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第2章 廖昂的断言

"Have you come willingly?" asked the Beast. "Will you becontent to stay here when your father goes away?"

But this reply vexed her sisters, who fancied she was blamingthem for having asked for such costly things. Her father, how-ever, was pleased, but as he thought that at her age she certainlyought to like pretty presents, he told her to choose something.

window it had seemed to her that a black curtain prevented herfrom seeing anything outside. But the second time she wentinto the room, happening to be tired, she sat down in one of thechairs, when instantly the curtain was rolled aside, and a mostamusing pantomime was acted before her; there were dances andcolored lights, and music, and pretty dresses, and it was all sogay that Beauty was in ecstacies. After that she tried the otherseven windows in turn, and there was some new and surprisingentertainment to be seen from each of them, so that Beauty nevercould feel lonely any more. Every evening after supper the Beastcame to see her, and always before saying good-night asked herin his terrible voice:

bitterly.

So the merchant set out and reached the town as quickly aspossible, but only to find that his former companions, believinghim to be dead, had divided between them the goods which theship had brought; and after six months of trouble and expensehe found himself as poor as when he started, having been ableto recover only just enough to pay the cost of his journey. Tomake matters worse, he was obliged to leave the town in themost terrible weather, so that by the time he was within a fewleagues of his home he was almost exhausted with cold andfatigue. Though he knew it would take some hours to get throughthe forest, he was so anxious to be at his journey's end that heresolved to go on; but night overtook him, and the deep snowand bitter frost made it impossible for his horse to carry him anyfurther. Not a house was to be seen; the only shelter he could getwas the hollow trunk of a great tree, and there he crouched all thenight, which seemed to him the longest he had ever known. Insp

paths and avenues ran poor Beauty, calling him in vain, for no

Turning to ask the Beast what it could all mean, Beauty foundthat he had disappeared, and in his place stood her long-lovedPrince! At the same moment the wheels of a chariot were heardupon the terrace, and two ladies entered the room. One of themBeauty recognized as the stately lady she had seen in her dreams;the other was also so grand and queenly that Beauty hardly knewwhich to greet first.

"Have you come willingly?" asked the Beast. "Will you becontent to stay here when your father goes away?"

However, as he did not seem at all ferocious, and only saidgruffly: