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A soft knock was heard on Rick's door as he tried to work on some small gadget in his room. Sighing, the old man sat up and turned to the door "Come in, Morti..." once given access the young girl poked her head into the room.
"Rick... I can’t sleep..." her big doe eyes looked at the elder with a false innocence and made Rick roll his eyes.
"Okay okay, come here, grandpa will tell you a story."
"R-r-really?!"
The scientist sat in his bed "Shut up and get over here before I change my mind." With a small squeak Morticia entered his room and closed the door behind her. She hurried over and lied on the bed with her head comfortably in his lap.
"Okay so..."
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Once upon a time, A young intelligent girl lived in a village where the people only saw her as strange. The brunette was constantly in and out of the library reading and learning everything she could, while the other women were too busy focusing on their looks to get the attention of the Village hunter. A man of burly muscle and a brain the size of a child’s pinkie nail. The man, Jeston, though his brain and heart were small, his libido and arousal only sought out those who didn’t seek him in return. The nerd of the town, the girl who always had her head in the clouds, Mortibelle-
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“What now Morti?!” The scientist could feel his patience slipping as he saw the look on his granddaughter’s face.
“Mortibelle? Really Rick?” Morticia had her brows furrowed in confusion as she listened to her grandfather talk. It wasn’t her fault if she couldn’t just sit there and listen to her grandfather talk about some girl with a name that sounded like it belonged to a sandwich in the sub shop downtown. “That sounds like a type of mushroom or a type of sandwich.”
Rick groaned and ran a hand over his face as he lay in his cot with the girl. “Gonna tear me d-d-down for every alien name th-that sounds like a goddamn fast-food chain, Morti?” He rolled to look at her “I’m working with what you got, and that’s a VERY hungover grandpa trying to make up a fuckin story so you can go the fuck to bed.” The whimper he got in response made him sigh out a softer breath and hold her closer. Running a hand over her back, long fingers running through brunette curls to soothe her, a silent apology that always seemed to make Morti melt. “Can I continue now?” Rick smiled at the slight nod and comfortable hum from the girl in his arms.
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Now, where were we? Ah! Right.
“Mortibelle, I’m leaving town, what do you want me to bring you back” An older man spoke from the doorway, his gaze upon a young girl who seemed comfortable in a chair reading a book she must’ve read a thousand times by this point. She looked up with big brown doe eyes, although looking innocent were reading and analyzing everything.
“A rose.” She responded with a kind smile as she shifted her position to mark her book and rise from her seat.
To this her father raised a curious brow “A rose? But that’s what you ask me for every year.” He buttoned his coat and gathered his scarf and gloves before turning to the young woman. He had a long journey ahead of him, and it was nearing the time snow would be falling.
The brunet smiled as she stepped over to her father and kissed his cheek “And you deliver, every year.” The young woman pulled away to put her book back and smiled at him. “I believe in you, papa” She smiled and stood by the door with him “Do you need anything from town?”
The man smiled and shook his head “No, I’m fine dear, be safe while I’m gone” He gave her hands a squeeze. Mortibelle chuckled softly to herself and nodded in response. She watched the older man leave before she made her way into town with a sigh.
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“But Rick- What happened to-” Morticia looked up to the man, her eyes half lidded with sleep.
“I-I-I’m getting there, Morti- god damn it…” Rick sighed and took a sip from his flask. “Story telling isn’t as easy as it seems, ok?”
“Sorry Rick… please continue?” Her words soft as she snuggled into his chest with a hum.
Rolling his eyes, Rick smiled fondly at the girl. “Fine, okay, if you’re gonna twist my arm about it.” His words holding no heat to them.
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A couple days pass after the day Mortibelle’s father is to return and she had been full of worry, boiling over when her father’s horse came bursting into town in a fright. After managing to calm him down Mortibelle grabbed her cloak and got on the saddle “Okay, show me where my father is!” She held the reins tightly as the horse galloped off into the woods. What seemed like hours passed before Mortibelle was dismounting and stood before an old castle, hidden in the thick of the woods.
Taking a deep breath Mortibelle approached the castle and wandered for a bit, finding seemingly nothing until she made her way up a tower where she found her father behind bars. “Father!” She cried, running over to him, and taking his hands through the barrier. Tears had already begun to fall as she saw the poor state her father was in.
“Mortibelle, you need to go, run away from here, forget about me!” The man pleaded as he squeezed his daughters’ hands, fear etched into the features on his face. He saw her brow furrow in concern, but he only shook his head “Don’t even think about it, you need to leave!”
Just then a roar was heard, and a massive beast stood in the shadows, red eyes glaring at them. “Another trespasser- What are you here for” He snarled in a deep rumble of a voice. The beast was on high alert around the intruder, staying in a crouched stance.
The young woman turned and matched the monsters glare “What are you doing with my father, in a cage?!” Mortibelle snapped at the beast, which caught the dark figure off guard. It got closer to the duo, it’s fur a dark midnight black with one streak of purple curving around the top of his tail and one each of his ears with flecks of cyan, seeming like a night sky was painted on the creature's fur.
The Beast's ruby gaze hardened on the duo “He was caught stealing a rose, so he shall be imprisoned for life.”
