searched for his clothes and was surprised to see that they'd been completely replaced. A silk shirt, in a russet brown that shimmered beneath his touch, lay across a chair along with a velvet crimson vest and brown leather breeches. The latter were almost like those the prince had been wearing and he blushed to think they might look so much like a pair.

He donned them quickly and found them a perfect fit. Normally, such clothing weren't quite his style but he was beginning to ease into life here at the castle. Riley was gratified to see his weapons had been returned yet he hesitated. He hadn't needed them except when he'd hunted that deer but he felt almost naked without them. He compromised by tucking one dagger in his boot and hoped it wouldn't offend his host.

When he opened his door, he smelled the scent of food and his mouth watered. Following his nose, he sniffed through the castle until he came upon the enormous dining hall his father had told him of. The table was laid only for one but the food was in ample portions with piles of steaming eggs, toast and muffins, pots of jams and marmalades, ham, bacon and slabs of deer meat laid out for his delight. Riley grinned at the fare and began tucking in.

While he did so, he couldn't help but wish the prince were with him. It was a crime that such a man and the owner of this place to boot should be restricted from being here and Riley felt a kind of anger against the Beast that for once had nothing to do with himself. He finished his meal and laid the utensils down on his plate with a decisive clatter. "That's it. The next time I see that monster, he's going to have some talking to do," he muttered.

"What is it you wish me to say, Riley?" The rumbling voice came from behind him and Riley half sprang, half swiveled in his chair at the sound of it. The Beast's enormous bulk was behind him and the animal cocked its head at Riley's clumsy movement and coughed once in that strange way of his. Was the creature laughing at him? Riley was irked at how it always seemed to catch him by surprise but he decided to overlook it for the time being.

"I was wondering-this is a place for men," he said, waving his arm around the space but meaning the castle at large. "You're just an animal. How is it you come into possession of such a fine establishment?" He didn't want to mention the prince as yet. The Beast might not really know about him if he was truly a delusion Riley had and, if he wasn't, he didn't want to tip his hand that he knew the Beast was holding Liam prisoner.

The Beast's head had lowered when Riley called him an animal. "You are right. This place was not originally mine. Another held sway over here before I came to stay."

There was nothing else and Riley continued, standing and maneuvering himself so the table was between them. "So how did you get it then? Did you kill the former owner?"

The Beast's tail lashed the polished floor and Riley saw that he'd managed to upset it. "No, Riley. Do not think so ill of me." Once more, his words were an eerie echo of the prince's and Riley felt a chill creep up his spine. There was a connection between the two, part of the enigma of this place, and he needed to learn the truth.

"Then how is it you tread these halls, call yourself Master and there's no hide nor hair of its human host? If you didn't kill him, where is he? Who was he anyway?" Riley demanded.

The Beast's liquid eyes fastened on his and that low rumble crept from that massive chest. "It belonged to a thoughtless boy, who neglected his duty and the palace's delights to go roaming the world in search of ever-new sensations and sordid pleasures. He didn't deserve this place-and so it was taken from him and he was cast into exile."

It paused and Riley's eyes narrowed. "And who took it from him? Was it you? What gave you the right?"

"Riley, I can speak no more of this. That young man is not your concern. All that matters is that you are happy and comfortable here." The Beast coiled its back legs under its hefty bulk and sprang into the air. Before Riley could move, it had landed on the other side of the table, next to Riley, and gently butted him with its head. "Are you happy?"

"No," Riley answered before he could stop himself. The Beast's proximity had rattled him again and he said the first thing that came in his head.

"What can I do to make you happy?" Those reddish eyes rose and looked at him eagerly and Riley forced himself not to back away as the animal's head towered above his own.

"I'd like to see my family." That was not the first thing that came to him after the Beast's question but it was the safest thing he could think of. A deeper desire, one he had barely begun to acknowledge to himself just this morning, lay closer to his heart. But he couldn't tell that to the monster before him, not without betraying Liam's secret.

"That can be arranged." The Beast turned and padded away on all fours. "Follow me," it called over one hunched shoulder and Riley hurried to trail after it.

The Beast led him through winding halls, going ever deeper into the castle depths, and Riley pushed down his unease at the darkening corridors. There were torches lit but they did little to alleviate the darkness. Stony walls replaced the marble and the air was stale and flat as if no one breathed or aired out this place at all. Not that airing was possible, seeing as there were no windows.

There was also an undeniable musky smell, getting stronger, and Riley realized it was coming from his surroundings. There was always the smell of the animal about the Beast's presence but it was most powerful here. They must be approaching the Beast's lair.

