Beau & the Beast

Louis wakes up again, this time in an oversized bed, blankets piled high. He’s sweating profusely and the room is dark.

“Hello?” he calls out to no one in particular. He doesn’t know where is, so it isn’t like he can be very specific.

“Anyone?” he asks again, trying to kick the covers down off of him.

“Shhh,” he hears a muffled whisper before a door knob turns, “Don’t say anything.”

Louis doesn’t know whether he should listen or scream louder. When a dim light flickers on, revealing a broad man in a waist coat, he’s still unsure of what to do.

“Who the fuck are you?” Louis still whispers, covering himself with blankets once again when he realizes that he’s practically naked.

The man stretches his arms out tentatively, waving them in reassurance, “Don’t worry; I’m Liam and I’m not going to hurt you. You’re just confused right now, I understand. Especially with the state you were in. I’m here to help.”

Louis is more unsure than ever now, but there’s something comforting about the other man. He’s big and brawny, but his main concern seems to be Louis’ safety, so he still decides against screaming.

“Just-“ Louis swallows, his mouth extremely dry. Drier than it usually is after a long trip, “Where am I and how long have I been here?”

Liam sits on the edge of the bed, careful to notice how Louis shrugs farther away, “Well, you’re at Cheshire Palace and you’ve been here for about eight hours now. How do you feel?”

Louis shakes his head, his memory more than fuzzy. He couldn’t place what the hell happened, but Cheshire Palace is just ringing in his mind, “I’m sorry- I...”

Louis stops then, leaning back against the fluffy pillows again, crossing his arms in an attempt to think. The moment he brings one hand up to massage his temples, Liam is standing and ringing out a rag in a basin.

“Here, place this on your forehead; I’m sure your head doesn’t feel too great,” Liam approaches Louis’ side of the bed slowly, awaiting any protest. Louis only reaches out for the rag, though, so Liam hands it to him gratefully.

Once the cool, damp rag is over his forehead, and partially over his closed eyes, he takes a deep breath and tries to speak again, “Can you explain what happened? My mind is a bit fuzzy.”

“Well, there’s not too much to remember. Anyone who comes through that portal is always at a loss for memory the next day- In fact, I don’t think anyone has ever remembered the actual journey. But, that’s beside the point. Niall said that you were quite keen on joining us, though it was quite irresponsible of him-“

“Wait,” Louis sits up abruptly, the towel falling onto his lap, “Niall. That sounds so fucking familiar. The blonde chap, yeah? Where did I meet him?”

Louis thinks as hard as he can, unable to place anything substantial to those bright blue eyes and frosty blonde hair.

Liam sits down at Louis’ feet, fairly certain that the other lad won’t smack him for coming closer now, “I’m not sure where you were, but he pulled you through a reflection to be certain. It has to be a reflection. How high were you? I understand not remembering the portal, but you could not have made such a decision with a sound mind if you can’t even remember it.”

Liam stands in anger, fists balling at his sides, “How dare he bring someone else through without them even knowing what they’re getting themselves into! You had no idea! Jesus christ, I thought Zayn was being melodramatic. Louis-“ he sits back down, his hands reaching for Louis’ to grasp his full attention, “I’m so sorry, Louis. I really am.”

Louis feels his heart race a mile a minute as Liam stands up again, pacing the floor of the large room around him. Liam is tugging at his hair and muttering curses under his breath, “We just have to make the best of a shit situation. Louis, I’m so sorry. You’re going to have to cooperate if you want to survive.”

“Survive?” Louis gulps, gripping the sheets in his lap, “Mon die, what have I gotten myself into?”

Louis passes out again, for the third time that night, and Liam stands guard in front of his occupied room, aware of the consequences he would face if the Master found him. He wouldn’t be able to control his wrath, and Liam will not let an innocent bystander that got tricked into Niall’s foolish games face the brunt of it.

........

