Asher swallowed hard and closed his eyes, waiting for the killing blow. When it didn't happen, he risked a glance to find that the beast was still staring at him.

"Pathetic." It growled.

"....Excuse me?"

Rather than replying, the creature decided to leave instead.

Any normal person would have taken this opportunity to hightail it out of there, but not Asher. This creature, beast or no, could speak and had mentioned a curse. That, coupled with the voices emanating from the walls just put his curiosity on overload as the servant climbed to his feet. 

"Wait!" He called out bravely. The monster stopped as the servant interrogated it. "Who are you exactly?"

The creature flexed its claws, thinking. Then after a moment it finally snarled out. "I'm the prince of this castle."

"The Prince? As in, Prince Leon Aubert? But...How? Why? When? I don't-Oh pardon me!" Realizing how impudent he'd been acting, Asher quickly bowed. "I'm so sorry, I didn't...Erm...Recognize you."

The Prince finally turned his full attention on Asher and tilted his head curiously. "Are you not frightened?"

That question had a yes and no answer. Yes, because the monster looked quite frightening indeed, but also no, because it didn't seem like he planned on killing the servant. However Asher had heard various rumors about the Prince and his temperamental nature, so he'd better not push his luck too much with this.

"Would you like me to be, sire?" 

The Prince just stared, confused by his reaction, so Asher figured he'd explain himself further. "I really need this job, your majesty."

He had been promised a handsome pay for working in the castle, and the villagers still weren't willing to hire him for any more jobs after the church fiasco. This was literally his only option for employment now, so even if it was serving a monster, he figured he could handle it.

The creature snorted. "Really? You see what's become of me and you're still asking for a job?"

"Yes sir." He answered without hesitation.

The beast frowned at that, and suddenly the chattering whispers stopped, as though equally stunned. Obviously none of these spirits had ever struggled to find employment before, or else they'd understand Asher's stance on this. 

Eventually the creature growled, then turned to head down the hall. Asher watched, waited, then followed uncertainly. 

The clop of the Prince's hooves echoed in the lonely halls. The carpets that decorated the floors looked old and slightly rotted, as though they hadn't been cleaned in ages. There were red flags hung from the walls, drooping sadly against the stone as they showed off the noble crest of house Aubert. This crest had the image of a single rose in full bloom against a circular shield, above which were two crossed spears. 

At the end of the hall they turned towards a pair of wooden double doors that opened into a new chamber. At the head of this room was an enormous fireplace with a portrait above the mantlepiece. As they entered, the logs burst into flame, lighting the room. In front of the fire was a single high back chair and table. The walls had shelves built into them and two tall stained glass windows. 

The beast sat in the chair, its arms hanging against the sides where its elongated knuckles scraped the carpet. He then sighed, letting out an unearthly groan that resonated with despair. 

Asher stood to the side, wondering if he should even have followed this creature here or if he had been dismissed and hadn't realized it. Just when he was ready to leave quietly, the Prince spoke. 

"I don't know whether you're lucky or imbecilic." 

"Does that mean I get the job?"

"Silence!" The beast growled, and Asher clamped his over-eager mouth shut.

He then bowed his head and waited as the beast continued to think. "Are you not curious?"

Asher bit his lip to stop himself from practically screeching YES, and instead nodded enthusiastically. The beast did not even bother to look and stared into the fireplace. "What was your name again?"

"Asher, your majesty."

"And today was to be your first day?"

"Actually, that was yesterday, but I was late." He explained. "It wasn't my fault though. There was a snow storm an-"

The beast flicked a claw, waving off his explanation and the servant went silent again. "Perhaps that's why you're still here?"

Asher waited for him to explain further and the beast seemed to struggle with his own thoughts on how to proceed. Eventually he tossed a glare back at Asher. "My nursemaid was a witch, and she's the one who did this to me."

"May I ask why?"

"...Because I would not marry her."

The servant gaped at that excuse. It sounded like quite an overreaction on her part. Then he thought a little harder on it and came to his own conclusion. "Did...Did you turn her down gently?"

"Gently? Gently?!" The beast shot to his feet and stalked over to the servant. "What reason did I have to be gentle? She was nothing more than a mere servant, yet she had the gall to make demands of me!"

"But...Wait...What?" 

The monster sneered impatiently. "She demanded that I marry her in exchange for the protection she'd given me all these years. According to her, my father hired her just for that and in exchange, I would be her husband." He snorted. "Can you believe that? I? A Prince? Forced to marry a...A witch?!" 

As his temper flared, the beast whipped around, lashing out and slicing the top of the chair off. "And she thought the eve of my father's death was the opportune time to tell me this too. Was I really in the wrong?"

Asher didn't say anything and instead averted his eyes to hide his shock. 

The rest of the kingdom believed that the King was still out on holiday. The Queen had passed a few years back when the plague occurred, so that meant that Prince Leon was to be crowned soon. 

"Why am I even telling you this?" The monster calmed himself. "How am I even telling you this? That bitch said the curse wouldn't let me discuss it with anyone I encountered outside of the castle."

