Band: The Guzmania&Acme (ex.DIV), NEXX
Pairing: Chobi&Chisa
Rating: 17+
Genre: romance, fantasy, AU
Series: "Beauty and the Beast"
Warnings: magic, violence
Note: Yajuu (Chisa) has a body of a beast because of his curse, but when he meets Kirei (Chobi), he suddenly realises that he's not a monster at all.
____________
Kirei - Belle
Yajuu - the Beast
He appeared suddenly, in the middle of the night. He was some old man asking for shelter. And we, naive people, let him in.
He stayed in our castle for a week. He was a little annoying, but he was just a poor, sick grandpa. He's old and he's getting crazy because of it. And he had a soft, if I can call it that, side for me.
"Come with me" he said, grabbing my hand and walking with me to the ballroom. "You're a good kid. Do you want a rose?"
I looked at the rose. It was such a dark shade of red that it was almost black. I looked at the old man. He was grimacing, like he tried to smile, but failed. We thought that he's just like this. He was just a weak grandpa, wasn't he?
"I'm not a girl, so I have to refuse" I said.
"Hey, don't be like that" grandpa put this flower just under my nose. "Take this rose. I got it especially for you."
Of course I was stupid enough to take it from him. Rose’s thorn stabbed my finger, so I hissed and wanted to drop the rose.
But I couldn't let it go of my hand.
"Amazing" said the old man and his wrinkles started to disappear.
I remember that my parents, my brother, my butler and my maid came to see, what happened, when they heard my scream.
A rose crawled under my skin. I felt its thorns, which activated the curse of a sorcerer, because this old man was just that. A sorcerer.
As my father rushed to stop him, the wizard summoned a staff and struck it against the floor. In this moment, my family and two servant-friends became a candlestick, a broom, a clock, a teapot and a teacup.
And the sorcerer stood there and laughed mockingly as I laid on the tiles covered in fur, with a mutated body that I didn't even have the strength to look at at the time.
"If someone is going to fall in love with you, when you're in this body, I'll give back your old one" announced the sorcerer. "For now be my battery of the eternal youth."
He left and I looked at my hands. They were covered with yellow fur, under which, when I spread it with my fingers, I saw a rose. Yes, its vines were under my skin. The flower itself was in my chest. The sorcerrer had a reason to choose me. He could cast a spell on my brother instead, but he prefered to watch the rose irritate my already hypersensitive bronchis, causing an asthma attacks to occur twice as often.
I looked at the mirror only once. I saw claws, tail, fangs, horns and yellow fur over all my body. It was enough to break every mirror in the castle.
And hide in my room, then leave it once a year...
* * *
It was one of winter evenings. I didn't like to go out during the day, because I was scared that someone could see me.
I went to the forest. Branches were breaking under my feet, my tail was sweeping the snow lazily. And then I heard it.
A voice.
"Excuse me, is anybody here?" a little girl's voice.
She probably got lost in the forest.
But I'm a monster! If she sees me, she'll run away...
Well, I have to risk it, wolves are common in this area.
"Where are you, kid?" I asked and I heard a cry of joy.
"Here!" I saw a girl waving her hand. "I got lost, when I went to the forest to pick flowers, because this one boy started chasing me. I don't like him, he's terribly rude."
I looked at her. I couldn't understand, why she's talking to me normally.
"Aren't you scared of me?" I was surprised.
"Why should I?" she replied with a question.
"I'm a monster. You should" I explained.
"Monster?" this time she was the one surprised.
She walked to me and put her small hands on my chest.
"I can feel your beating heart. You can't be a monster. You wouldn't want to help me."
Then I realised.
"Are you blind, right?" I asked.
She nodded.
"What's your name?"
"Meiko" she replied.
"Come with me, I'll take you to my home. In the morning we're going to look for yours" I replied, taking her hand.
"Morning? Is it night already?" she started to panic. "My older brother probably lost his mind by now!"
"You'll meet him in the morning" I promised her.
"Mister..."
"What?"
"You have fur and claws."
"I know."
"So you're really a monster" she said, when we were already in front of the gate. "But you're nice."
"Thanks" I opened the gate and we walked inside.
* * *
"Maybe she's the one, who can lift the curse?" wondered my mum, pouring hot water into the bathtub.
"She's just a kid, Tsukiko" said dad. "Should we keep her here until her twenties, according to you?"
"And do you want to be a clock forever, Jirou?" asked mum, this time pouring cold water to prevent Meiko from burning herself.
