Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

When he first arrived, Rucheville had seemed a quaint town. With its little straw-topped cottages and crooked cobblestone streets, it could have been a comfortable place to call home… If it weren’t for the villagers, that is. The people of Rucheville were quite unwelcoming, to say the least, and despite the young sheriff’s best efforts, he’d yet to make any friends. Worse than that was the wary glances and hushed whispers that followed him throughout the town. Like he had the plague.

It was beyond frustrating. Wally considered himself a real easy fella to talk to despite the badge, but no one here would even give him a simple ‘bonjour’ in the morning. At first, he blamed it on small-town sentiment. He was a stranger, afterall, sent from the city to keep a watch over the countryside and enforce justice. He thought they’d warm up after getting to know him. But here he was, a whole season wasted, and he’d yet to have anything close to a conversation with anyone. They hadn’t even given him a chance.

“At least I have you, bud.”

His companion snorted in response and stole the bread from his hand.

“Hey! I was gonna eat that!” Wally went to grab it, but it was already too late. Even if he got it back now, it’s not like he could still eat it. Wally flopped back onto the grass with a wave and a sigh, “Nevermind, it’s all yours.”

Dandelion fluff tickled his nose until he sneezed. Wally plucked a stray flower from its friends. Twirling the stem in his hand, he stared up at the sky. Dusk had painted the clouds a smoky purple, but he could still see the stars peeking through their wispy linings.

The city had never felt so vast.

“Do you think there’s anything for us here, Flash?” He asked as a cold wind blew the dandelion wishes away into the clouds. Wally snorted in spite of himself, “Yeah, me neither. Hopefully Uncle will have a new mission for me by the end of the year. Either that, or I need to learn to speak horse.”

Wally raised a brow at his steadfast companion. The flaxen haired stallion curled his lip in response before turning away to graze on what was left of the dandelion field.

“I’ll have you know I’m a great conversationalist! You’re missing out, bud!”

Flash looked up, ears perked. But the horse wasn’t looking at him. Wally turned around to look at what had caught his attention. A shadow flitted over the hillside, fast enough he would have thought it a trick of the night if not for the way it made his hair stand on end. Then, in the distance, he heard a man yell.

“Thief! Thief!”

Wally couldn’t help but smile as he leapt onto Flash’s back. Finally, something to write home about.

The two took off after the shadow, quickly closing distance. He could almost see them clearly now. Hidden by a moth-eaten black cloak, whoever it was was rather small. If he had to guess, Wally would say their head wouldn’t come up to his shoulder.

“C’mon, Flash, this’ll be easy.”

He spurred on his stead, the cloak almost in his grasp until, suddenly, it wasn’t. Flash brayed in alarm and reared, his front hooves flailing as the ground suddenly collapsed in front of them. After a fleeting moment of shock, Wally leaned forward.

“Woah, woah.” He called, trying to calm Flash before they both took a bad fall. “Let’s just take a step back, shall we?”

Flash gave a few angered snorts before planting his hooves back on solid ground. Wally looked around for the thief, but they were gone. He frowned in frustration. They had fled into the woods no doubt, and, with the night as dark as it was, he didn’t have much hope of finding them.

Wally leapt from the saddle and inspected the pit they had narrowly avoided falling into. He thought it was a trap dug up by their thief, but he now realized it was nothing but an old badger set. It must have caved in when they were running over it. He ran his hand over the old claw marks scarring the collapsed tunnels and thanked their lucky stars Flash hadn’t broken an ankle in it.

Hopping back on the saddle, he gave his horse a pat.

“Let’s go, pal. I have some questions, and I’m sure whoever was yelling ‘thief’ will have some answers.”

The two didn’t have to go far. They were stopped at the bottom of the hill by an older gentleman with graying hair and a piercing gaze. Wally recognised him as Brother Sebastian, the one and only pastor in all of Rucheville.

“Sheriff West, ” He spoke rather calmly for someone who’d just been robbed. “I see you’ve failed to catch the thief. How… disappointing.”

Wally took a deep breath and tried not to let the words get under his skin.

“Yes, well, happens to the best of us.” He said, trying to lighten the mood. Seeing the unamused sneer on the old man’s face, Wally cleared his throat and started over. “Did you see the thief? Anyone you know?”

