Another Hetalia Fairytale 1

Once upon a time, in the land of Germin, there was a young prince. He had all his heart's desires, he had the world's wealth, the greatest kingdom ever imagined, however, the prince was spoiled, selfish and unkind. No one dared to refuse his demands because they were terrified of him.

One winter's night, an old beggar came to his castle and asked for shelter from the bitter cold, offering only a rose for payment. The prince sneered at the gift and turned him away. But the old beggar warned him not to be deceived by appearances, for beauty lies within. And the prince dismissed him again. Suddenly, the beggar's appearance melted away to reveal a handsome sorcerer. The prince tried to apologize but it was too late, for he had seen that there was no love in his heart.

As punishment for his cruelty, he placed a powerful spell on the castle and all who lived there and turned the prince into a hideous beast before vanishing in the wind. Ashamed of his hideous form, the beast concealed himself within the castle with a magic mirror as his only window to the outside world.

The rose that the sorcerer offered was an enchanted rose. It multiplied by the dozens, scattering themselves around the castle gardens, sealing the castle's curse. They remained in full bloom all year long, and held magic within them that had other capabilities other than sealing the castle's curse. The original rose that was offered was kept in the beast's room and would remain in bloom until his twentieth year. If he could learn to love another and earn their love in return, the spell would be broken.

As the years past, he fell into despair and lost all hope that he would be saved. Who in the world would have a pure enough heart to love a hideous monster?

Xxxxxxx

Felicia woke up to a dazzling pink hue of a sunrise. She loved to sleep in but she forgot to close the curtains after stargazing last night, the sun hit her eyes and woke her up. She could've easily shut the curtains and gone back to sleep but her father was working on something in the cellar and it was making a lot of noise and some bad smell.

She went over to the mirror and her auburn hair was in a tangled mess which she quickly corrected and tied into a low ponytail. She was thinking about what she wanted to do today but it all involved something with her beloved father. And he wasn't going to be finished until noon, which is one of the reasons she liked to sleep in late because he would be the first thing she would see when she got up.

She wasn't sure what to do to kill time then she thought of making him some form of specialty bread as a surprise. She quickly got dressed and slipped away without making much noise.

As she was walking to town with her cute little picnic basket, she couldn't help but sigh. Everyday was the same. She could only wish that something would be different. Even if it was something small, she wouldn't care, as long as it was different. She wanted more adventure in her life and when she was little, her father promised her to take her to some place far away so she could have an adventure.

They had enough money but the question was when. Her father works a very demanding job as a manager of some… empire, as she would define it, she didn't really like talking about her father's business. Secretly, she loathed it. They make him work practically non stop on projects, merchandise and reports. Felicia thought that it wasn't fair that he hardly had any time to himself.

From early morning until noon, he would devote himself to work and afterwards, he would divide his attention between Felicia and work. Mostly Felicia which left him working late into the night. She was happy that he spent a lot of time during the day with her but she wished that he would take some time for himself.

As she was heading to the bakery to get ingredients, she decided to make a side stop at a bookstore to see if they had any new books. Matthew, the quiet but really kind owner greeted her with a smile.

"Ah, good morning, Felicia. It's quite rare to see you this early."

"Good morning.~" She chimed. "Yes, it is earlier than usual for me to be up this early but the sun woke me up. So I thought I'd get some things to make something for my Papa. Oh! And maybe some apples for Lovi." Lovino was their stubborn horse that they had so her father would go on business trips. When her father was really busy, she'd spent time talking to Lovino who was a really good listener. When she was left alone, books were her only friends and she would read for hours on end to pass the time until her father came back.

"Ah. How nice. Also, I just got in a new book you might like."

"Really?"

"Yes, it's called 'The Swan Princess'. My friend Ivan was the translator for the original story and this is the first copy I received. I thought you would like to be the first reader. It's on me."

"Veh?~ Really? You mean it?"

"Absolutely. Besides, I don't think I thanked you properly for healing Kumajam when he got his leg caught in that wagon wheel by accident."