Hearing that, Asher perked his head up. "Where are the staff anyways?"

The beast gestured all around himself with an indignant look. "They're now one with the castle until the curse is broken."

"What does that even mean?"

"It means this." He stepped aside, allowing Asher to witness as the chair began repairing itself. The top half hovered towards the top and the cloth started to sew itself back together. 

"Ghosts...." Asher murmured, once more amazed. "You're saying they've been turned into ghosts?"

"Actually, the more accurate explanation I was given is that their souls are fueling the curse. Food will appear when I'm hungry, furniture will repair itself when damaged, fires will start when I'm near, baths will fill on their own..."

"So the voices I'm hearing are the trapped souls of the servants?" Asher exclaimed, now horrified. He much preferred his ghost theory. 

"What voices?"

"The ones that were chattering in the hall."

"There were no voices."

"You didn't hear them?"

"I said, there were NO VOICES!" The beast smashed the chair once more, baring his fangs in irritation. "Do you not understand? This is my curse! I am to remain here, alone, for the rest of my life! No one would dare stay with me looking like...This!"

As the chair tried to repair itself again, Asher sucked in a breath to keep himself from saying anything else unnecessary. 

There had always been talk of the Prince in the village. Most of the rumors were about how handsome the man was and how his bright amber eyes sparkled like an angry sun upon the sea, or how his blond hair looked softer than the finest silk. 

Above the fireplace was a portrait of the King, whom the Prince clearly inherited those traits from. However it only depicted the King and Queen, standing side by side and draped in noble attire. 

The Queen had a soft, innocent look about her as she smiled sweetly with her big blue eyes, while the King had a more serious gaze as he posed with a single foot on a decapitated boar. 

Asher tried to understand why the Prince was claiming he hadn't heard any voices. Considering how strange these circumstances were, perhaps the man really hadn't heard anything? Was that part of the curse? But then, why did Asher hear them?

"I think you may be wrong." He started to theorize out loud, then immediately jumped back when the monster glared daggers at him. 

The Prince then took a menacing step towards him. "Don't you dare speak to me like you know what's happening. You weren't here! And I don't need you here!" With another wave of his claw, the beast returned to his seat. "Begone. There's no work for you."

Everything the Prince just said really didn't match up with his situation. At first it sounded like he was upset about being cursed to be alone, yet he's pushing Asher away? What's up with that?

More importantly, this beast just said that Asher did not get the job, and that was certainly not going to fly. 

Thinking on his toes, Asher recalled something the Prince had mentioned earlier and started swinging his arms while backing away and eyeing the wallpaper. "Okay, well I guess if you don't have any work for me then I won't be able to help you break this curse, but that's fine. You don't need me right? I'm sure you can break it all on your own."

He knew he was taking a gamble by playing coy, but it immediately paid off when the beast snapped, "Wait!"

Hiding a triumphant smirk, Asher tilted his head innocently. "Yes?"

"Perhaps I do have some use for you after all..." The beast mumbled to himself, as though unwilling to admit it. "I...I cannot leave the castle. It's part of the curse. I've tried but the furthest I could go was the gate."

"What is it you'd like me to do then, your majesty?"

"Bring me back a woman."

The servant blinked. "What?"

"Don't argue with me! You wanted a job right? Well there you have it."

"But...Why?"

The beast snarled. "The curse...I need a woman in order to break the curse."

Asher had to fight the urge to make a face at that. "Oh, well if that's all, then sure! Just one right?" He checked. "I might be able to handle that."

"Really?" The Prince asked skeptically, then cleared his throat. "Very well. If you do bring me a woman that can break this curse, then I will make sure you are properly rewarded."

The servant perked at that. "Oh really? What sort of reward?"

"Enough!" He growled. "Off with you! Make haste before I change my mind!"

"Wait, you want me to leave now? Like right now?" He whined. "I just got here though. Can't I get a little rest before-"

"OUT!" The prince bellowed, and finally Asher took the hint and scampered out of the chamber. 

Taking a few calming breaths, he tried to remember his way back to the kitchen area so he could proceed with his new task.

It'd be nice if Leon was willing to share some details on how to break the curse, or at least let his new servant take a break after traveling through the blistering cold all night, but oh well. It is what it is. Plus, now there was a reward involved, so bonus!

Finding the kitchen again, he realized it was much quieter than earlier. He no longer heard the strange disembodied chatter of the servants' souls. Curious, he popped his head in and called, "Hello?"

A hushed whisper echoed in the room, and he realized the voices responded to sound. It was odd that the Prince couldn't hear them though. Maybe the only reason Asher could was because he had been listed as a fellow staff member and thus found a loophole in the curse? That would make sense, especially if what the Prince said was true and he wasn't suppose to be able to discuss any of this with strangers. 

Perhaps after the curse was broken he would get some answers? For now, Asher was left to figure out what unlucky woman he'd be dragging back to meet the temperamental creature. 

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