Brother Sebastian’s eyes narrowed, and he brought his hand to his chin as though plotting something. It made Wally squirm uncomfortably in his saddle.

“Yes, I know it, though, it’s doubtful you’d believe what this old preacher has to say.”

Wally blinked in confusion, “It?”

“Do you believe in magic, Sheriff?”

“Can’t say I do, sir.” His jaw clenched as he gave a stern warning, “In my experience, all things blamed on magic are just the fault of things people fail to understand.”

Truthfully, he had more disdain for talk of magic than he cared to say. The crazed belief in it often led to injustice in the most cruel of ways. Women burned at the stake, innocent men executed at the gallows, entire families stoned to death. He’d seen too many murders blamed on unseen forces to ever take such a word as magic lightly.

The pastor shook his head, “There are some things us mortal men are not meant to know, that we are not meant to see. Only our Lord in Heaven is meant to know, and yet one does walk on this earth.” He clasped the rosary round his neck in prayer. “And now it has the Blood Blessed Ruby. God help us all.”

“I don’t understand.” Wally said, exasperatedly. He was growing tired of Brother Sebastian’s rhetoric. “Who has this ruby?”

“The beast of Ghostwood!”

A beast. Of course. Lord forgive him if he rolled his eyes a little bit.

“A beast? Really, Reverend?” Wally took a breath, “Ok, ok. And what does the beast look like?

“Well, it’s hideous, of course! An agent of the devil, no doubt.” Brother Sebastian continued, a crazed gleam in his cold eyes. “A sly creature, it has the slender face of a fox, but the body of a young woman and the great mane of a lion. And fangs! Horrible fangs! It’s probably a blood sucking monster! Horns crown its beastly head, but worst of all are the eyes.” He took a ragged gasp, “They’re inhuman, aglow like a cat’s with the pupils of Satan’s serpent!”

Wally raised a brow at the description. Monstrous features aside, it seemed the perpetrator may be a woman.

“Uh-huh, and was the ruby the only thing taken?”

“The only thing taken tonight.” He answered ominously, “The beast comes down from its castle when the moon is new to seek its victims. It is only through the Lord’s protection that I am standing before you now!”

“Wait, wait. She steals that often? Why am I just now hearing about her?”

“It was none of your concern, Sheriff.”

“And now it is?” Wally fought the urge to shake the old man.

“Well, I’m certainly not going into that thing’s lair.” He sneered, “But don’t worry, I’ll pray for you.”

“Gee, thanks.”

Wally muttered as he looked at where the so-called beast had disappeared into. The trees were so dense he couldn’t see the forest. He’d need more than a prayer to find her in there.

“What are you waiting for?” Brother Sebastian snapped. “Go catch that thing and bring back my ruby!”

Isn’t it the Lord’s ruby? Or the church’s? Wally thought but didn’t say.

“Daylight.” He answered. "I'm waiting for daylight."

“So the big city sheriff’s a coward.” The preacher scoffed, “What a surprise.”

“I’m not a coward. I’m just not stupid enough to try and make my way in an unfamiliar forest with no light!”

“If you say so. I suppose it doesn’t matter. The beast already got away, and the ruby with it. You’ve proved your incompetence.”

Wally clenched his jaw as the preacher turned his back on them without so much as another glance.

“Who does that guy think he is? The pope?”

Flash whinnied in response.

“Yeah, you’re right. I shouldn’t listen to him. I mean, what does he know?” He angrily took the reins and turned back towards home. “Incompetent? We’re knighted.”

A whole season living here and no one had told him of the crimes committed by this rumored beast. They didn’t trust him at all, and after tonight they would look down on him even more. They may never come to him for anything if he failed to catch her.

Wally sighed as he turned Flash around, “C’mon. I have a feeling it’s about to be a long night.”

Long night was an understatement. The search started out about how he thought it would, with him and Flash stumbling half blind through Ghostwoods, shivering in the cold as the wind started to howl. He couldn’t even keep the lantern lit, the wind was so fierce. There was a storm brewing, he knew, but now he wasn’t sure which way led back to Rucheville and which way just led him deeper into the forest.

Finally, he had to admit defeat. There was no point in pushing forward when he had no idea where he was going. He’d rather try to get a fire started and get some rest before trying again in the morning like he should have done to begin with.

