From part 3
******
Sam panicked for a second, not wanting to tell her about the castle, or the hideous beast he encountered there. Unable to come up with anything, he fumbled, "Uh, just happened to see it in a clearing in the woods over there," gesturing in the general direction and praying she would drop the subject.
Lois could tell he was avoiding the subject, but rather than pressing it and make him suspicious, she decided to investigate later on her own. To allay her father's fears though, she replied, "Oh, it doesn’t really matter. It's so beautiful, thank you. I've never seen a rose like it."
Sam was so relieved that she had not pressed the point, he decided not to press his luck. "Well it's late Princess," he said. "I think I should turn in. I'm tired from my journey. I'll see you in the morning."
Lois watched her father go to bed, already planning to search for this mysterious clearing tomorrow. She might not have much to go on, but she was determined to make a good try of it. Satisfied, she headed for bed, intending to get an early start in the morning.
And now part 4
******
The next morning, Lois sneaked out as soon as she could without arousing suspicion. Her determination to discover where the unique flower had come from had not wavered all night, and she was barely able to contain her curiosity long enough to wait. She was not sure where to start, but she had an idea.
First, since she had never seen it before it could not be very close to the village. On the other hand, it could not be more than half a day or so's ride, because her father had not been gone more than a day. Determined not to let lack of information stop her, she set off in the direction her father vaguely gestured.
After several hours of walking, Lois was getting tired. She was not used to going so far, normally she just stayed in the village. It had seemed so much easier back home when she had just been thinking about it. Not that she would let a little discomfort stop her, but she needed a rest. Only when she found a stump to sit on, did it occur to Lois she had not brought any food to eat. Well, she could live without food for one day. Might even do her some good.
Hungry, but unwilling to give in, Lois continued her search. As noon came and went, Lois began to wonder if her search would prove futile, as so far not a hint of her father’s trail, nor the wonderful rose had been found. Still, Lois pressed on, unready to admit defeat.
Soon after, Lois realized she would have to turn back if she did not want to be caught out after dark. Even now, she was not sure if she could make it home before nightfall. But she knew that if she returned, her father would do everything he could to prevent her from leaving again. Pushing her luck, she decided to press on a bit further before heading back.
Lois pressed her luck way too far, and began to notice the shadows creeping, telling her sunset was not far off. She cursed herself for being so stubborn, and began to look around the woods a tad fearfully, wondering what creatures night might bring. Lois decided it was time to turn back, and hoped she would not get lost or worse in the dark.
When she started home, Lois thought she saw something out of place to her right. Heading to where she could see past the trees easier, she could see a tower of some sort in the distance. Thinking perhaps salvation was at hand, from the encroaching darkness, she headed towards it. As she approached, she saw the tower was part of a large castle, surrounded by a high wall. Hoping whoever inhabited the castle was friendly, or at least non-hostile, she picked up her pace.
It was nearly dark by the time she reached the castle. Lois feared she might be stuck outside, but she noticed the gate was open. Hoping that it was a sign of friendliness, Lois entered the castle grounds. Upon entering, she gasped at the lovely garden she found herself in. Roses of every type, including several she had never seen before, bloomed everywhere she looked, including the one her father had brought.
She had found the source of the mysterious rose. Suddenly, she remembered her father’s fright and wondered what had been so terrifying. Briefly she considered fleeing, but when she looked back at the forbidding forest, decided she would rather confront the imagined horrors here than what she was certain would be out there.
Putting on a bold face, in spite of the fear she felt, Lois strode toward the castle. Upon reaching the entrance, she cautiously opened the door. Peering inside, she asked "Hello? Is anybody home?"
Her voice echoed loudly in the silence and Lois cringed. After a few moments without a reply, she let herself in. Slowly, she looked around. Suddenly, Lois yawned and she realized just how tired she really was from walking around all day. Searching around quickly, Lois found a soft couch to lie on, and promptly decided to use it for her bed. She was out mere seconds after lying down.
******
Clark spent a long time brooding and berating himself for almost losing control after the man fled. Eventually, he could not take being in the castle anymore and took off, flying aimlessly. If he had hoped to escape his thoughts though, it was not working. Thankfully, it was not too long before he heard a call for help. Donning his disguise, he raced to the rescue.