"No, but forcing a child to marriage is a little icky" dad sighed.
"Yajuu is beautiful, nobody would deny his feelings!" cried Tsukasa, our butler.
He was kind of obsessed over me, to be honest.
"You can’t force a child to love him" murmured Hayato, my childhood friend.
He's been our manservant since his parents died.
"I helped her getting here" Hotaka, my younger brother, jumped into the bathroom and Meiko followed him, covered only with a towel.
"How old are you?" I asked, helping her get into the bathtub.
"Ten" she replied, holding the towel with her fingers. "Water is fine, it's warm."
"If you want to be alone, just tell us" I said.
She shook her head.
"Nah. My brother always helps me shower" she replied.
"Your brother seems to be nice" I said.
"He is. Sometimes he's too nice" she mumbled.
I helped her to change, but I had to close my eyes, and then we put her in a bed in one of the chambers.
We were supposed to finally take her home in the morning. She needed to sleep.
* * *
I woke up abruptly, hearing a noise.
"Burglar! Burglar is here!" Tsukasa was screaming, running around my bed. "Master, wake up, someone wants to rob us!"
I pulled pants over my rear and ran to check, what is going on. Who was stupid enough to break into a monster’s casle? This sorcerrer told everyone in Meiko's village that such a creature like me lives here!
I ran into the kitchen. The window was opened and our burglar was sitting there with a pot on his head, covered with flour.
"It's you!" he yelled, trying to get up, but he tripped and fell again then got up.
He threw a pot and jumped on me with a knife.
"Tell me, where is my sister, you beast!"
I would tell him, but he sat on me, so I couldn't breathe for a moment and then my body decided to continue this state.
"Hey, little monster. Are you okay?" really, burglar, who wanted to stab me to death, felt pity, because I had an asthma atack?
Really?!
Kitchen was too far from my chamber. And I didn't take my inhaler with me. Awesome...
I lost consciousness after a while, even if this youngster tried to prevent it.
* * *
"Hey, beastie? World to beastie, say something" I heard, waking up.
I saw a burglar, who was sitting at my bedside. He still had flour in his hair.
"Erm, I'm sorry for everything. Meiko already explained to me that I'm an idiot. By the way, your in-something is on the night stand. The kettle told me that I should give you this and wow, you started breathing again. Furries are always like this?"
Gods, why is he talking so much...
"It's just asthma" I replied.
He looked at me with curiosity.
"Is this some illness?"
"Yes."
"Does it make you breathless?"
"Yes."
"Not good" mumbled the burglar. "Oh, right. I'm Kirei, Meiko's brother, nice to meet you. I'm sorry for everything once again."
I smiled slightly.
"My name is Yajuu" I introduced myself.
"Funny name. Listen, I..." he started slowly. "Thanks for saving Meiko. By the way, you're so tall. It's awesome, isn't it? How tall are you, two metres? I want to be tall too, but mother nature hates me."
"You're shorter than 160 centimeters, right?" I asked.
Kirei snorted.
"I'm not! I mean, I’m three centimeters short from that..." he scratched his head and looked away.
I laughed.
"Don't laugh, you're just tall as hell" he mumbled.
"It's because of the curse" I replied.
"Curse?" Kirei seemed confused.
I wanted to explain to him, what the curse is, but I felt such pain that I almost fainted. Rose's thorns were stabbing my body.
Can something eat this sorccerrer, please...?
"Hey, Yajuu? Are you okay?" Kirei put his hand on my cheek. "Is everything fine?"
"I don't think so" I mumbled. "We can't talk about this curse, I think."
"So let's not talk about it" said Kirei. "If something like that is happening, we shouldn't."
I sighed.
"Follow me. I'll find some chamber for you" I said, grabbing his hand.
When we wished each other good night, I realised that he can see me. And he still wasn't scared to touch me, was worried about me and probably carried me from the kitchen to my chamber.
Why is so he nice for such a monster like me...?
* * *
The next day I found winter coats for Kirei and Meiko, because their worn jackets made me feel cold, even if I had fur, then we walked towards the village.
"I hate winter" said Kirei, trying to walk through the snow. "We can't wear summer clothes and we have to dress warm. And we're often sick. It doesn't make sense, right?"
"Right" I nodded.
"If you want to know, he always whines like that" announced Meiko. "Yajuu?"
"What?"
"Do you hear that?"
I froze suddenly.
"I do."
"What you, blind girl and beastie, hear?" asked Kirei and stopped next to me, when he saw this.
Wolves. There were seven of them or more.