He kept a hand free as he gathered firewood, ready to grab his sword if needed. There was something spooky about Ghostwoods that had nothing to do with the rumored beast. It certainly earned its name with its white trees shaking like silver spectres in the night. Sure, he didn’t believe in ghosts, but that didn’t make the sight any less creepy.

“You’ll warn me of trouble, right Flash?”

The chestnut stallion nickered in response before going back to his meal, completely unperturbed by the shaking branches. Wally shook his head at his own silliness. There wasn’t anything to worry about, except for the weather. Still, he couldn’t help but watch the shadows moving in his peripheral.

“That old preacher was probably just trying to get a scare out of us.” He continued to talk, letting his rambling drown out the forest’s spooky ambience. “I mean, a beast in these woods? I wouldn’t be surprised if those rumors were made up by our thief to keep people away from their hideout.”

Somewhere in the forest, a fox yowled. The spine-chilling scream made him jump up a few feet, his hand instinctively reaching for his sword. His horse gave what Wally could only interpret as a deadpan stare.

Clearing his throat, Wally sheepishly sheathed his sword.

“Let’s just hurry and get this thief so we can return that ruby to the church and never have to come back to these creepy woods again.”

Flash didn’t respond this time, too busy with dinner to bother listening to his rider’s ridiculous ramblings.

Wally fed a few more branches into the fire as he thought about Brother Sebastian’s description of the beast. It was rather detailed, like he had been face to face with it. Maybe the thief wore a disguise, played into the mythos of this beast to take advantage of those who believed in it. Or maybe it was just dark, and the reverend had simply seen a trick of the night.

Or maybe Brother Sebastian had just made the whole thing up and sent him on this wild goose chase.

He groaned, now finding himself more exhausted than scared. Watching the embers float into the night sky, his eyes slowly drifted closed as he let the heaviness of sleep pull him under.

Chapter Text

A glass chandelier cast specks of light across a glossy marble floor. In the big empty ballroom played one lone piano. Its song was a melancholy one. Slow and pining notes echoed their grievances to an imaginary crowd.

The pianist sat, her slim back draped in velvety purples and blues. Ghostly pink curls were tied high on her head, held together with pearls and silky lavender ribbons. Though he couldn’t see her face, he was enraptured by the way her pale fingers danced across porcelain keys.

It was beautiful.

His boots tapped against the floor, interrupting the solace. The piano hit a sour note, and she spun to face him. There was a shout of thunder, a flash of lightning. Her eyes flared bright, a stunning shade of pink he’d never known before. She opened her mouth and—

AAAHHHHHH!!!!

A high scream jolted him from his strange dream. Wally leapt to his feet, hand already at the hilt of his sword. The screaming, he realized, was his horse. The usually laxed animal was reared back, ears flat against his head, eyes wide and nostrils flared. Flash’s pale hooves thundered against the ground, warning off whatever was threatening them.

Rushing to his steed’s side, Wally saw the shadows in the thick bramble move. Yellow eyes glinted, and he heard the excited yipping of wolves. Leaping onto Flash’s back, he snatched the reins and kicked his heels into the panicking stallion’s sides.

“C’mon Flash,” he steered them quickly away from the moving shadows. “You’re the fastest horse alive, no hungry pack of wolves are havin’ us for dinner!”

The stallion needed little in the way of encouragement, seeing as a pack of wolves was hot on his tail. Leaping over some fallen branches and racing down the weathered trail, it seemed they were already leaving the pack in their dust.

There was a rumble in the sky as they reached a crossroads. Wally tugged the reins to lead them towards the village, but Flash dug his hooves quick in the dirt.

“Now isn’t the time to be ornery—”

Lightning crashed down, blinding white striking the tree in front of them. It fell ablaze, blocking their path.

“Well, nevermind!”

Behind them, the howling of wolves grew closer. Wally pressed his heels, and Flash ran just as a muzzle full of sharp teeth lunged at them. The wolf was met with heavy hooves and sent flying into the bushes with a yelp.

“Nice one!” He gave Flash a pat, and the horse whinnied in response. Wally laughed in spite of the dire straits. “Ok, if we get out of this, you are getting so many sugarcubes!”