Riley tried to settle his breathing. The Beast couldn't be taking him somewhere to be eaten, not after everything that had passed between them. It had had opportunity and time to kill Riley if that had been its intention. Why would it do so now? Nevertheless, the gloom and dankness of this place did nothing to alleviate his dread and the hunter was glad he'd stuck a knife in his boot when he dressed.

They were heading towards the dungeon, the one Riley had seen before and dismissed as a possible hiding place for the furred creature treading lightly before him and his palms began to sweat. How could he have been such a blind fool? Was he even now walking into a trap? Any moment now the Beast would turn and bare its teeth and laugh at Riley's naïve trust before lunging to sink its tusks in his throat...

They paused before the dungeon doors and the Beast fumbled at his belt. He drew out a ring of keys and Riley wondered that he hadn't heard them rattle. Then again, the Beast's thick fur and velvet tunic must have worked very well to muffle the sound. The door opened and Riley gagged on the stench that wafted from behind it. The animal smell was so much stronger here and it was coupled with another odor that Riley recognized too well from his long stint as a hunter.

There was carrion here. Animal or human, he couldn't be sure, but it was rank and unclean and he stood back, not wanting to go into that closeness. The Beast turned when it sensed he was no longer following. "Riley?"

"I'm not-heavens, that stench is foul. I'm not going in there," Riley gritted out, his eyes watering from the stink.

The Beast sighed. Riley was beginning to recognize the various noises it made and he could feel the regret in this one and a tinge of shame as well. "It is the only way. It is where I keep my view on the world. If you wish to remove it to your room, I will have my servants do so. I will be robbed of my sight of humanity. But it is a little price to pay to satisfy your wish." It stepped into the dim recesses of the room. After another short hesitation, Riley followed.

The first things he saw were bones, heaps of them, piled against the wall and spilling across the grimy stone floor. The light from the torches here was even dimmer than before but he could make out that they were indeed all animal bones. He recognized splinters of rabbit, deer, elk, oxen and the crunched and broken remains of various kinds of birds in these bleached piles. There wasn't a human bone amongst them that he could see and he sagged in relief.

The Beast eyed him. "Riley, what did you fear? Did you think, even now, that I intended your death?"

He flushed at the reproach in that subdued voice. "I-I didn't know what to think. This place is disgusting, with none of the beauty of the rest of the castle, and I feared, I thought-it didn't lend itself to happy notions," he finished feebly.

The Beast coughed again, the sound of its laughter. "Yes, I suppose the sight and smell of this place do not give rise to cheerful conjecture."

Riley was glad the animal wasn't unduly offended. "Is this where you-I mean, I searched for you before..." He stopped.

"When you were hunting me. Yes, the mirror showed me," the Beast remarked in dry tones. "But you are right. This is where I live and sleep when I do not roam the castle halls."

"It seems vile, if I do not offend you," Riley ventured. "You are master of this place, as you told my father. You could have any room you wished. Why live here, like this?"

The Beast's head dipped towards the floor and it murmured, "Am I not a filthy animal? Does an animal deserve any better place?"

Riley bit his lip for he heard his own harshness in the Beast's self-loathing. He hadn't treated the creature with any kindness and very little politeness and all at once he was ashamed. He stepped towards the animal's side and draped his arm about it, uncaring of its ugliness. "You are more than an animal to me," he ventured diffidently.

Then hideous boar's head-not quite so terrible now-twisted to look up at him. "Then-I do not repulse you entirely? You are a hunter, I know. Animals must be nothing more than food and sport to you."

"Once I knew a-friend who taught me to respect the beauty of nature's wild creatures even if they're formed differently from myself. I had forgotten that. You have your own grace, your own dignity in movement. Forgive me if I have not respected that. And you have been nothing but kind to me. My ma taught me politeness and I had forgotten that, too. I will try to treat you better in future."

Riley took in a deep breath. That was more than he'd ever spoken to the creature before, even more than the prince, and he felt slightly embarrassed by the outpouring of feeling. As if the Beast sensed his discomfiture, it moved from under his arm. "Here is the view of your family as I promised you."

Riley looked where he pointed and, for the first time, noticed a mirror, shining in the light from the torches set in the walls. It had a fancy frame and a highly gleaming surface, out of odds with the dinginess and dirt of its surroundings. It sparkled and winked like the light in a woman's saucy eye and beckoned him nearer. Wary of its invitation, for he'd been felled by similar enticements in the garden, he paused a few feet from it and stared doubtfully into its gleaming depths and back at the Beast.