The whole pack!
"Run!" I screamed, grabbing Kirei's and Meiko's hands and running back towards my castle.
One of wolves jumped on my back, pushing me into the snow. I kicked it, but others came to help their companion.
"Run! Now!" I urged the young siblings, picked up a branch from the ground and tried to push away these wolves.
Two of them jumped on me, knocking me on the ground. Well, it's going to be fast. They're going to tear me apart and my suffering under the curse wll finally end.
"URYA!" I heard suddenly and both wolves were pushed away with a heavy winter shoe and some thick branch. "He saved my sister's life, get off him!"
Wolves looked at Kirei like was a madman and he started barking like a mutated dog, then he threw stones towards them, which finally made them run away.
"Stupid flea-bags" he mumbled, looking at me. "Hey, beastie, you're bleeding a lot. Are you okay?"
I looked at my hands. Fur wasn't as yellow as always, it was scarlet.
"Hey, but don't faint right now!" he screamed, when I fell on the snow, diving in the darkness.
* * *
"Stupid bastards, hurting poor prince just like that" I heard Tsukasa's voice.
"Prince?" Kirei was confused.
"Yajuu is a prince. And these three there are a king, a queen and his younger brother" explained Hayato.
"Hayato, I don't think that you should talk about it" said mum.
"Tsuki, don't be mad. They would know sooner or later" replied dad.
"He's waking up, I think" I felt that Meiko poked my cheek.
I opened my eyes. Kirei was leaning over me.
"Are you alive, beastie?"
"I think I am..." I replied, trying to sit up, but I failed.
"Well, it doesn't look too well" said Kirei. "You know, what? We should stay here with Meiko a little longer."
"Why?" I was confused.
"You can't take care of yourself in such condition. And you can't rely on walking rubbish to help you" explained Kirei.
"You don't have to pity me..." I said, given up.
"I have to. You saved Meiko's life twice and my own once, sacrificing yourself during our fight with these howling flea-bags" replied Kirei. "I have to pay you back."
"You paid me back. You saved my life, when you came back for me" I pointed out.
"I only paid back my debt. What about Meiko?" asked Kirei. "Don't whine. It's in vain."
I sighed. This boy is really stubborn...
* * *
Kirei has been taking care of me for two weeks or maybe a little longer. I didn't understand, why he's doing it. I looked like a monster. And my asthma wasn't making it any easier for him.
When I felt better, I decided to paint something. I liked to draw since I was a kid and I even was in an art school, before I was cursed.
I thought for a moment. What I should put on the canvas? A landscape or something else?
"Hey, Yajuu. What are you doing?" asked Kirei, appearing suddenly behind my back, which startled me and made me jump, that's why I dropped my paintbrush. "Do you want to paint?"
"Yes, I was preparing to do it" I replied, reaching my hand towards the paintbrush and I caught it in the same moment as Kirei.
We looked at each other just like in these cliche romance books, which my mum used to read, when she was still a human, then we froze.
He saved my life. Probably even twice, because when he broke in, I could have died because of an asthma attack, if he didn't carry me to my chamber and didn't give me my medicine.
And he saved me from these wolves. So he's already returned the favor twice. He has one left.
"Can I paint you?" I asked, when I realised that I wished the last time would be, when he would take the curse off me.
But who can fall in love with someone like me?
"You can, of course" replied Kirei, getting up. "But do you want me to sit still, when you're painting me?"
"Yes, why do you ask?"
"He can't sit still at all" explained Meiko, entering the chamber. "You'll finish your fun time later, there's dinner for you in the dining room."
She turned on her heel and left.
"Is she really just ten years old?" I asked.
"Yes, she is. Why do you ask?"
"She acts very responsible" I explained.
"She's been always like this" Kirei shrugged. "Can we go already? I hope there's going to be a lot of meat, because last time it wasn't enough.
Then he walked towards the dining room, skipping around. I was still weak, so I followed him slowly.
He's crazy. But I love his craziness.
* * *
Working on my paiting lasted for a week. Meiko was right. Kirei couldn't sit still even for a minute.
But in the end his portrait was finished.
"Done" I announced, slipping from the chair and walking towards Kirei. "Come with me, I'll show you. Just close your eyes."
I grabbed his hand and led him to the paiting.
"Can I see?"
"Yes."
Kirei opened his eyes slightly, but then he immediately opened them wide. He looked at the paiting, then at me, totally in shock.
"It's wonderful!" he exclaimed. "How? My gods, you're so talented, beastie!"