As if spurred on by the promise— really, it had nothing to do with the pack of wolves nipping at his ankles— Flash picked up the pace. The wolves started to fall behind. It seemed they had a chance of losing them when their path was once again blocked, this time by an imposing iron fence. Tangled in ivy and thorns, they didn’t see it until they were almost on top of it. Flash brayed in alarm. He dug his hooves quick into the ground, skidding to a stop.

Wally leapt from the saddle and rammed against the bars. They creaked in protest, twigs and vines snapping as the doors reluctantly opened. The two rushed in, and Wally threw his weight into the bars, closing the gates just as the wolves arrived. They gnawed at the iron, white fangs flashing, growling and whining in frustration at their lost dinner until they finally gave up and turned tail into the forest.

Wally slumped in relief. Near death experience over, he was able to take in his surroundings.

“Wow!”

A decrepit chateau stood in front of him, complete with an overgrown garden and spiraling towers. He thought it must’ve been quite grand in its prime. Even now, its facade was impressive. Graceful arched windows and finely carved molding decorated the exterior. Crooked pillars led to massive oak doors guarded by half crumbled statues. A single tower loomed higher than the others, an open staircase spiraling around its impressive exterior.

Suddenly the stories of a beast living in a haunted castle weren’t so far-fetched.

“Do you think our thief's in there?” He asked, mostly to himself. Beast thief or no, they were going to need shelter for the night or risk freezing. “So… should we knock first?”

Flash gave a snort which Wally replied in kind with.

“Yeah, you’re right. Wouldn’t want to spook the Ghostwoods Beast.”

Wally joked as he gave the doors a solid shove. They didn’t even budge.

“Of course it’s locked.”

Not wanting to be stuck in the storm, he looked for another way in. He eyed a large window.

“Sorry, Beastie, but a warm fireplace is calling my name.”

He picked up a large rock, ready to break the window panes, but a squeal stopped him.

“It’s just one window, Flash. One window for the price of not drowning in this storm.”

The horse stomped his hooves and snorted. Wally turned around, ready to say something snippy in return, but stopped. The door was open.

Wally promptly dropped the stone.

“Oookay, no breaking the window. Got it.”

Horse and rider nervously walked in. The doors slammed, and one of them— later, Wally would swear it was Flash— screamed.

Wally scrambled for a match and immediately dropped it.

Standing in front of him was a slim gray figure. Bright pink irises glowed in the dim light as the creature stalked around him. A tattered skirt revealed slender clawed paws. Twisted black horns sprouted out from thick, pale pink curls. For a moment the two stared at each other. Wally couldn’t believe his own eyes. The Ghostwood Beast was real, and she was standing right in front of him.

Maybe she was friendly.

“Uh...” He tried to sound as casual as possible, but his voice squeaked, betraying his fear. “Hi, Beastie.”

The beast snarled, revealing sharp pearly fangs. Then she pounced, jaws open wide with a panther-like roar.

This time the scream was undeniably his.

Wally stepped back, reached for his sword, just to slip on a loose tile. Gracelessly, he fell flat on his back. This was just not his night.

A glint of red flickered at her throat. The ruby. His mouth fell open in surprise. Brother Sebastian was right.

“You’re the thief?”

Hair raised, she hissed and lunged.

Flash rammed into her mid-air, and the beast crashed into the stairwell. She staggered to her feet and yowled in anger. Pink flared, not just in her eyes but all around her. A swinging chandelier crashed down between them.

"Get out," she hissed.

"Wait, you can talk?"

"Of course I can!"

Her lip raised in offense, her long tail lashing out behind her. She looked ready to attack again.

"Well, in my defense, you were the one who clawed first with no questions asked."

"I— You were breaking in!"

Her whiskers twitched in astonishment. If she hadn't just tried to claw his face off, he might've called her cute.

"Oh, and this is your chateau?"

"Yes!"

"And I assume that pretty necklace there is yours too?"

Her ears flicked indignantly, "It is now."

"Uh-huh." He crossed his arms, "and what does someone like you want with that old gem anyway?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, I mean you're—"

Her eyes glinted, "A beast?"

His face flushed as shame crept up his arms. He didn't know this… horned-fox-lion-person. Maybe he was making all the wrong assumptions and making an ass out of himself.

"Sorry, I just… You did try to pounce on me!"

"And your hooved thing threw me across my foyer, so I don't think you're one to talk."

Flash snorted, and Wally put his hands on his hips.

