Once upon a time, there was a very rich merchant who had three daughters. Each of the daughters were extremely beautiful, especially the youngest who was called Belle. Belle's elder sisters were wrought with pride, due to their father's money. All day and night, they would go out to parties, balls, and concerts of all types while Belle stayed at home reading with her father. Due to their jealousy of Belle, they would often laugh and exclude her. The only place Belle truly felt like herself was while she was near her father or at the town's library.

One day, the wealthy merchant lost his entire fortune except a small country house on the edge of town. The two eldest sisters refused to leave at first, because they had many lovers within the town, but as soon as the town heard of their tragic loss, the eldest sisters' lovers rejected them, saying they were not worth anyone's pity. They were concerned for Belle, though. "Belle," they said, "did not deserve the loss of her father's fortune." Many men came to court Belle before she and her family left, but she refused to marry them. She thanked them kindly but told them that she wouldn't be able to leave her father with his misfortune. Belle's sisters became even more jealous and began blaming her for their father's loss.

After losing all his money, the merchant became a talented inventor. In hopes of selling his inventions, he took the long three-day trek to the nearest market. The eldest sisters continued to loath their youngest sister, who was still welcomed when she had the time to go back to town for a new book or other needs.

About a year after the merchant's tragedy, he received a letter to notify him that one of his ships had been recovered with the cargo. Exhilarated with excitement, the elder sisters immediately began asking their father for new gowns, jewels, and ribbons. Belle, on the other hand, stayed quiet knowing that what had been recovered would only be enough to keep them fed and clothed. Her father approached her before leaving to collect his lost fortune and asked what she wanted.

"A rose," she said quietly, "since none grow here and are only brought by traveling merchants."

"As you wish," he replied, hugging her goodbye.

The good man went on his long journey, but when he got there, he was informed that none of his fortune was able to be recovered. He realized he would be coming back as poor as he had been when he left.

The good inventor was 30 miles from home, when he came to a fork in the road. It was storming terribly and he began to turn his horse toward home when a tree was struck down, blocking his path. Convinced he could get home going the other way, he lead his horse. Within the next 10 minutes, the rain had turned to sleet and the wind had picked up tremendously.

As his hope for a way home was depleting, he saw a light in the distance. He galloped closer and more lights became visible until a great palace was able to be seen. The inventor looked up in awe, for he had never seen anything like it. Feeling unbearably famished, he decided to rest his horse and venture inside. The large oak doors groaned and creaked as if they had not been touched in years. The interior of the castle looked surprisingly tidy, but what surprised the inventor the most was the warm hearth burning and crackling not far away from him.

"Hello? Is anyone there?" he called out. Silence was the only thing heard. When he tried again, silence followed once more. He gave up hope of someone answering him and sat near the burning fire. After he was warm once more, the inventor investigated the peculiar place. He discovered a table set with food. Looking at the delectable spread, his stomach growled like an angry dog. He took a single pastry and a glass of wine and spoke a quick thank you to the master of the house.

I hope I'm not trespassing or taking too much liberty in staying here, he spoke to himself.

Growing more curious, the inventor continued exploring the palace until he wandered into a large chamber with the largest bed he'd ever seen. The blankets ordinating the bed were as soft as silk and smooth as velvet. Realizing how exhausted he was, the inventor wedged himself between the blankets and the mattress, and fell asleep still without a word from the master or any servants. That night, he dreamed about his daughters and about how disappointed they'd be when he came home empty handed.

He awoke the next morning and quickly made up the bed as if he'd never slept in it. Almost as soon as he had awoken, he noticed what seemed to be a very expensive suit hanging on the closet. He dressed himself, leaving his torn and tattered clothes in the nearest basket.

This palace has to belong to some kind fairy, who has seen me and pities my distress, he thought to himself, thank you, good fairy, for allowing me to stay and for providing for me.

The sun was now up and shining brightly through the dusty windows as the inventor walked to the dining room, where he had eaten before. He found another plate of pastries awaiting him, and took two, eating them in two bites each. As he ate, he looked out a window to discover the most magnificent garden he'd ever laid eyes on and remembered what Belle had asked for. He spotted a large rose garden at the edge of the gate surrounding the castle, and grabbed his coat and hat to face the chilled weather. He chose two roses of which were the most beautiful and gathered them

"Ouch!" he yelled, having pricked his finger on a thorn. Suddenly, a loud THUD was heard behind him. He turned around slowly to come face to face with a monstrous brown beast. He backed away slowly and the beast roared as the inventor tripped over a branch.