I wanted to hide under my desk.
"Do you really think so?" I asked, blushing.
"I'm serious! Don't you want to be a professional artist? Or maybe you can't be, if you're a prince?" asked Kirei.
"I would like to, but..." I sighed. "I can't with this look."
"Don't be silly, if you put on a hood, you can do it" said Kirei. "You can't just give up your dreams, you know? You have to believe in yourself. The art you've made is beautiful. It's a shame that you can't paint Meiko... I mean, you can, but she can't see it."
"If I stick different size pebbles to the canvas, she can see it with her fingers" I suggested.
"Can you really do it?" Kirei was surprised.
"Of course" I nodded. "In my garden there's a lot of them. Can you help me pick them up?"
"Yeah!" he grabbed my hand. "Come with me, beastie. We have to make my sister happy. She deserves this."
I followed him. I felt this positive, bubbly energy in his presence. It was making me smile. I haven't been smiling so much since I became a beast.
* * *
We sat Meiko down against the wall. First I drew a sketch with a pencil, then I stuck stones and pebbles to it. Then I painted them It lasted about as much as with Kirei's portrait, because Meiko could sit still for a long time, not like her older brother.
"You have to wait until the paint dries up" I told her, when I finished the paiting.
"For now you can show it to my brother. He's probably more excited than me" said Meiko.
"I'll show both of you tomorrow. Now go to sleep" I stroked her head and she giggled.
Why those siblings treat me like that? I'm just an ugly and scary monster...
I returned to my chamber. I opened the door, but then Kirei walked to me.
"Hey, Yajuu, I have a problem" he scratched his head. "You know... I have no idea, where my chamber is."
"You've been here for a month" I said, surprised.
"I know, I'm clumsy" he laughed a little hysterically. "Can you lead me there?"
"Of course" I replied and he grabbed my hand, then he started walking somewhere.
Didn't he just say that he doesn't know, where his chamber is?
He led me to the balcony. Snow was shining on trees, reflecting the moonlight.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" asked Kirei.
"Yes" I admitted. "But I spoil the mood, I think."
"You?" Kirei blinked. "Stop it. True beauty is internal. And sometimes people can look just perfect, meanwhile inside they're rotting like old apples. You can't judge a book by its cover."
"What do you mean?" I didn't understand, what was the point of his speech.
"That you have a heart of gold" he put his hand on my chest, just like his sister, when we first met. "Don't worry about your appearance. Until your heart is beating, everything is okay."
I froze. I was staring at him in shock. What is he talking about? Does he really think that I'm beautiful just because of my personality? But I am...
"And don't cry, for gods' sake!"
...just an emotionally unstable monster...
"Kirei..." I whispered and he smiled fondly.
"I'm going to sleep" he announced, streching out. "I know the way. I just wanted to make you realise, how wrong you are about yourself."
And he left the balcony, leaving me alone with my thoughts.
* * *
The next day I showed Kirei and Meiko the latter's portrait. They both were amazed.
"How beautiful" said Meiko. "Like you."
"Like me?" I repeated.
"You took care of us" she giggled. "No one wanted to do it before."
"Before?"
"We're orphans" explained Meiko. "Kirei is my only family. No one wanted to take care of us, because... You know. I'm blind. So my nine years older brother had to do it."
"So he's ninteen?"
"Yes. Is it a problem?"
"No, but I'm one year younger than him" I replied, making Meiko surprised.
"Strange, I thought you're older" she said. "But I'm still grateful."
"No problem" I smiled and stroked her head. "Do you want to go to the ballroom?"
"I don't know... I can't see it" she said.
"But you can hear the music" I grabbed her small hand.
"Kirei!" Meiko called him, when we were passing by the kitchen.
Kirei walked out with a cookie in one hand and a ham onigiri in other.
"What happened, sis?"
"We're going to the ballroom. Come with us" she urged him and he followed us without whining.
We walked into the ballroom. I snapped my fingers, turning music on. After the sorcerrer put spell on us, the castle was alive.
"Wow, this music is pretty" said Meiko, starting dancing like a nixie on the clearing.
"Kirei?" I looked at him.
He was thinking about something.
"Someone put a curse on you" he said suddenly. "On you, your family and your servants. That's why you look like a monster, your castle is alive and your loved ones are dishes and other things. Is there some way to turn you into a human again?"
"It is, but..." I felt this pain again.
I fell to my knees. Kirei ran to me and grabbed my shoulders.
"Say it! He won't kill you. He has some reason to not do it, right?"