"Ok, the hooved thing is a horse, and he has a name, and it's Flash."

"That's a dumb name for a horse."

Wally made a noise in the back of his throat, "Ex-Excuse me, but Monsieur Little Flash of Lightning is an accomplished stallion. Fastest horse alive, maybe you've heard of him. Saved countless citizens during the blinding blizzard last year."

"Yeah, whatever, don't care." She hissed, "Take your stupidly named stallion and get out of my castle!"

Wally crossed his arms, "Not until you give me that gem."

"No, it's mine.” She grasped the jewel possessively. “The Church doesn't need it anyway. All they’ll do is lock this beauty behind a glass display. At least I'm using it for something."

"Yeah, can't do that, kitten." She snarled at the name, but he continued on, flashing her his badge. "See, I'm the Sheriff of Rucheville. And my latest mission is returning that ruby back to the church."

Her eyes glowed threateningly, "I'd like to see you try, Sheriff!”

Despite her defensive tone, she’d yet to raise her hand at him again. Maybe he could just talk to her, convince her to return what she’d stolen.

"I don't want to fight."

"Oh, so he can be smart."

"You're trying to get a rise out of me. It won't work."

Her ear flicked in response.

"We obviously got off on the wrong foot… paws? Hooves? Nevermind, doesn't matter. Point is, I think we can talk this out. No violence necessary."

"Now I see why you wear yellow." She sneered, "You're a coward."

He responded to her jest only with a pointed look before continuing.

"Introductions are a good start. My name is Wally—"

She laughed, "Of course it is."

That did trip him up, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Oh, nothing… Wally." And then she giggled. His cheeks turned red.

"It's a family name." "Uh-huh." "Which I wear with pride." "Sure, whatever helps ya sleep at night, kid." "Kid? I'm twenty-three!" "Oh, excuse me. Couldn't tell with that baby face of yours."

Wally bit his tongue in exasperation. Taking a breath, he finally asked, "Why are you like this?"

"Oh, I don't know.” She shrugged, “Probably just comes with the territory of being a cursed beast."

He frowned. Somehow it seemed wrong, her calling herself a beast.

"What? It's true. Don’t pretend you don’t think so."

Wally opened his mouth to argue, but stopped. Just five minutes ago he had called her Beastie. He could make excuses. The preacher had already put the idea in his mind. Not to mention, she really had not resembled anything human when crouched on all fours hissing and yowling like some wild animal. But there was a gleam of hurt behind her guarded expression that made him angry with himself.

"Maybe you're cursed, but I don't think you're really a beast."

"Says the boy who drew his sword at me not five minutes ago."

"You attacked me! There were glowing eyes in what I thought was an abandoned castle. And the doors— they opened by themselves! What did you expect?"

"I expected you to run away! Everyone else does!"

Her voice raised in frustration, her eyes glowed again and a cabinet crashed into the floor. The torch in his hand went out, and the only light remaining was her glaring pink eyes.

"Whatever. Clearly this stupid necklace doesn't work anyway! Here, take it!"

She tossed the precious jewel across the room. He knew she threw it because it smacked him in the face. Ouch, he grumbled to himself. That’s quite the right hook.

Stuffing the necklace in his satchel, he was about to say as much to her when he noticed she was no longer in front of him. He heard her claws clicking up the stairs. Lighting another match, he ran after her. Flash whinnied in concern, but Wally waved him away. Somehow, he didn't think this girl was actually as bad as she seemed to think.

"Hey, wait up."

"Why are you still here? I gave you the stupid ruby, now leave me alone!"

"Yeah, quite the throw you got there, Princess."

She twisted back around, ears flat and nose curled.

"DON'T CALL ME PRINCESS!”

Wally raised his hands in apology, "Ok, sorry! I just… Don’t know what else to call you. You never told me your name."

"That’s because you don’t need to know, Sheriff."

"But what if I want to?"

She blinked at him, and he watched the twin stripes under her eyes turn brighter before she recovered her guarded expression.

Abruptly, he had the thought she was kinda pretty.

"... Or I could just keep giving you my own nicknames. I'm thinking I'll call you—"

"Jinx." She grumbled, "You can call me Jinx. It's what they called me before… anyway, if you must have a name, use that one."

The name made his mouth twitch, and not in a cheerful way. It sounded more like an insult than a name.