Mortibelle’s glare hardened “Is a rose really worth a life sentence?!” She demanded as she stood her ground. “I’m the one who asked for the rose, imprison me instead, let him go.”
“And why should I do that?!” The beast snarled at her; his brow furrowed in irritation.
“He is only a messenger; he never would’ve tried if I didn’t ask.” The young girl ignored the pleas of her father as she matched the monster’s gaze. The beast heaved a sigh and growled out a curse under his breath as he unlocked the cage and pulled her father out by the wrist and dangled him as he pushed her in, locking the cage as he shoved the man toward the entrance.
“Get out…” He waited for the man to leave as the girl cried out, simply wishing to bid her father farewell, an opportunity she would never get. The Beast rounded on the girl and slammed a claw to the bars, making her jump as she glared at the beastly man. “Foolish girl… You’re to stay here for the rest of your life…” He huffed and turned without a final word.
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Morticia watched her grandfather's face with all the attention she could as he got really into the upcoming scenes of the young woman held prisoner and the beast's quarrels as they found out more about each other. One of the quarrels had been when Mortibelle had gone to the west wing, a place she had been warned not to go. A place that was forbidden and it tempted her to it. Morticia listened as Rick told her about how Mortibelle snuck into the Beast's room in the west wing, and stumbled upon the enchanted rose, which measured how long the Beast had to find true love in order to turn him and everyone in the castle back to human.
“Mortibelle ran as the beast roared in anger behind her, n-n-nothing but anger a fury as she ran away, scared of the beast she had thought she was befriending. She scrambled to leave the castle, gathering her cloak and making her way to the door d-d-despite everyone’s best efforts to keep her in the castle and explain the Beast's rage.”
Rick continued to tell Morticia about how Mortibelle was attacked by wolves in her attempt to escape and the Beast had come to her aid, only to get injured. “S-s-sound familiar, Morti?”
Sleepily Morticia rolled her eyes and nudged him, pulling a chuckle from the old man. He continued and told her how Mortibelle patched the Beast up after managing to get him back to the castle. They yelled at one another before they were able to talk things out as well as they could with how stubborn the beast was.
It made it clear to her that Rick was trying to give her a happy ending and she appreciated that. He had just finished telling her about the massive library the beast had which impressed not only Mortibelle in the story but Morticia as well, putting a smile on her face. She could almost put herself in the young girls’ shoes. Closing her eyes, she imagined the ceiling, tall bookshelves filled with any book she could imagine, in any language she could imagine. It awed her, to say the least. No wonder Mortibelle was falling for the monster who took her prisoner. “Y-you’re not gonna surprise me and make this a Stockholm Syndrome story, are you Rick?”
“S-s-shut up Morti, close your eyes and listen. I’m getting to the part a girl like you would swoon over.” Rick ran fingers through the teen’s hair, further lulling her as he continued his story.
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Mortibelle didn’t know what to expect when the talking wardrobe she had befriended dressed her in a beautiful violet gown fit for a princess. Half her hair was pulled up in an elegant bun, being held by a lavender hair piece. With a giddy chuckle she did a twirl in her dress and looked to the wardrobe “T-this is for me…? To wear tonight?”
The wardrobe chuckled “Of course my dear, you and the master have become quite close. I've noticed, I thought it only fit the mood.” The girl imagined the talking furniture smiling as it spoke to her.
“Thank you… so much” Mortibelle smiled as she looked down to her gown once more before she was ushered out of her room to the hall by other pieces of furniture and she chuckled.
Taking steps for herself she made her way to the ballroom and stood in awe of the pristine area. Her brown eyes landed on the Beast, widening as she noticed him in an elegant golden waistcoat under a gold trimmed navy suit jacket with golden lapels. She smiled at the cravat he wore, secured with a gold brooch with a large sapphire settled in the center.
Mortibelle’s attention wasn’t the only one grabbed by the change in evening wear, the Beast’s eyes were on her just as much, noting the off the shoulder style of the dress. Lavender and plum colors coming together to make a masterpiece the Beast wasn't ready to let go of anytime soon. He had fallen hard for the girl, that much was obvious to anyone who looked in on their own little world.
Seemingly nervous, the Beast offered a hand to Mortibelle, a bashful smile on his features as he locked eyes with her. “Would you care to dance?” A smile formed on the young woman's face as she took his hand, the motion feeling natural as the Beast placed his other on the curve of her waist. He spun her around the ballroom for two, his eyes not once leaving her as he tried to memorize the features of her face, and chuckling at the surprised look when he dipped her. The two danced for hours before it became time to retire for the night. The beast accompanying her to her room and bidding her a-
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Soft snores broke Rick's concentration and he looked down, finding Morticia fast asleep against him. He huffed a bit with a slight pout. “I didn't even get to the main conflict. The Beast and Jeston fighting over- ugh, nevermind.” The elder sighed and chuckled before getting up. He popped his back a couple times before he bent down and scooped the brunette up into his arms. He held her in a bridal carry, keeping her close to his chest as he carried her a few doors down to her room. Once he lied her down he was sure to make sure she was nice and snug before he kissed her forehead. “Good night, princess.”
