As they walked through the beautiful landscape, Merida couldn't help but steal glances at Henri. She was fascinated by what he was as he was neither a man nor a beast. Even more than that, she was drawn to the bravery and confidence he exuded like no one she had ever known.

Merida had once thought she would never get married after refusing the arranged marriage a couple years back. However, looking at the strong young man helping the fragile female climb down the hill, she wasn't so sure about her decision.

"So, what are you exactly?" Merida finally asked, unable to curb her curiosity.

"A werewolf," Henri said, amused by the directness of the question.

What didn't amuse him was the way Belle shivered when he said the word as if she was terrified of the mere mention of it. Was that really the woman whom he wanted to spend his life with?

"What does that exactly mean?" Merida asked, having never heard the word before.

"Were means man and wolf means...well... wolf, so I am a wolfman," Henri said clumsily as no one had ever asked him that question. They were too busy running away in fear. "I am both a man and a wolf. I can take both shapes except when the full moon approaches when my wolf nature is drawn out more, and this half state is what you get."

"And on nights of the full moon, you become a wolf?" Merida asked.

Her question surprised him as there was more curiosity in it than anything else. Most people who learned he was a werewolf asked him if he could stop being one. Even Belle asked that when she first found out, but not Merida. It was as if she could see nothing wrong with being a werewolf as if she just accepted it as a state of being without any judgments.

"Yes," Henri said, looking closely at her face under all that wild hair to see any trace of doubt, of fear.

However, all he saw was fascination.

"That's amazing! I've never heard of anything quite like that," Merida said, her sky-blue eyes shining with barely suppressed curiosity.

"Excuse me, but will we be arriving at the castle soon?" Belle asked, unused as she was to physical exertion.

"We are almost there," Merida said, pointing at the draw bridge that connected the island with the mainland.

At that moment, Henri finally saw the large castle on the island that took up almost all of it.

"That is such a great strategic position," Henri said, utterly impressed.

"I know. It's one of my favorite things about it. Clan DunBroch knows that fighting is, at times, inevitable. Yet, being able to protect one's family is crucial," Merida said, standing proudly next to the hard work of generations of her people.

"That is rather impressive," Henri said, thinking about his castle that didn't seem as well fortified when compared to what stood before him.

Furthermore, Merida's home was far less decorative and more functional. It was something Henri wished his ancestors had in mind when building the castle. However, they were obsessed with beauty and appearances, so much so that they kept adding lavish details to them without thinking about the practicality of having them.

Considering their obsession with beauty, Henri wondered what they would have thought of him becoming a werewolf, an ugly beast that none could love. He couldn't help but think it was a punishment for the shallow ways of his ancestors.

"Can we stop staring at this primitive castle and just go inside?" Belle asked.

She was usually polite, so her words surprised Henry, and the insult that she made was utterly untrue. After all, castles didn't have to be extravagant to be beautiful. Every castle was magnificent in its own way.

"Excuse me?" Merida asked, glowering at Belle.

That was when the differences between the two couldn't have been more striking. Henri couldn't help but list them in his mind. While Merida was brave, passionate, and proud, Belle seemed pretty, contemptuous, and cowardly. It made Henri wonder why he had spent so much time wanting Belle to love him.

"I didn't mean anything bad by it. I just thought it was quite simple," Belle started backtracking quickly.

Clearly, she was afraid when she saw red sprinkle Merida's cheeks, making her look more intimidating than before.

Merida wasn't convinced. She saw something in Belle's eyes that many failed to note, deceit.

"You are not what you pretend to be. There is more to you than a pretty face and bad manners, so I am warning you, I will be watching you. One wrong step will send my arrows flying. Is that clear?" Merida asked.

"Yes," Belle said, shivering.

Belle looked up at Henri for the first time since his transformation had started. It was as if she expected something from him, from a beast that she could barely stand being around.

"There is no need for threats. Belle has just grown up surrounded by different things. Her sense of beauty is far different from yours, or even mine," Henri said, trying to resolve the misunderstanding.

"I do wonder how a warrior such as yourself can be so blind to deceit," Merida said as she led them across the drawbridge.

She did contemplate revoking her hospitality as she didn't trust the girl but chose not to do so. Henri was far too intriguing for her to miss the chance of getting to know him better.

Once inside the castle, they were immediately met with anxious-looking Queen Elinor. She proceeded to hug Merida tightly without even glancing at their visitors.

"Mother, what is the matter?" Merida asked anxiously.

"I was so worried about you, my dear. There was this man, and he told us that there was a beast on the loose in our land. He kidnapped a girl from their land that this young man was trying to save her. Your father immediately volunteered to help find them. However, I was worried that you ran into the beast and gotten injured or dead," Queen Elinor said in one breath.

"Mother, there is something that I need to talk to you about," Merida said in a hurry.

She was afraid of how her mother would react when she finally directed her attention to Merida's companions.

However, before Merida could say more, her mother's eyes wandered to her guests. Seeing the elegant beauty that was Belle first, a small smile started appearing on her face. However, it soon faded as her eyes settled on Henri who was even more wolflike than when Merida first saw him.

All color drained from her face as her mind worked quickly. She realized that the personage the handsome stranger was looking for stood before her with his unwilling victim.

"Merida, stand behind me!" Queen Elinor shouted, pulling her daughter behind her.

Taken by surprise, Merida didn't have the time or presence of mind to stop her. Only when her mother picked up a heavy pan did Merida react.

"Stop, mother. It's not what you think!" Merida exclaimed, reaching for her mother's raised hand.

However, she was too late. Henri fell to the ground unconscious, not even his werewolf strength being a match for the power of a mother defending her cub.