“I can’t fucking believe you!” Zayn shoves Niall when they’re in the kitchen. Perrie is stirring a beef stew in a pot on the corner stove, maintaining focus on what she’s cooking. She’s definitely listening in, though, and she’s already listened to Zayn’s rant. While she agrees that Niall was being a bit foolish, she feels bad for the punishment Zayn will give him. Not to mention when Liam or the Master get to him.

“Back off, mate,” Niall steps aside, stealing yet another piece of bread from the counter. That’s what irritates Zayn the most, the way he brushes it off like none of it matters.

“No!” Zayn roars, shoving him again, harder this time, “You ruined some innocent guy’s fucking life! He did nothing! He’s a nice lad, and you’ve screwed him over. I get it, Niall. We’re all fucking bored in this hell hole! But, you can’t just drag other people down to make your life suck less!”

Perrie dares to turn around, and when she does, she finds Niall pressed against the wall, Zayn holding him there by his throat. She throws her hands in the air, tossing the ladle to the side before removing her apron, “Zayn, let him go!”

Perrie places her hands on her best friend’s shoulders and tries to gently pull him away. Zayn doesn’t budge, though, only clenching his hand harder, making Niall choke on the bread he had just swallowed.

“Zayn, don’t do this. Just let him go and I’ll pour you a drink,” Perrie pleads, gently massaging his shoulders. Zayn physically calms at that, and Perrie breathes out a sigh of relief when he removes his grasp from Niall and steps away. Niall smirks though like the smart ass that he is.

As he saunters off to the hallway, he growls at the darker man, “Fucking pussy-whipped, you are.”

Zayn almost chases him down through the door, but Perrie’s hand is still on his arm, and when he faces her, she looks stricken.

“I’m sorry, Pez. I didn’t mean to; he just makes me so livid sometimes!” He apologizes, pulling her into a quick hug.

“You just have to try and control your temper, Z. We’re all sick of being here, yeah? Just try to breathe through it,” Perrie comforts him for a few more seconds before turning to the cupboard and pulling out one of the few bottles of liquor within the castle.

“Just have a seat, and I’ll make you a bowl of stew when it’s done. Talk to me,” Perrie hands him a small glass of whiskey and turns back to supper, tying her apron around her waist again.

Zayn takes a long swig and slumps down in an old wooden chair that he pulls next to the stove, “He’s a nice guy, Perrie. He doesn’t deserve this torture.”

She nods knowingly, “No one does.”

Zayn reaches over and gently grazes her arm, “I didn’t mean that you did. Liam doesn’t either. Niall and I do, though. We’re more guilty than he ever was.”

“No,” Perrie drops the ladle in frustration, turning to face Zayn, “You don’t deserve it. Niall doesn’t. The master doesn’t. Just get that out of your head. No one deserves to be trapped here! You’re not a bad man, Zayn.”

Zayn’s eyes downcast and Perrie places her hands on either side of his face, begging him to listen, “Look at me, Z.”

He glances up into her piercing blue eyes and wonders how he deals with the pain of being alone when she’s always nearby. He loves her too much to put her through a relationship with him, though. That’s why they have to stay friends. He has to save her from himself.

“We’ve all made mistakes, Zayn. That’s why we’re all stuck here with him. But, we have to remember that those punishments were decided by an evil man who locked away and cursed his own son. You can’t blame yourself when the situation was completely out of anyone else’s control. I hope that one day, the king has to live the same fate he has cast upon us all. Sure, Liam was only ever guilty of trying to help the Master, but you were only guilty of trying to support your family. You should be proud if anything.”

Zayn stomps his foot, trying ever so hard to take Perrie’s previous advice and breathe through the anger instead of lashing out, “But, how can I be proud when I don’t even know if they’re still alive? What if it was all for nothing?”

Perrie kneels down in front of Zayn and gathers his hands in her own, “You can’t think that way.”