Afterwards, Clark was starting to feel a bit better. Helping others normally made him feel good about himself, as if he had a purpose for existing, even if he was a monster. He spent the rest of the day flying around and helping others in trouble.
When night approached he decided to stay out rather than going back home and possibly bringing back memories of what had transpired. He did not really need that much sleep anyway. He spent the night flying the countryside.
As the sun began to rise, he went to the top of a nearby mountain. He loved watching the sunrise, it was always so beautiful and invigorating. He always felt better when the first rays of the sun hit him, stronger somehow. The world was so beautiful from here, he felt so peaceful. He could almost forget the monster he was, gazing down like this.
Clark was drawn out of his reflections by a scream. 'No rest for the weary,' he thought as he raced off to the rescue. He spent the rest of the day flying around helping out as he could. This time, when dusk approached, Clark was beginning to feel tired so he decided it was time he headed home and got some sleep. Hopefully all the good he had done would help him forget about the earlier incident. More tired then he realized, he barely made it to his bed before collapsing into a deep sleep.
He woke early the next morning and immediately realized something was out of place with his castle. At first he could not place the feeling, but then he realized he was hearing a soft, steady thumping noise. After a few moments, it dawned on Clark that it was a heart beat. Quickly scanning the castle, he saw a form lying asleep on a couch in his castle.
Despite his promises to himself, and his best attempts not to, the anger rose in him like a beast of its own. Storming through the castle, he approached the sleeping figure. As he neared the figure stirred.
"How dare you invade my castle?" Clark growled loudly. "What gives you the right to...?" He trailed off as the woman turned on him quickly, startled. She started backing away and tripped back onto the couch. As he looked into her terrified doe eyes, sudden recognition flooded him. It was the woman he had rescued the other day.
******
Lois was startled out of her sleep by the sound of something stomping through the castle. As she started to get up, a loud voice, with a strange bestial quality, growled at her.
"How dare you invade my castle?" it said, as she turned toward it.
There was a horrible looking monster growling at her. Suddenly frightened, Lois tried to back away but tripped over the couch she had slept on, ending up sitting on it again. This behemoth must be what had frightened her father. It continued growling at her, "What gives you the right to...?" Suddenly the monster trailed off.
The creature just stared at her. She was not sure what it was doing, but suddenly it seemed less threatening than before. Emboldened by this behavior, Lois jumped up and started yelling back.
"How dare *you* come storming in here, yelling at me, after you left the gate and door open. If you really don't want anyone entering, why don't you keep it locked up tight? Really, you think you'd at least find out *why* before you jump down my throat about it. Did it ever occur to you I might have a good reason? I didn't want to be trapped out in the forest after dark. I just wanted shelter for the night. Honestly, it's not like I was going to cause any harm." Lois said quickly, hardly pausing to breathe.
It seemed to deflate before her. Quietly, and apologetically, it said, "You're right. I don't know what I was thinking. I... I let my temper take control of me and I shouldn't. It was wrong. Please, go, leave before my control slips again."
Lois' fear was gone now, as she looked into its eyes, very human eyes, she noticed. Eyes that showed a pain and even fear that she did not quite understand, but something inside her made her want to reach out and sooth the pain away. She could not explain it.
"No, I suppose it is a bit suspicious to find someone in your castle, just like they own it. Maybe we should just start over." Lois said, with more confidence than she actually felt. "Hi, I'm Lois. I was out in the woods and night was coming, so I sought refuge in your castle. The gate was open so I hoped you wouldn't mind."
He, for now Lois thought of him that way, seemed utterly confused now. After a few moments, he replied, "Hi Lois, I'm Cl... Beast, you can call me Beast. That seems to be what they call me now. And you are welcome to shelter in my castle."
Suddenly something clicked in Lois' mind, and she was not sure if she should be afraid again or not. The Beast is what the townspeople called the monster that had been sent by the evil wizard Tempus and killed the Prince. Could this be the same one? Could this be the castle it had taken over? She had never known where it was.
"Are you the Beast that killed the prince?" She asked hesitantly, hoping not to anger him again.
A look of incredulousness fell upon his face. "Lois, I swear to you I never killed the Prince, nor anyone else for that matter. I'm not sure what happened to the Prince, but yes I believe this is his castle. It was deserted so I took refuge here, so as not to scare the townsfolk. I guess they assumed I had gotten rid of the Prince."
