The Beauty and the Beast (1st book of Fantasy Series)

Chapter 3- Belle

I hummed underneath my breath while I cleaned up the already cleaned kitchen, bored out of my mind. My whole body was relaxed, and I tucked a strand of my brown hair behind my ear. "I wonder what's keeping Papa, Pippa," I said, looking at my dog, who was watching me from her bed.

Pippa barked and wagged her tail, and I smiled.

"Of course, you do not know," I teased. I shook my head and sighed. "I'm about going to go looking for him." I frowned when I heard a frightened whinnying, knowing that it was my horse Riser. "Come on, Pippa," I said, running towards my horse.

"Easy, Riser," I called, having my hands up to catch him.

He snorted and shook his head. The whites of his eyes were showing, and there was saliva around his mouth. The saddle was ripped to pieces, and the reins had been snagged on something to make them break.

I grabbed hold of the remnants of his reins and held them while he tried to rear, pulling me up with him. "Easy," I cooed, stroking his sweaty neck. "Easy."

Riser snorted and rested his head on mine. His whole body heaved, but from what I could tell, there were no injuries. His eyes started to close when I stroked his neck soothingly.

"We are going to have to go look for him," I said, keeping calm and leveled, even though fear was nipping at my heels. I had no idea what happened to my father, and I hoped that nothing had happened. "I know you don't want to, but we have to."

Riser shook his head. He tried to back away, but I kept hold of him.

"I need to grab my safety kit, so I'm going to let you cool down some. But you have come. I need you."

Riser grumbled but bobbed his head. He huffed and flicked his tail, probably annoyed that he was going.

I smiled and patted his neck. "Thank you, Boy." With that, I quickly gave him some water before running into the house. I changed out of my dress into some tan jeans as well as a green shirt. I pulled on my leather vest before grabbing my cloak. On my feet, I placed brown leather boots on that had a secret part where I had stuffed a dagger as well as a pickpocket kit.

After I was done getting ready, I quickly stuffed a bag full of medical supplies, clothes, food, water, and stuff that I could use to make a fire before hefting it onto my shoulders. I placed the cloak around my shoulders and rushed outside to the barn to halter Amara and grab a halter for Riser. The reason as to why I had Amara was so that Papa could ride her without a saddle. I also stuffed some grooming supplies in the bag and food for Pippa, Amara, and Riser.

After I was done with that, I went over to where Riser and Pippa were waiting and pulled off the broken saddle and bridle, letting Amara stand by herself. "I am just going to use a halter on you. You need to behave."

Riser nodded his head and let me put on his halter. He stayed still while I grabbed hold of Pippa and flung myself onto his back. The only time he took off was when I was settled and nudged him to go how my father had left with Amara following behind us.

Hold on, Papa, I prayed. I'm coming for you.

***

I lead both horses through the forest when they stopped and wouldn't go any further. A frown flickered on my face because I wished that I had brought my bow and arrows, but I didn't think I would need it, but now I did. I looked down to see that Pippa was at my side and smiled a bit. "It's all right," I said softly, trying to calm their nerves as well as mine.

I crossed the drawbridge and looked around, my whole body tense at the sight of the ominous castle in the foreground. "I am scared, guys," I said softly. "Stay close." I smiled when Riser nudged my shoulder.

I found a barn and quickly placed them in a couple of stalls close to each other. "Stay silent," I whispered before I started to walk towards the castle. I pulled out a flashlight and my dagger before walking in, followed by my Yorkie, who was growling softly. I hissed, and she shut up and looked at me apologetically.

I stayed silent and looked around. "Find, Papa," I whispered, cringing when my voice carried through stone walls. I could feel eyes on me, but I ignored them; my only concern was finding my father and escaping with him.

Pippa walked forward, her nails clipping against the stone floor. She stood in front of a door and sat down, indicating that he was through there.

I placed my dagger through my belt and pulled out my lock-picking stuff before I stuffed my flashlight in my mouth. I stayed silent while I unlocked the door after the third try and held my breath while it opened.

I breathed a sigh of relief when the door didn't squeak, or any alarms sounded. "Go down," I whispered to Pippa. I followed her down, praying that I wouldn't be too late to save my father.