I had hugely major writing block for like a year. I'm a really terrible person. I know. But I felt kind of hypocritical telling people they just have to wait and see why the princes were being kidnapped when I hadn't thought of a good reason myself… But now I have! I'm immensely proud of myself right now.

This chapter was mildly difficult due to the fact that Belle has no fairies, genies, fairy godmothers, or Triton-wielding parents. As Belle is one of my favorite princesses, I didn't want to do one of those "…and then the princess rose into the air and shot off toward the sky by sheer willpower!" If it takes a little too long to get to the point I apologize… So here it is: the long awaited chapter 4.

Again:

Thoughts

Narrator (Imagine a big, booming voice. Like Zeus.)

Disclaimer: I'm a college student. (Or at least I will be come August 28th.)

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Belle hated The Tavern. She really, truly did. The tavern keeper was a major creeper and the tavern itself was practically Gaston's lair. Luckily it was only about eight o'clock in the morning. Gaston probably wouldn't be up. She hoped.

She made her way down the gravel path. The door kept getting closer and she really wished it wouldn't… And then it was right there, directly in front of her. Ugh. Do I have to? She groaned to herself. Of course she knew the answer. So she pushed open the old wooden door, carefully avoiding splinters.

The tavern keeper, creepy as ever, was behind the counter drying a grimy mug with a grimier scrap of cloth. She picked her way through the drying puddles of sticky beer on the floor to the counter.

"Hello. I'm looking for a piece of mail that I think you have," she said, thinking better of placing her hands on the countertop.

He gave her an appraising look typical of his smarmy kind, one that measured her assets more extensively than her request. Only the fact that her husband's freedom (and possibly his life) depended on her acquiring this letter kept her from slapping him across his greasy face and storming out his door. She waited.

"Yeah… I think I remember a letter addressed to you bein' dropped off by a guy. Lemme go check." and with that he placed his cloth and mug (which, she suspected, was now dirtier than when he began) and ducked through a door covered by a tattered sheet.

He was gone for quite a while. Belle couldn't decide whether she wanted him to come back with the letter or not. She was weary of standing there and wanted to find her love, but the arrival of the letter could not come without the reappearance of-

"Here you go. It was hidin' in the back," he said with a grimace that she supposed was meant to be a simpering smile.

"Thank you," she said, already halfway to the door. As soon as she was outside, she tore into the plain envelope.

Princess Belle,

If you've gone through the trouble of locating this letter, you want your prince back. If this is true, I advise you to follow these directions.

Go toward the second star to the right, and straight on until morning.

Hope to see you soon!

The Capitan

"Lovely!" she cried aloud in exasperation, drawing the startled eyes of several villagers. So now I have to find a way to a star. In the sky. Perfect. She thought with a scowl. She wandered aimlessly through the village, collecting her thoughts. I don't have any way to get there… I don't think it could be reached by any regular craft, even if we DID have one capable of flight.

Her feet led her out the other side of the village, toward a beautiful old spring in the forest. So I need magic, which I don't have, or someone who can do magic, whom I don't know. Frustrated, she reached the spring. It spewed out of a rock ledge at about waist height in a steady stream, and was the cleanest, freshest, clearest water in the town. She cupped her hands to drink some.

"Oh! My old bones aren't up to walking this far anymore…" came a voice from the Princess's left. Her head whipped around toward the voice. A stooped old woman sat on a ledge of the rock wall, an exceedingly gnarled walking stick propped against the wall next to her.

"Hello," she said tentatively, "What brings you to this spring?"

"I just needed some water after my long hike and this is the best place I know. Would you fetch me some water, child?" the ancient woman asked.

Belle took stock of her options. She had no cup, which meant it would be difficult to bring the water to her. She could say as much, but somehow that felt unkind… The poor old woman looked so tired and thirsty…

So the Princess cupped her hands together, getting them as close as possible to each other so she could hold the water in them, and filled them from the spring. She hurried over to the old woman and tipped the clear water to her waiting lips.

"Thank you dear," the woman said, standing with a groan and readjusting her deep green velvet cloak. Belle could tell that it had seen better days.

"You're welcome," the Princess said, taking the woman's arm to help steady her. Belle watched as she tottered off into the forest.