Lois was not sure why, but she believed his story. Something she could not explain told her to trust him. "I believe you." she responded.
Suddenly, his face brightened. He was obviously relieved she had believed him, which just affirmed her belief in him. She wondered what her dad had found so terrifying about him. Thinking about her dad reminded Lois he would probably be getting worried since she had been gone so long.
"I hate to cut this short," she said, a touch regretfully, "but I have to be going. My father will be worried about me since I didn't come home last night. I just hope I can find the way."
The Beast's face fell slightly. "Of course," he said, his voice losing much of its bestial quality now that he had calmed down. "You're from the nearby village aren't you?"
Lois nodded and he continued, "I can show you the path, it's a bit overgrown but you should be able to follow it. It's a several hours walk..."
He trailed off and appeared to be pondering something. "Before you go, let me show you something. Follow me."
Curious, Lois followed him, wondering what he might want to show her. He took her around the castle, towards a stable. In the pasture were several beautiful horses. She could not help but gasp, she loved horses but her father had not been able to support one. Why was he taking her here? Maybe it was something beyond the stable and pasture. To her surprise, he stopped near the pasture and gazed at the horses. Curious, she moved up to the fence next to him.
"These horses are some of my few companions. I feed them, treat them well, show them a little attention, and they don't judge me by my appearance. I wish more people were like that," the Beast said, a tad wistfully.
As he spoke, one of the horses, a pretty mare with a gray coat with scattered black flecks, trotted up by the fence and nuzzled Lois' hand. Lois reached out and petted the mare on the head. "You're right. People judge by appearance all to often," Lois replied, briefly thinking of Lex.
"Well, you seem to have made a friend," the Beast said, brightening. "She seems to have taken quite a shying to you. Why don't you take her?"
"No, I couldn't," Lois protested. "It's too much, she's your horse."
The Beast roared with laughter. "I have plenty of horses, besides it's not like I ride them. This way you will be able to get home much faster. And I want to give you something, because you're the first person who..." he paused for a moment, "hasn't seen me as just a monster."
Lois was not sure, but she suspected he might have started to say something else. Unable to resist the lure of her own horse, she gave in. "Alright, but I really should give you something in return."
"That's not necessary," he protested.
"Nonsense," she responded. "I know, I'll come back and visit you again. You seem like you could use company sometimes."
"I'd love that," the Beast replied, grinning. "You're welcome here any time."
Something in the way his voice quivered told Lois that she had definitely made the right choice. With that settled, they saddled the horse, and he showed her the route home. As Lois rode home, she hoped her father would not be too worried about her.
******
Clark watched her ride away with a wistful smile. He still could not quite believe the events that had just occurred. He had lost his temper yet again. Ever since he had been changed into his present form, he seemed to have a hard time keeping it under control. And of all the times for it to happen, it had to be with Lois.
He still had a hard time believing that she had not fled out of his life forever, mere seconds after having stepped back into it. But instead of fleeing from him, as everyone else did, she had started yelling back at him. It was unbelievable. She had a courage and fire within her which only made him fall more deeply in love. Not that anything could ever come of it, she was too beautiful to be with a monster like him. She probably had someone back home anyway. Women like that did *not* stay single for long.
They had talked, the first time he had a real conversation in God knew how long. When they had introduced themselves, he had almost given his real name, but he could not do that. She would never believe what had happened to him. It was amazing enough she had believed him about not killing anyone. He had not been comfortable about it, but he had dodged around the truth, unwilling, and unable, to tell her the whole story.
As they had talked, he was more and more convinced that he had fallen for her. It was bittersweet talking with her, but he would not trade it for anything. His life might be hundreds of times harder now, knowing what he was missing, but for today he was happy. He would let himself dream until tomorrow, then he would let reality come crashing back in.
When Lois said she needed to go, he had taken her to the stables on a whim. He had wanted to give her something in return for just talking to him like he was a human again. When he saw the way her eyes lit up when she saw the horses, Clark knew he had made the right decision. After a little persuasion, he had managed to get her to accept his gift.
Then the most amazing thing had happened. He had not thought anything could be better than what had already occurred, but she had actually asked if she could visit him again. It was all Clark could do to keep his composure and not break out in tears. He had never imagined she would want to see him again. He agreed, and wondered when she would return. He hoped it would not be too long.
******