"Veh~ Thank you so much, Matthew!" As she exited the shop, she was unaware of three pairs of eyes watching her. A pair of red eyes in particular was watching her really closely.

"Felicia is tres belle." A blonde man sighed.

"Ci. There aren't many girls who look like her. She really does stand out in a crowd." A brunette smiled. There was a sudden cry from the girl as she ran into a fruit stand and almost dropped her book. But she managed to catch everything that almost fell and apologized quickly before moving on. Even her klutziness was adorable.

"Back off, idiots. I saw her first. And I'll be the one to woo her with my awesomeness." An albino man grinned at his two friends then returned his hungry gaze to Felicia.

"Oh, don't worry, amigo. I don't like her like that. She's a nice girl and all but she's definitely not the one for me." The brunette smiled absently at his friend.

"That's right… You won't set your sights any higher than Bella now would you? Seriously, mon ami, you can do much better than that. Aren't you afraid of her brother?"

"Francis, you got it all wrong. He's a little grumpy every time I see him but I couldn't ask for a better girl. Bella may not look like much but she's all I could ever ask for."

"Scram if you two are just going to talk. I've got a bella Italian chick to fall for me at 3:00." The white haired man glared at his two friends.

"Oh, then you have plenty of time for your date then, don'cha Gilbert? You can talk with us some more can't you?" Gilbert face palmed himself. Tonio was a REAL idiot. But Felicia was right around the corner so Gilbert came out of the alley and leaned against the wall just as Felicia was passing by.

"Well, hello there, beautiful." Gilbert grinned as he stepped right in front of Felicia which made her 'eep'. "Mind if I join you for a stroll? It's not everyday I find a pretty early bird."

"Oh, good morning, Gilbert." She smiled. "I was just heading back home. I want to surprise my Papa with-"

"Perfect, let's go!" He looped her arm and started to walk down the street with her without even listening to her. She couldn't help but smile politely. She wanted to leave so she could make the specialty bread on time but she didn't want to hurt his feelings.

"So, what have you been up to lately?" Gilbert asked as he moved his arm to her shoulder.

"Well… Let's see… I've been helping my Papa a lot and I've been painting. Oh and I've been playing with Lovi. I'm trying to teach him to go after a ball but I don't think he quite understands the whole idea." She furrowed her brow while in deep thought on why Lovino wouldn't go after a ball she threw even though she showed him what to do. It worked for Matthew's bear…

"Really? I've been hunting and keeping unawesome predators from hurting others." He went on and on for at least five minutes about all his lifetime achievements then they heard some galloping and moved to the side to let whoever was traveling to pass.

Felicia recognized them and her eyes were really wide. They were her father's associates from Itome. That means he would have to leave again…

"I'm sorry, Gilbert but I have to go home." Felicia ran after them as fast as she could, arriving only a few minutes after them, seeing her father greet them in the front yard. He saw her and excused himself momentarily to greet her.

"Ah, my little Feli! I didn't even hear you get up." He said as he embraced her.

"I wanted to surprise you with some bread, Papa."

"Aw…" He grinned. "You're so adorable and thoughtful, Feli! Thank you!"

"You're welcome." She smiled but it soon faded. "Are… You going to have to go away again?"

"Yes. I guess there's no fooling you, huh?" He gave her a soft smile and put his hands on her shoulders.

"Can't you stay home this once? You haven't had a real day off in a long time."

"I know but this is very important. My cargo ships have been through a storm and I need to see what I can still salvage. As soon as I see what damage has been done and dealt with it, I'll come back home and we'll go on a little adventure. Just the two of us. And Lovino can come too." He tilted his daughter's chin up.

"Ti amo, mi principessa." He kissed her forehead.

"Ti amo, Papa."

"Is there anything you want me to bring back as a present?"

Felicia thought about it for a second. She truly couldn't ask for anything more than a real day off for her father. She already has a library of books and can borrow more whenever she pleases and she has numerous art supplies. Then a little thought came by her.

"Could you see if you can bring back a rose, please? We don't grow any here and the ones at the flower shop are usually fake."

"You're too modest, Feli. A rose it is. I'll be back in a few days, so don't worry."