Finally, with tattered clothes, scratches upon her dazzling face, and reddened palms, the girl arrived at the beast's cave. She yelled for him to flee as tears began to flow down her rosy cheeks. The beast gently placed his large paws on the young girl's face, ensuring that he didn't scratch any more than the branches already did to her with his claws. The girl could feel all the worry fade away, but not entirely. They calmly got the things they'd need and hastily ran further into the forest. Just as the great beast and the young girl were about to make it to a clearing, they heard a gunshot from behind. The village people were upon them. There was another shot, and then another, and then another. There were several shots aimed towards them. The beast pulled the young girl in front of him to shield her from the gunfire as they kept walking with their heads low. The young girl noticed a bright light behind them and saw the chaos. The village people were burning the forest and all its inhabitants. She could hear the cries of the white rabbits and the hedgehogs and squirrels she so loved to play with as a child, but all she could do was hold her tears and keep moving forward, for stopping meant death. The great beast and the young girl were being swarmed by bullets, and arrows from on all sides, and the girl couldn't see in the dark as well as the beast. As she took a stumble, the beast roared in pain.