"This rose is a source of energy to his eternal youth" I explained, feeling spikes stabbing me deeply. "Someone has to fall in love with me to make me a human again. But who can do it, if I look like a beast?!"
Kirei caught me, when I almost fell on the floor.
"Me" replied Kirei. "I love you. I told you that true beauty is internal, right?"
"Kirei..." I whispered and then we heard a scream.
We looked up. We saw the sorccerrer, holding Meiko hostage and looking at us firmly.
"So cliche" he said, clenching fingers on her shoulder. "Do you really believe in what I told you back then? That I'm going to let you go, if someone falls in love with you? Bullshit!"
"You promised him, so now do it!" Kirei shouted, getting up and helping me to do the same.
"Whoopsy-daisy, I lied! I'm a sorcerrer, brats. I don't have to keep my promises" the sorcerrer laughed and summoned his staff. "But I can play another game."
Before we could do anything, he touched Meiko with his staff and changed her into a daisy.
"Meiko!" called her Kirei and ran to the sorcerrer, who threw her to him like bones to his dog.
"I'll break the spell, if you leave and never come back" said the sorcerrer.
"You said you don't keep promises" Kirei pointed out.
"Of course I don't! Unless they're helping me in my plan" the sorcerrer laughed. "So?"
"Kirei, go" I said. "Go and save your sister."
"Forget about it" said Kirei. "I won't leave nor you or Meiko!"
"So I don't have a choice" the sorcerrer put his hand into his pocket. "I don't want to waste my time for you."
Knife he threw towards Kirei was sharp. It was a beautiful dagger, with gilded ornaments. I could've examined it perfectly, because it pierced my chest and was stuck in it.
"Yajuu!" Kirei ran to me and caught me and pushed away the sorcerrer, who tried to do the same. "You asshole!"
Kirei put Meiko on me and ran towards the sorcerrer, then he punched him and took his staff away from him.
"I have to heal him, you idiot! Give this to me!" he shouted forst wrinles started appearing on his face. "Give it back to me!"
"Never" Kirei threw the staff against the wall. "You won't touch anyone I love!"
"Have you fallen in love with this ugly creature for real?" the sorcerrer was shocked.
He looked just like when he gave me the rose. He tried to get up, but he couldn't. His body was too old.
"Yajuu" said Kirei and ran to me. "Yajuu!"
He shook me.
"Yajuu, don't die! I really love you! I didn't lie just to break the curse! Really!"
"I believe you" I whispered. "I fell in love with you too, Kirei. But until I die, he won't lose his powers and is going to live..."
Before I closed my eyes, I saw the sorcerrer crawling towards his staff. He desperately tried to catch it. But then only Kirei's voice, whispering and sobbing, left. And finally everything disappeared.
* * *
"Yajuu, sweetie, can you hear me?" I heard my mum's voice and I opened my eyes.
I saw her leaning over me.
Wait a minute.
I sat up and looked around.
My parents, brother, Hayato and Tsukasa were humans.
Meiko too.
Withered rose was laying next to me and I saw a pile of ash nearby.
"Kirei broke the staff" explained Hotaka. "I mean, when you died, this asshole died too and we returned to our bodies."
"We ran here and Kirei explained, what happened. We were worried about you, because even if this cursed rose left your body, you were still laying on the floor lifeless" added Tsukasa. "Kirei was standing above you, because, you know, you returned to your body too and he probably couldn't understand your beauty."
"And then he picked the staff up and, just like Hotaka said, he broke it" added Hayato. "Some dust fell from it, so Kirei decided to spread it over you in hope that maybe it's going to wake you up."
"It didn't work, so Tsukiko said that maybe it has to be activated, so this crazy boy kissed you" explained my dad, looking like he was in shock that his son was kissed by a man.
"So, you're alive, right?" asked Meiko.
"Yeah, I'm alive" I confirmed, then I looked up.
Kirei stood there, with a broken staff in his hands, and was smiling.
"What happened?" I asked.
"Nothing" he dropped a staff, grabbed my hands and helped me to get up. "I'm just happy that you're not as tall as you were, when you were a beast, so I won't have a problem with doing it. And I think that my name matches you better."
"What are you talking about?" I blinked, then I was kissed again.
This time I was conscious, thouhg.
"Jirou, stop it, he's finally happy" I heard my mum's voice, who probably nudged my dad's ribs, just like always, when she didn't agree with him.
Ladies and gentlemen, lady Tsukiko, serious queen and mother of two sons...
But she's right. I'm finally happy.
The end
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