"Who are they?" Her tail lashed behind her and he sighed, "None of my business, got it."

Then she turned back around, walking briskly up the stairs.

"Does this mean I can stay the night, Jinxy?"

She groaned in annoyance, "Fine, but stay out of the highest tower."

"Why? What's there?"

"My room. Now will you leave me alone?"

“Ok, ok.” He relented.

Jinx sighed in relief and disappeared around a corner, leaving Wally alone on the stairwell.

“Goodnight, Jinxy!” He shouted after her. He heard her clicking claws pause and waited.

Mumbled in the darkness, he almost didn’t hear her.

“... Goodnight, Sheriff.”

Chapter Text

Jinx escaped to her room, flustered. It had been years since her last normal human interaction; although, she supposed she couldn’t call her and the sheriff’s meeting normal. At least it hadn’t ended with him running away screaming. He had screamed— she’d never forget the look on his face, hilarious— but they’d talked. Actually talked.

It was… strange.

Her reflection caught the corner of her eyes, and her elation was quickly quelled. Jinx bent over the broken remains of her vanity. Turning over a shattered hand mirror in her hands, she scowled at the kaleidoscope image staring back at her. This is what he saw. This was what she was. A monster. Her pink eyes flashed, and her reflection grew a few new cracks.

Setting the mirror back on its face, she turned away. What did it matter if she had fur and fangs or not? Her curse went much deeper than appearance, and no matter what she did, there was no escaping her misfortune. The Blessed Ruby was just yet another dead end.

“I just don’t know what else to try,” she whimpered quietly to an empty room.

She curled up in her bed, pulling shredded covers over her head as she resisted the urge to cry. Her sorrow turned quickly to bitter anger, however, as it always did. Scars of betrayal ran deep, afterall.

“Why?” She tore the covers off with a visceral growl. “Why did you do this to me?” Jinx stormed over to the object of her rage. The dying flower hung silent in its gilded glass vase like a dead man hanged at the gallows. It was all that was left of the person who’d trapped her like this. “I trusted you! You were supposed to fix me, not doom me to… to this!!”

Rage bubbled in her like water that boiled out of its pot. She lashed out, already knowing the outcome but not caring. Her claws were stopped by burning lightning. The backlash sent her stumbling back, painful sparks punishing her outburst.

The rose remained the same as before. It mocked her. Jinx could only laugh pitifully at the sight.

“Some fairy godmother you turned out to be, Madame.”

A knock on her doors made her jump. So the Sheriff had heard her outburst. Her tail lashed out in annoyance. She’d told him not to come up here. Jinx swung the doors open and snarled at the intruder.

“What are you doing here?” She hissed.

Her tone did little to intimidate him. Instead of flinching, he grinned sheepishly at her.

“I heard some noises. Just wanted to make sure you were ok.”

She snorted at his excuse. There was no way he was at all concerned for her. He was probably just snooping around.

“I’m fine.”

“Are you sure? There was a pretty loud—”

BANG! She slammed the door shut behind her as he tried to glance into her room.

“It must’ve been the wind.” Jinx forced a grin, her white fangs flashing.

“Strange wind.”

She didn’t like how the Sheriff was studying her. It made her fur stand on end and her tail twitch nervously.

“Yes, well, storms sound different in a forest, city boy.”

Jinx could tell he did not believe her excuses, but it didn’t matter if he believed her or not. She wasn’t telling him anything.

“Ok, ok.” He relented with an easy smile. “As long as you’re alright, I will take my leave, Milady.”

The sheriff bowed with his hat held at his heart, and she couldn’t help but roll her eyes. Milady, he called her. And not at all in a mocking tone as others had done in years past.

“Please do.”

He turned away, skipping down the stairs like a child. Jinx tilted her head in amusement. What a strange, strange man. Jinx growled at her imprudent thoughts. She shouldn’t let her guard down. Just because he had said she wasn’t a beast, didn’t mean he meant it.

Trust was a weakness she refused to risk again. And when the sun rose, he'd be gone anyway. And she'd never see him again.

…

He'd been here before, though he couldn't remember when. A glass chandelier cast specks of light on a glossy marble floor. The grand ballroom was filled with laughter, its center bustling with swirling skirts as people danced. But there was no music. It made for an uncomfortable atmosphere that only he seemed to notice.