"All you men are the same! You're greedy and ungrateful," growled the beast, "I provide you with shelter from the storm, a warm bed, and even food to eat, yet you try to steal what is most precious to me? You will pay the price for what you've tried to do!" The beast continues to yell, pulling the man towards his castle.

"Please, Lord," he said, "please forgive me. I only intended on gifting it to my daughter, who requested one from my journey."

"My name is not Lord," replied the monster, "I am called Beast. You say you possess daughters?"

"Yes, one of which requested this rose from my journey."

"Alright then," the creature said pausing, "I will forgive your thievery on one condition. One of your daughters must come to suffer in your place. If they all refuse to take your place, you must swear to return within three months. If you refuse to return, I will not hesitate to come to your village and take you or your daughters myself."

The inventor could not stand to think about sending one of his daughters to live and suffer by the hands of this monster, so he promised he would be the one to return and the Beast began to walk away with nothing more than a nod.

Not being as ill-mannered as he seemed, the Beast turned to the inventor once more.

"You will not return home empty handed. Go up to the bed you slept in last night and you will find a large empty chest. Fill it with whatever you would like to take back with you."

"If I must die, at least I will have left something to my poor children. Thank you, Beast, for your continuous generosity towards me," the inventor said.

After packing gold, clothes, and fine jewelry for his daughters into the chest, he found himself leaving on his horse with grief and despair knotted in his stomach.

When he arrived home, his daughters greeted him enthusiastically and the two eldest eyed the large chest with wide eyes. He stepped off his horse and handed the two roses to Belle.

"Thank you, Father," she said, hugging him. He did not return her embrace, but burst into tears. The inventor continued to weep as he told his daughters of what had happened. The two eldest let out a disconsolate cry and yelled many ill-mannered things at Belle as she did not cower or shed a single tear. Belle had become dearly acquainted with this over the years, beginning first with their mother's death when Belle was three. As they finished yelling at her, she stepped forward.

"I will go in Father's place. I'm the one who caused this and someone needs to take care of you two," she said looking at her sisters then her father, "I will not allow you to suffer on my account. I will take the monster's fury and am happy that my death will save your life."

"No," the inventor said, "My life has already been lived. You and your sisters are so young and still have so much to do with your lives. I cannot let you give your life to save mine."

"You cannot change my mind, Father. I will take your place at the Beast's palace."

After careful consideration, the inventor finally agreed and the eldest sisters were delighted by this news, knowing Belle would die.

A week later, Belle and her father left for the palace to meet the Beast. Before they left, she wished goodbyes to her wicked sisters, who had to rub onions on their eyes to force tears from her parting.

Belle was astonished by the great palace and could not believe a Beast lived here. The inventor and his youngest daughter entered the great hall to be greeted by a table filled with food and two place settings. They both heard a loud noise and Belle's fearful father bid farewell to his poor daughter, knowing the Beast was coming. When the Beast entered, Belle was fearfully alarmed by his rugged and disheveled appearance.

"Have you come willingly, girl?" he asked her.

She trembled and answered a trembling "y-y-yes."

"Good," he said, "you have kept your word, good inventor, so you may leave tomorrow morning, as I will allow you to spend one more night with your daughter before she no longer belongs to you, but do not think of coming here again."

"Belle," said the inventor after the Beast left, "I must convince you to return home. Leave me here. You will die."

"No, Father. I am happy to give my life for yours. You must return to take care of your other daughters. I promise I will be fine. You will leave tomorrow morning and leave me in the protection of the Beast," she said, hugging her father.

They fell asleep that night and she bid goodbye to her father the following morning. Being as curious as her father was when he first entered, she decided to explore the palace. She was surprised to find a door, over which had her name written. She entered and was once again astonished by the sight before her. She had witnessed an elegant bedroom fit for a queen. As she walked to the bed, she noticed a letter lying on the bedside table. It read:

Welcome Belle, banish fear,

You are queen and mistress here.

Speak your wishes, speak your will,

Swift obedience meets them still.

"There is nothing more that I wish for," she said, "then to see my father again." A bright light appeared a moment later and in the mirror of the vanity, Belle saw her father and her sisters at their home in the village. Her sisters were overjoyed at their father's arrival without Belle and their father seemed to show no emotion at all. As Belle sat and looked at her family, she fell on her knees and wept, clutching her hands to her chest.

A moment later, the same bright light flashed in the mirror again and the image of her family was gone. Belle continued to weep over her choice to abandon her family and take her father's place until she heard a soft knock on the door of her room.

"Belle? Are you in there?" the Beast asked through the door.

She sniffled then answered quietly, "Yes? What do you want?"

"I implore you to join me in the great hall for dinner."