Ok. Now back to business. She thought. Now that the old woman was gone she realized that old hags usually aren't what they seem and, more often than not, random acts of kindness grant you a boon of some kind. She did feel slightly cheated that the only crone she'd ever met was just what she appeared to be: a very old, extraordinarily ugly woman.

Years ago everyone in the castle was transfigured into furniture, tools, tea sets, and etcetera by a beautiful witch disguised as a crone much like the one I just saw. She can obviously do powerful magic. I need to get back to the castle and see which of the servants saw the crone/beautiful witch.

With that plan in mind, she rushed back to the castle.

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"Lumiere! Cogsworth!" she cried as soon as she was inside.

The two men came scurrying. "What can I do for you, Princess?" the more portly man asked.

"Yes, how may we be of service?" the former candlestick gushed.

"You both know that Beast is missing," she began, a bit out of breath from her brisk trot back to the castle, "When I went outside today I found a letter that told me if I want him back I should speak to the Tavern keeper." an involuntary grimace flitted across her face. "So I did, and he gave me another letter. According to the second letter I have to 'go toward the second star on the right and straight on until morning.' I assume that you can't do this except by magic. So I need to know exactly what the hag that cursed you all looked like."

"She was very ugly," supplied Lumiere, ever the connoisseur of feminine wiles and beauty.

"Erm… well… she wore a kind of green cloak… and leaned upon a stick that looked like it was cut from the most twisted sapling you can imagine…" Cogsworth offered, somewhat more helpfully.

And then Belle realized that the hag she'd met in the forest was the one that had cursed the castle. Then she felt incredibly stupid.

"Thank you both very much. I think I know where to find her now," she said. With that, she was off. She practically ran through the village, back to the forest, past the spring, and into the wood.

She didn't stop until she saw a tower rising out of a lake. It was beautiful, all white marble and flowering vines creeping up the sides. If I was a beautiful witch this is definitely where I'd live. Belle thought to herself. She picked up her skirts and waded through the clear, shallow water to the tower. She'd never really been good with climbing thorny vines, as closer inspection revealed the flowering plants to be. She walked around the outside of the tower. In the back, there was a drainage grate in the wall, half submerged in the lake.

She dropped her skirts into the water to free her hands and bent down to release the latch on the grate. It fell open. She crawled through on her hands and knees. Oddly enough, upon standing up, the water simply ran down her skirts and legs and vanished, leaving her quite as dry and warm as before.

A spotless white marble staircase wound up steeply inside the tower. It was brightly lit by the sunlight streaming in through windows set at regular intervals.

At the top, there was a beautifully worked, dark wooden door. Fairies danced along the outer trim and animals frolicked happily through the meadow carved in the center. A silver doorknocker perched in a nest of wooden swirls and curls.

Belle raised a hand to the knocker and touched the cold metal. Here was the moment of truth…

She lifted the knocker away from the door and the aforementioned door swung open with a shiver before she could lower her hand. It was a sunny, circular room containing a carved wooden day bed on which colorful silk sheets were thrown, as if the sleeper had just now risen carelessly from it. There was also a small table and chair. The flowering vines that adorned the exterior of he tower crept in through the windows and along the walls. Brittle brown leaves that had fallen from the vines gathered against the walls. Belle absently noted that instead of looking unkempt, the leaves gave the room a whimsical air.

She now looked to the right of the room. On a velvet chaise lounge sat a beautiful woman. Her skin was pale enough to look like the most delicate porcelain, but not so pale that she looked sickly, and thick, lustrous blond curls cascaded down her shoulders.

For a moment the two just looked at each other. Then the witch, for so she was, spoke. "I know why you are here child," she said. Belle thought it odd to be called 'child' by a woman who barely looked 25.

"I have seen that you wish your husband to be returned to you. I cannot return him directly but I will send you to the place he is being kept." and with that the woman rose from the couch and glided to Belle. The Princess closed her eyes. She felt a cool hand above her heart and then it was suddenly gone, as were the quiet forest sounds. Now she could hear something very, very different.

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So… There it was. Let me know what you think. :) I was going to include Cinderella's stuff in here but it's taking too long. The sooner you all know I haven't forgotten about you the better.