Wally stumbled around the dancing figures, none of whom seemed to notice him. And when he bumped into one, they phased right through him. Like ghosts. Out of the corner of his eye, there was a flicker of movement. A small figure ducked behind a column only to peek out, their bright pink irises blinking curiously at him.

Wally kneeled down, his voice hushed. "It's ok, you don't have to hide."

A little girl tip-toed out from behind her hiding place. She couldn't have been older than six or seven, with her pale tresses barely reaching his knee.

"I-I know you." He said, pointing, his clouded mind grasping at a disappearing thought. "You're.. well, I can't remember."

The little girl put a finger to her lips, shushing him. She then looked somewhere behind him, her little hand shaking in fear. Wally glanced back, trying to see what had her so scared. The ballroom was suddenly empty of its ghostly dancers. The lights had dimmed, leaving the once shining place to drown in shadow. In the darkness, something moved. The shadows were alive, they swept up in a great wave and raced towards them.

Wally grabbed the girl in his arms and ran. She hid her face in his shoulder, and the beast behind them roared. The thunderous sound split the ground, and they fell, the shadows swallowing them both up.

Wally woke with a start, his hands grasping for the little girl to protect her from the fall. Instead he slapped his horse, who he'd fallen asleep against. Flash unceremoniously stood up, leaving Wally to fall with thud on the stable floor.

He glared at his steed, pulling the straw from his hair.

"So much for sleeping in." He muttered, "Probably for the best. I just had the weirdest dream. There was this fancy dance, but it was a bunch of ghosts and this little girl… But then there was this monster. I think it ate us? I don't know, the details are all fuzzy now."

Flash stomped his hoof.

"Yeah, yeah. I know. We should get a move on." He fished the ruby out of his bag. "Return this to the good reverend."

After giving his horse a quick brush down and packing up his stuff, Wally led Flash from the stables to the iron gates. He paused at the threshold. The sun had not yet peeked over the horizon, and his unusual hostess was probably still sound asleep. It'd be rude to wake her, but he couldn't leave without showing his gratitude. Wally tipped his cap to the tallest tower though Jinx would surely scoff at him. It was, after all, the gentlemanly thing to do.

Thankfully, the ride back to Rucheville was easier than the ride to the manor. In the light of day, wolves were nowhere to be seen, and the rain had cleared the dense fog so he could actually see the path in front of him. It's almost like he should have waited til morning in the first place…

Still, he was excited to have something to show for his efforts. Maybe now the townsfolk would finally accept him.

Wally reached the church’s grand wooden doors and flung them open, the ruby held openly in his hand. The Reverend, standing at the podium shouting sermons, went silent to glare at him. Wally shifted uncomfortably as the entire congregation turned to him. Oops. He’d forgotten Rucheville’s services were daily and not just on the Lord’s day of rest.

“Um, apologies.” He gave a sheepish smile, “But I do believe this belongs to the good Church.”

Brother Sebastian walked up to him in long sweeping strides. He practically tore the ruby from the young sheriff’s hand, and Wally could see the red glow of the jewel in the Reverend's eyes. It was certainly not the look one expected of a pious man.

“Excellent,” The older man exclaimed. “And what of the beast?”

Wally swallowed, knowing he needed to lie to spare Jinx from a pitchfork mob. The thing about that, however, was—

“Beast? Ha, um yeah. No beast. Uh, a racoon.” He snapped his fingers, “Very deformed. Yes. Hideous, foaming at the mouth.” He winced at the very bad, terrible truth that he was an awful liar. “Anyway, she ran off. Probably won’t see her— It, um again. Yes. So, uh carry on with the good word of God, I have to… do something sheriffy. Ok, bye.”

And he ran. Jumping onto the saddle, he felt the eyes of Rucheville on his back. “Ok, well. That could have gone worse, surely?” Flash snickered. “So, it wasn’t my best work, but they got their ruby back so hopefully everyone will just go about their business as usual.”

Everyone did not, in fact, ‘go about their business’.

The next several days whispers followed him around the village. “Cursed by the devil, no doubt.” Spat the baker. “I heard the Sheriff made a deal with the beast. How else do you think he came back alive?” Said the miller. “He called it a ‘her’, didja hear?” The working girls giggled, “Wonder if he confirmed it. Woulda had to do a proper investigation—”

Wally sequestered himself in his house when he wasn’t doing his routine patrols. He somehow had managed to make the town respect him even less. He much preferred when everyone had pretended he didn’t exist to this.

