e bores her. Oh, she does not show him this, indeed she pretends to love him. But Beauty is bored and I can see it.
Yes, I can see it too, sister mine. I wish the Fairy who condemned us to stay like this until our natures improved could see it. She set us to this life, watching Beauty live out hers while ours turned to stone.
She did not think we could change. But we have. We have.
We love him.
Yes. We do.
You sigh so prettily, sister. For a statue, I mean. No offense intended.
No offense taken, dear sister. You call it as you see it. And not much for us to do but see.
I should like to dance again.
And eat. Eating would be grand.
Champagne. I miss it so.
As do I. Beauty has champagne--as much as she wishes. She has it all. And no idea what to do with it.
None at all. Ignorant girl child. Painting the Beast as she remembers him. When she has the Prince.
I'm so glad we never saw him like that. He was truly hideous.
Nothing like the Prince. How can she be bored with him?
Little nitwit. She appreciates nothing he gives her.
Nothing. We would appreciate him. We would dance far more gracefully with him than she does.
We would melt in his arms when he holds us close.
We would not hide out on the courtyard with the dogs and cats and paint monsters.
Oh, there he is. He's so very handsome.
Yes, he is. Hello, your highness.
Good morning, your highness. Do you think he can hear us and ignores us?
He is too good natured to do that. Surely a more noble lord never lived.
Too good for her.
Much. I would do anything to make him feel better.
As would I. I wish that horrible Fairy would come back, would check on us.
She just wrote us off, sister.
That she did, sister.
Women like you two will never change, she said.
A malicious heart is stalwart and true, resistant to change, she said of us. Slander, if you ask me.
Clearly, dearest one. She had no idea how trying Beauty is. She was just one more fool duped by our sister's supposed sweetness.
She's not so sweet now. Little artist with her little brush.
Is the paint still very dark?
I'm afraid so. I've heard mustaches are quite fashionable on court ladies now, sister. You would be all the rage.
You are so kind. I have heard the same of beards and spectacles.
Thank you, sister.
It is nothing, sister. I can't believe the Fairy just left us here.
Clearly evil magic at work.
Clearly. Although not too evil. At least we have each other.
Yes, sister. At least there's that.
Oh, no. It's Beauty's little dog. The one that likes to relieve... Oh. Oh, my.
Oh, sister, how sad for you.
You're laughing.
Am not.
You are, too. This isn't funny. He pissed on me.
I know. I'm sorry.
You are a hateful woman.
Oh, I am, am I? Well, I was not the one who suggested rubbing onions on our eyes to make us appear sad that Beauty was leaving.
And I was not the one who thought to make her overstay her trip home and anger the Beast. You were the one who hoped she'd die--that he'd kill her for it.
Was not.
Was too.
Was no--I can't believe I'm stuck here with you.
It is I who am stuck here with you. I'm sure the Fairy would have merely slapped my wrists and told me to do better. If you hadn't dragged me into your nefarious schemes.
My nefarious...? Shut your mouth at once. At once, I say.
Fine. Consider it shut forever.
Fine.
My... Forever is a long time, isn't it?
Quite. What I was thinking, sister? How foolish of us to fight. We're all we have.
And all we need.
Of course. Oh look, there he is. Such a handsome prince.
Yes. So sad he bores her.
*
Gerri Leen lives in Northern Virginia and originally hails from Seattle. She has written poetry for years but only recently for publication. She also writes fiction in many genres, including fantasy--both light and dark, and often centered around mythology--science fiction, and literary. Look for her upcoming collection of short stories, Life Without Crows, in early 2010. In addition to Enchanted Conversation, you can find her stories and poems in such places as: Paper Crow, Sword and Sorceress XXIII, Return to Luna, Triangulation: Dark Glass, Footprints, Sails & Sorcery, Origins, Desolate Places, and GlassFire. Visit GerriLeen.com to see what else she's been up to. Gerri is another one of our repeat performers, we are glad to say. Read her story, "The Dilemma of the Spindle," here.
1 comments:
What an original and interesting story. I found myself intrigued by the conversation between these two statues and wanted to hear more to find out about their lives before they were turned to stone. I enjoyed the humor and thought it was a very well written piece.
Maria
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