The animal answered the question in his eyes. "Look into its depths, Riley, and think of what you wish to see."

He stared hard at it and concentrated. The faces of his family, his beloved Lizzy especially, sprang into his mind. The surface of the mirror wavered, like a pond when troubled by a hand dangled in the water, and grew foggy. Then it cleared and he saw his family.

He saw a room he didn't recognize, richly furnished with fancy decorations all over the walls. Darla was there with a handsome man, tall with hair a sandy blond and dark blue eyes, standing at her side. He bent his head to hers and he said something to her, his lips moving soundlessly. He quirked an eyebrow at the Beast and it nodded at the mirror. "Think harder and you can hear them."

He wrinkled his brows and sound began to pour from it. "And that's what I told that man when he asked me what I did when I was overseas!"

Darla laughed, her familiar tinkling laughter ringing out. He recognized that laugh; it was what she used when she was trying to seduce some poor bloke or other. But this time it sounded genuine, a happy light beaming out of her green eyes that he'd never seen before. "Colin, you are the funniest man I've ever met."

He grinned back at her, white teeth only slightly flawed by a crooked one in the front that lay aslant of the others. "Thanks, Darla. It's pleasant to know a girl likes you for more than your looks. Not that I'm complaining about mine," he added boastfully. She laughed again and he bent a soft eye on her fair features. "But seriously, Darla, if you laugh at what I have to say next, I'll die of a broken heart."

She rolled her eyes at the hyperbole. "I don't think so, Colin. Men never die of that. They don't pine for love the way lovesick maidens do."

"But I'm serious, Darla." When she raised an eyebrow at him, he pulled a box from his pocket and knelt before her. "Darla Finn, will you do me the exquisite honor of being my wife?"

Her face lit up with joy. "Oh, Colin. This is so sudden..." she breathed.

"No, not so sudden, for I've been hinting at it for days," he protested. He extended the ring towards her when she made no move to take it. "May I take it the answer's yes?"

"I-I don't know, Colin." Her face clouded over and both Riley and Colin were baffled by the change in her mood.

"What do you mean, you don't know? Either you want to be my wife or you don't and everything I've seen about you says you do," Colin protested.

"I know that. It's not that I don't love you or know my own mind. I love you dearly."

"Then why hesitate?"

She sighed and worried her lip. "It's my sister, Elizabeth."

The man huffed in disappointment and stood up. "Her again."

She flared up at his peevish dismissal. "Yes, her again. Cordelia's well settled with her boy. But Elizabeth has put her life on a halt and I worry about her. I can't just go rushing into matrimony the way Cordelia did and forget all about-my sister. She and father will have no one in this world but each other. It-it feels wrong to think only of my own happiness when she's so grief stricken."

"If she's so miserable, whose fault is that?" Collin protested. "Haven't you told me she rejects all the men who come to her home seeking her hand? She could be happy! But she stays hidden in that house like a princess in a tower and you avoid my questions about her behavior yet claim her as an excuse to avoid matrimony! Why?"

Darla stretched her hand towards him pleadingly. "Colin, it's not that simple..."

"Yes, it is!" He grasped her hand and stared demandingly into her anguished eyes. "Darla, know I love you and you love me. You're not responsible for your sister any longer. She's a grown woman with her own life ahead of her and staying unwed won't make any difference to her state of mind. Say you'll be my wife and let's settle our own happiness."

She wavered and Riley could see the indecision in her eyes. "Collin, let's wait just a little..."

He exploded at that, flinging away her hand in anger. "Wait? For how much longer? It's been two years since I've first started courting you. You are fond and warm one moment. Then you claim concern over your sister and brush me aside. How much longer would you have me wait?" He stared at her averted head and sagged in disappointment when she didn't speak. "Well, then. I guess I have my answer."

He picked up his hat where it rested on a nearby chair and stalked from the room. Darla stood there motionless as if she couldn't believe he had gone and then ran after him. "Collin! Collin! Wait, please! Come back!"

Riley listened to her voice calling for her lover as she ran out of sight and stared at the Beast in shocked accusation. Two years? He'd been gone for two years? But how could that be? And what was wrong with his sister Lizzy?

"Verily, men do foolish things thoughtlessly, knowing not why; but no woman doeth aught without a reason." - [Frank] Gelett Burgess (1866 - 1951), The Maxims of Methuselah (1907), 2


TBC