He just sighs through gritted teeth, his heart pounding, “I stand in front of that damned mirror every day, and I have yet to catch a glimpse of them. Instead, I end up in seedy night club toilets and such. This new guy, Louis, he’s fucking French. I’m not even seeing through mirrors in the right country anymore! Why, Perrie? Why!”

He starts to stand up, but she presses her arms into his thighs, keeping him on the chair, “Who knows, Zayn. Don’t give up hope, though. We’ll get out of here one day.”

Zayn almost retorts with a smart ass remark, but instead he just kisses her forehead, “Thanks, Pez.”

She grins in accomplishment, even though she knows deep down that Zayn is still just as bitter and resentful as ever, “Now, I’ll pour you some soup before I bring a bowl to the new kid. He won’t like throw it at me, right?”

Zayn shrugs and follows behind her, standing next to the hot stove, “Doubtful, but he does seem to be a sassy one.”

“Lord help us all. As if we needed another character in this place,” Perrie giggles distantly, handing a small bowl to Zayn before pouring another larger one.

“I see how it is. Getting him on your good side by giving him more soup than me. You’ll have me replaced in no time!” Zayn teases, pinching her side and causing her to yelp.

“As if,” she grins, sticking her tongue out soon afterward, “By the way, you’ve already spilt some on your shirt, you klutz.”

He looks down and spots a brown stain on his white button-up. He curses himself and sets down the bowl, beginning to take it off as Perrie leaves the room.

She may or may not peek through the crack in the door until he’s shirtless in the kitchen.

........

When Perrie approaches the Louis’ door, Liam is sitting outside on the floor, face in his hands.

“Li,” she whispers and his head shoots up.

“Christ, Perrie,” he sighs, standing up quickly, “You scared the living daylights out of me.”

Perrie smiles, showing off the tray in her hands, “Brought our guest some grub. How is he?”

Liam shrugs and rests his hand on the doorknob, “Not well, I suppose. He passed out again. He didn’t remember much, Perrie. I’m worried about how this is going to turn out.”

Perrie frowns and sets the tray down on the dresser in the hall, “Liam, we’ll have to make the best of it. I’m sure he’s a reasonable lad. He’ll have to deal with it too. It’s not ideal for anyone, but here we are.”

Liam takes a step toward Perrie and she pulls him into a hug as he mutters, “He’s going to kill me. The Master. He’s going to hate me.”

“He’d better not,” Perrie scolds the man who isn’t even present, “He’s the reason you’re here, Liam. And you know he’s aware of that. You’re probably the only person here that he loves. Don’t worry too much about his reaction.”

Liam sighs anxiously, “Perr, it’s not that simple. He’s such a bitter man nowadays. So much worse than it’s been all these years. He’s lost hope. We’re all okay until we lose hope.”

Perrie nods slowly, “Okay, but Zayn was hopeless, too. He’s getting better-“

“Perrie,” Liam’s tone is serious, “You know how I feel about that. You need to be more careful around him.”

“He’s not a bad man,” she reassures, “He cares about me. We’re friends.”

Liam gives her an assuming look, well aware of Perrie’s ulterior feelings for Zayn, “That’s neither here nor there. Help me with this, Perrie. I’m at a loss.”

Perrie huffs and takes the tray back in her hands, “Open the door. You check on the Master and keep him somewhere else. I’ll take care of Louis.”

Liam hesitates but she nods expectantly until he goes to open the door, “Are you sure about this? We can always just let him blame me.”

Perrie shakes her head, “Absolutely not, we’re all together in this. We’ll face him together. Just butter him up.”

Perrie winks and Liam offers a small smile before opening the door and staring longingly as Perrie enters the dark bedroom.

“Here goes nothing,” she whispers to herself as she approaches the sleeping stranger.

Meanwhile, Louis dreams of the far off place that he still calls home.

Notes

ugh guys, just please comment and vote xx love you all... sorry it's late here and i need sleep.