Tapping his pen on an empty scroll of paper, he wondered what he could write to his folks that wouldn’t make him sound like a failure. His mind wandered back to the chateau and its one inhabitant. He'd snooped around a bit after saying goodnight to Jinx. While there wasn't much in the way of clues about who she was in the rather bare estate, he had seen the royal seal on the gates, and that, along with her reaction to being called ‘princess’ made him question some things.

Finally, he put quill to paper again. If there was anyone out there with information regarding the illustrious royal family of France, it would be his aunt, Comtesse du Barry, Mademoiselle Iris.

Of course, gossip surrounding the royals was strictly regulated. He didn’t much care for the gallows, so after writing a fluff piece of a letter, he turned it over and retrieved his small store of lemon juice. Aunt Iris would surely appreciate the good subterfuge, especially since last he’d heard from her, she was bored sick on bedrest. If your Uncle fusses anymore over me, I fear I may have to strangle him, she’d written in the margins of her husband’s rambling. He wondered if the letter would arrive before the baby. They had about another month now…

Wally looked at his almanac. The next new moon was a little less than two weeks away as well.

Would Jinx come down from the forest to steal again?

She must have to, he realized. From what little he could gather from the townsfolk, she came down and stole mostly food goods. A hog here, a hen there, some bushels of vegetables, and always— much to baker Madame Maeye’s dismay— a blueberry pie.

“Huh,” he thought aloud. “She must really like blueberries.”

Maybe if he brought her those things, then she wouldn’t feel the need to steal. Wally made up his mind and grabbed his coat. Bracing himself for the scowling Rucheville residents, he hit up the town. He never failed to notice how prices suddenly skyrocketed when he walked down the street. Regardless, he loaded up on all sorts of goods. As he was leaving, the town’s small bookkeep caught his eye.

She must get dreadfully bored all alone in that place.

What kind of books did girls like? He tried to remember Aunt Iris chattering with the noble ladies about the latest popular romance novella. A new woman author had been making scandalous waves amongst the ladies, though he didn’t understand the controversy.

“Looking for something in particular, sir?” The librarian, Miss Karen Beecher, asked politely. He was surprised she acknowledged him at all, honestly. Apparently, his surprise showed, because the tall woman gave him a brazen grin, “What? Not everyone believes in those silly rumors, Sheriff. Don’t look so nervous. If they know they’re getting to you, they’ll never stop.”

He chuckled, “That obvious, huh?”

“Very. I do not recommend pursuing the acting arts, Sir West.”

“Please, call me Wally.”

“Well, Wally, my friends call me Bee.” She smiled and offered her hand.

He shook it cordially, excited to have finally made a friend here. “I do hope you can help me, Bee. I’m looking for an up and coming author. My Aunt is on bedrest you see, and I’d like to send her something to keep her occupied.” A white lie, perhaps, which did make his hair itch, but maybe he’d send her a copy just so he wouldn’t feel so bad about it. “Um, I think the name was Jane August?”

“Austen, honey. And yes. I have just the collection for you!” She excitedly went to the stacks, her hand skirting across several titles and pulling out three freshly bound books. “Oh, she’s going to love these. They’re early copies straight off the press.” Bee leaned in and whispered, “Don’t ask how I got ‘em. Connections gotta stay secret.”

“Haha, thanks Bee! I gotta run. Late for the afternoon patrol!”

He scrambled out of the bookstore, excited to show off everything to Jinx. He packed the saddlebags tight, taking extra care with the pie and books. Flash huffed in annoyance at the extra weight.

“Aw, c’mon now bud. Be a good sport.”

The horse snorted, then perked his ears. Something had caught his attention. It was Brother Sebastian walking up the hill. He looked at them with suspiciously narrowed eyes as Wally waved back. The preacher then turned away without a word, leaving Wally unnerved.

He shook his head, “Don’t let them bother you. We’re not doing anything wrong.”

Flash stomped his foot, impatient to get to wherever they were going so he could ditch the saddlebags.

“Ok, ok.” Wally laughed, “Let’s go.”

He gave Flash a small nudge forward, and they were off.