There was a time when Belle was happy
When birds sang and parents laughed
But that time was not now
The sound of birds had turned to bombs
And laughter was forever silenced

Soon the soldiers came in force
Bringing pain and terror with them
Thus Belle decided leave
rather than stay and die in need   

Unto Gaston’s hide she went
For indeed he had survived
And help he would, she knew
Although he was a vulgar fool

On came night’s concealing veil
Though it could not hide the din
Of endless tanks’ rolling
And the drunken soldiers’ laughing

Through the noise the whistle came
Which signaled Belle’s chance to leave
Out the window she crept
And all which she had left with her

Among the meager lot a book
That she dare not leave behind
After all that hurt her
Cinderella was her comfort

Through dark crept Gaston and Belle
Unto the barbed wire fence
Beneath the army’s flags
That billowed in the midnight wind

With some wire-cutters in hand
Gaston soon opened a hole
A door to Belle’s freedom
That’s threshold she need only cross

But before she could escape
Gaston caught her by the hand
And refused to let go
Until he had spoken his mind

“Do not stray too far, my Belle
For while I cannot come now
Soon I will go find you
And then we may express our love”

Brazenly, Gaston leaned in
To rob from her lips a kiss
But fortune favored Belle
When a guard’s searchlight stopped him there

With this, his grip was loosened
And Belle recognized her chance
Into the night she fled
Set to run as far as she could

__________________________________________________

For weeks and weeks, Belle did run
Through the snowy countryside
Resting in chilly caves
Or under kindly strangers’ roofs

One day as she trudged through snow
She came across a mansion
Beautiful but darkened
And hoping for help she knocked

The door opened with her knock
For it had been left ajar
She called out a greeting
But only silence answered her

Entering for some warmth
She came to the Grand Foyer
Standing at the center
Was a lovely rosebush in bloom

Mesmerized by the beauty
of this strange winter blossom
Belle extended her hand
And plucked a flower for her own

At once a roar split the air
And Belle was slammed to the floor
Dropping her belongings
She then looked up and gasped in fear

Above her stood with fiery eyes
A man dressed in soldier’s garb
And covering his mouth
A cloth mask with a beastly snarl

“You’re one of them” the Beast growled
“Explains your rude behavior”
“Sir…” Belle started to explain
But the Beast grabbed her by the throat

“You break into my own home
And steal what I hold most dear”
The Beast roared lifting her
Carrying her to a closet

“Since you are very eager
To trespass in my mansion,
Why don’t you stay awhile
Until the authorities come?”

With that, the Beast tossed her in
And locked the door behind her
Belle cried, “Please, sir, do not.”
But the Beast paid her pleas no mind

______________________________________________________

The Captain smiled
As he lead
His lovely wife
To their homestead

While they traversed
she points out
Every new site
Or pretty sprout

But this she only did
Twixt marvels
from her favorite
fiction novel

The house drew near
naught was right
they came upon
a tragic sight

A woman pleaded
At the gate
That she might keep
Her old estate

She saw them come
To them rushed
Bowed at their feet
And to them gushed

“Please, let me stay!
I’ve nowhere
Where I may go
And no men care”

“As a payment
Here’s a rose
My husband gave
‘Fore he reposed”

The Captain nods
Toward the house
The wife leaves the matter
With her loved spouse

“Listen, old hag”
The Captain groans
“The war we won
The house we own”

“If I don’t own”
she muttered
“Than no one will
Surely not you”

The bomb is thrown
He follows
It comes down hard
By his wife’s feet

________________________________

The Beast awakes with a scream
As he bolts up from his bed
With one hand, he reaches
While the other one guards his face

As he comes back to himself
He lets both fall, muttering
“Those thrice-cursed heathen scum
First her life, then her memory”

Deciding to take a walk
He grabs a light from the desk
And patrols the mansion
And checks on the prisoner

When he reaches the foyer
He saw what he missed before
The book Cinderella
His late wife’s favorite novel

_____________________

Belle stirred in her closet cell
As she heard the door unlock
With a glimmer of hope
She tried to turn the knob once more

Slowly, the door swung open
Revealing an oddly warm sight
Before her a table
Set for a nice dinner of one

Among the courses and the sides
Stood a candlestick and note
Which read “Please, be my guest.
That is before I change my mind.”

Though a strange development
Belle needed no further cue
She sat at the table
And filled her empty stomach

As she finished her dinner
A voice called out from shadows
“What is your name, lady?”
Said the Beast drawing near the light

“My name is Belle,” she replied
“And, sir, I meant you no harm
When I came to this house
Just let me leave, and I will not...”

Unfortunately, time flees
But rest assured if you please
That happy they will be
And will love each other eternally