Beauty And The Beast {Pafp}

Sterling looked down at the woman in his arms, "Well Love, looks like you have crossed the wrong path." His horse, Raven, even without being told, takes his master and the strange new woman to Sterling's cabin home. It was left behind by a noble family that died of some plague long before anyone now a days would remember, it towered over the rose bushes scattered around the clearing. The building rose from the ground, a large, wooden beast looming in the night, the windows glowed with the light from the fire inside. He kicked down his own door and set the sleeping beauty of the couch to wait for her to awaken. Raven had taken himself to his stall behind the house and Stirling set about making himself dinner, or at least drinking the left overs from the last hunter who wandered too far into his wood without permission.

"Good morning little dove." Stirling boomed from the kitchen. He too a long drink from his golden goblet. "Welcome to the middle of no where. Don't think of escaping, you'd be dead before you reached the door." he sounded bored, setting his cup down and striding to the wing-backed chair in front of the fire. "What is the name of the girl stupid enough to venture on the outskirts of the Beasts territory in the middle of winter?" his blue stare was cutting into her, unreadable in the glow of the firelight.

"Are you mute? Come now dove, I won't bite...unless you ask me to." he chuckled to himself and gave himself a moment to take her in. Little dove was shaking so hard he could practically hear her bones rattling about in her body. "Huh, I guess you would be cold." he said and stood up, looming over her sitting frame. He shrugged off his finely made fun lined coat and threw it over her shoulders, sitting back down after.

"I don't take kindly to trespassers." he growled, "I'll have to take you back to the main home with me. You could be useful for something little dove, a decorative piece to add to my collection." He brushed a hand through his hair, mentally mapping out where to put her, what to keep her as, where to let her roam about. "I am Sterling Alexander, but to your people, I am what the call The Beast." He pointed to a door behind her "You may sleep in there tonight, we leave for my main home tomorrow."

"Oh little one, you have no idea who you're playing with." Stirling stood, towering above her at his full height. He tilted her chin up at him, he smiled, showing off his rather pointed canines, "I could kill you before you got one step to the door. This vein right here," he said, tapping her carotid artery, "Is very easily cut. You'd be lifeless in second and that'd be no fun at all." He leaned down, his mouth next to her ear, "They don't call me Beast for nothing." he rumbled.

"Little dove talks back now huh?" He chuckled and grabbed her by the shoulders, steering her to her bed room. He opened her door and threw her on the bed. There were no windows for her to escape through. "Now, goodnight little one. Get some rest, we ride at day break." he turned and locked the door behind him, and going back to his chair to stare at the fire.

Stirling sat there all night, watching the fire and hearing Phoebe's heart beating in the next room. Just before the sun had made it into the sky, he stood, went into his room and redressed himself in black riding pants and a loose white shirt. When you live in a frostbitten hell for most of your life, the cold doesn't bother you anyway. "Little dove, it's time we leave."He opened the door and saw the small woman, still wrapped in his coat from last night.

"I can hear the change in your heartbeat, Phoebe. Get up." he growled, annoyed by this woman's stubbornness. "If you don't get up now, I'm going to throw you over my shoulder and the ride to the castle will not be as comfortable as it could be." he leaned against the door frame, making a game plan for if she didn't get up.

"My attitude may be ugly, but I am not. Let's go, Raven is waiting." he didn't move though, he waited for her to come to him. His curse may have not have turned him ugly, but he was still a monster. He had done countless horrible things to countless people over his lifetime, it was the reason he was cursed in the first place.

"Well he doesn't like you either." he said, taking two long strides and pulling her across the bed. "If you won't act civilized, then I wont either." he growled and threw her over his shoulder, holding her legs and striding out of the door. Who did this little nobody think she was? He had killed people for less offensive things, he was only keeping her alive for her blood and the fact that she was a lovely little trinket.

Stirling simply pressed on, pulling her through the door frame and through the house. "I'll let you down when you stop behaving like a child." he grunted, her fists didn't hurt, but they were a mild annoyance, like gnats buzzing in you ear. He wished she would just stop fighting, he didn't want to hurt her but it was getting exceedingly hard not to just drain her of all blood right then and there.

"Fine! Fine! Here you go." He set her down and rubbed his ribs where she got a good man in. "Just get on the horse." He signed, waving to the massive black horse waiting for them outside. It was a relatively sunny day, but no birds sang, they never did in his forests.

"Yes you are." he growled, quirking an eyebrow at her. "You'd get lost in these woods and if I didn't find you, they raven would, and his tastes are not that of an average horse. He'd eat you and wouldn't even leave a little taste for me."

"Now, Now, don't go and be foolish." He grabbed her hand and pulled her back to him, his grip steel like on her. "We can do this easily or we can do this my way, which involves you tied to the back of the horse. I'm being nice, don't fight me."

"You have my word as a gentleman that no harm will come to you today." He smiled gently, it would be easier if she would stop straggling and if a few choice words would do that, he'd say whatever she wanted to here. He put his hands around her waist, just below her ribs and lifted her onto Raven.

"fine, I swear you will not be harmed by me. If you do something stupid though, I'm not the only deadly thing in these woods." He mounted the horse, sitting behind her, taking the reigns. "Are you ready Miss Phoebe?"

"you alright, little dove? Horses not your style?" He teased, her grip like iron on his shirt. He could hear her erratic heartbeat and fast breathing, he could smell the fear. Raven was a large animal and his gait wasn't suitable for everyone. He hit the earth hard on each step, jarring unskilled riders.

"Close you're eyes dove and do not open them. We'll be there in a moment." He was startled by her arms around his waist, but he did not attempt to remove her. He looked over his shoulder at the girl clinging to him, when he closed her eyes, he muttered a phrase in Latin an in a flash of light, get were in front of a grand castle. it was old, so old that the stone was crumbling in some places and roses climbed massive columns. It was winter, snow lay everywhere, but roses of every color of the rainbow bloomed.

"Welcome to my home, you can open your eyes now." He said, leading Raven to the base of the grand stairs leading to the door. He hopped off of the tall beast and took Phoebe's waist, letting her down, but he didn't let go of her, he was studying her face, his blue eyes bright and curious.

He stared for a moment longer before pulling himself away and clearing his throat. "Well, this is my home and for the time it's yours too." He held out his arm to lead her inside. When the two were inside, servants fluttered about, cleaning, tidying, children in about playing, everything was happy. He lead Phoebe up the stairs and to the east wing. They walked in silence for a bit before he pushed open a door to her new room. "I'll have some one come in and redecorate if you wish."