"Why would I wish to have dinner with you? You're the one who required either my father or me to stay here. I could be at home right now caring for my family," she said as she began to cry once more. The Beast was beginning to lose his short temper with the girl, but he tried nicely once more.

"Your father tried to steal from me. I do not intend to make your life here as miserable as you think I was going to. Now, will you please join me for dinner?"

"No. I will not eat with a creature who traps people from their families, as you have done to me."

"Fine!" yelled the Beast, "If you refuse to eat with me, then you are refusing to eat at all!"

The Beast's cruel words caused more tears to streak down Belle's already tear stained face. How could I have chosen this, she thought to herself. That night, Belle cried herself to sleep, thinking about her father and how he must be feeling.

Belle went a total of three days without eating with the Beast, who had finally calmed his temper again. Within that three-day span, he continued to request dinner with Belle, until she finally decided she had to eat at some point.

Belle spent around three months with the Beast, and grew accustomed to being around him and the great palace. She read to him before bed and became friends with the Beast. One night at dinner, he had asked her to meet him in the rose garden after their meal. She warily agreed but met him. She had not yet been to the garden but she had seen it from her window. It was more beautiful than any garden she'd ever seen at her village and she stared in awe of the multitude of red and white roses.

"Do you think of me as ugly?" the Beast asked her, catching her off guard.

"I cannot lie," she said pausing, "so yes, I do, but I also think of you as very compassionate."

"I am, but I was not always this way. To ask for you to stay here, would be silly. Who could ever learn to love a hideous creature as me?"

She looked at him, shocked from the sudden question. She took his paws in her hands and knelt in front of him.

"Dear Beast, I believe I have the utmost affections for you, but I do not believe I would be able to stay here forever. I wish to be free and you still make me uneasy. I also still wish to see my father, so I do not believe I could consent to marry you. I'm sorry."

"I understand and I do not wish to make you uneasy. Have you seen your father through the mirror, recently?"

"No. I try not to think about him too much," Belle said, becoming upset.

"I believe you should check on him, my dear Belle," Beast said, standing from his sitting position, and pulling Belle tenderly towards her room.

Once they arrived, Belle stepped up to her vanity and wished to see her father. The mirror flashed brightly then showed an image of Belle's father sitting on the ground outside of their small cottage. He coughed once, twice, then three times over and Belle gasped in horror and worry. The Beast looked at her with a tear in his eye.

"You must go," he said.

"But..." she replied, looking at him frightfully.

"He will die if you do not go to him now. Your sisters are nowhere to be seen and you must save your father. I have one condition, though,"he said, turning to look at Belle, "you must return within three weeks, or I will die and this castle will collapse, leaving nothing but ashes and debris."

"Thank you, Beast. I promise I will return," she said, kissing his cheek.

With that, she ran to the stable and took a horse back to her father, who was too close to death. She arrived soon after she left to find her father exactly where the mirror had put him. She pulled him into the house and rummaged to find anything warm for him to eat.

She continued to care for her father, not seeing any sign of her sisters in the span of two and a half weeks. Belle had forgotten about the Beast and his palace in the woods.

Back at the castle, the Beast became more and more worried as each day went by. Belle had still not come back for him.

Two nights before three weeks had passed, Belle witnessed a dream in which a fairy visited her. The fairy told her that when she woke, she would only have one more day to return to the beast and his castle, before it was too late. Realizing how much she missed the beast, she left the next morning. Her horse guided her as she got to the castle as quickly as she could. By the time she had arrived, the sun was setting and she realized how short a time she had left. The castle had already begun crumbling and was beginning to fall apart. She reached what used to be her room and wished she knew where the Beast was to the mirror. The mirror flashed one last time to show the Beast dying slowly in the great hall.

She rushed to the room in which she shared so many memories with the Beast to find him lying on the stone floor gasping for breath. His eyes widened when he saw her and he coughed, groaning in pain. She rushed to him, falling on her knees, and pulled the caring monster into her lap.

"I-I'm so-o sorry, my Beast," she said shedding tears on his brown bushy fur.

"Be-" he tried, but coughed again.

"Shh... I'm here. I should have come back sooner..."

"I-," another cough.

"I realized how much I missed you and your kindness..."

"Pl-," and another.

"No, save your energy," she said sobbing.

"I- love- y-," he choked with one final cough.

Not even a second later, Belle felt the Beast go still, no longer gasping or coughing. She realized she was too late. She cried even harder, if possible, as she heard the walls of the palace crumble and crack loudly. She continued to cry for the Beast and for her gone love as the palace fell and crashed around her. She refused to leave the Beasts body, and instead, stayed as a single section of the great ceiling, fell, and crushed her and the Beast. Although dead, their souls would remain together.