Beast :ArthurxReaderxFrancis:

"In my opinion, we are lost," the Englishman grumbled.

"Oh, why do you always have to be so pessimistic?" [Name] sighed. "We're not lost, we just don't remember the right way... but I'm sure it's this one, so stop complaining and follow me!"

"We are definitely lost," Arthur shook his head.

"Shut up, it was your idea to look for some firewood in the middle of the forest!" she exclaimed. Damn it, Arthur could be so annoying sometimes.

"Someone had to do it, and everyone in the group already had something to do!" he replied.

"Couldn't you leave it to Ludwig?"

"That bloody macho man? Never!"

"This is the last time I team up with you," the girl sighed, but the Brit put a finger on her lips, mouthing: "Shut up." Both of them stared at the trees in silence, but nothing was heard, not the weakest noise. [Name] was about to tell Arthur he was wrong, when she heard a swish, and then another one. "It could be the wind," she proposed, but the boy shook his head. The rustles were nearer and nearer, and Arthur put himself in front of her in order to protect her from whatever was coming.

"Arthur, you're not a hero, stop it!" she exclaimed, trying to pull him behind her.

"Leave me, I'm a bloody gentleman and it's my duty to protect you!" he shouted. The girl tried to not chuckle. Adorable... she thought, but what she said was much less sweet. "You're not going to be a hero, a gentleman or anything useful after you're dead, so just–"

"Shh," he whispered. "I think he... it is going home." In fact, the noises were farther, and soon they could hear nothing but their breathing.

"What was that?" [Name] said.

"I have no idea, but now it's gone. We should get out of here. We'll find the firewood somewhere else," the boy whispered, probably still afraid of what had just happened. She swallowed and nodded, then the both of them walked side to side towards what they thought was the right way to find the encampment.

"We should tell the others that there’s something in this forest,” [Name] stated.

“We probably should,” the blond shrugged, “but it hardly will be useful to know it.”

“How can you tell?”

“I don’t know what kind of animal it was, but it must have been huge, judging by the noise it made. Considering how prepared our leader is, I doubt we could do anything if he decided to attack us.”

“But it’s not just me and you; there are many strong guys in our group!”

“Trust me, even twelve men would do nothing against a beast like that.”

“And you still tried to protect me?!” she exclaimed. He blushed and looked away. “I’m still stronger than you! I could have left you the possibility to call for help... and you’re a girl, so anyone would have done that!”

[Name] laughed. “I’ve met boys who think I ought to save them, since they’re so important!”

“Well, sorry to disappoint you, but I’m not a coward.”

“I’m not disappointed...” the girl said, but a sudden noise shut her up. It looked like something had fallen in the middle of the forest. She ran towards the sound, but the Englishman grabbed her arm. “You can’t go there, it could be dangerous!” he shouted. “Oh come on, what if it’s one of our friends? And you’re not my mommy anyways!”

Arthur sighed, leaving her arm. “At least let me go first, alright?”

He went forward into the woods. [Name] sighed. He’s always so over-protective... I don’t even know why we still get along. I’d just tell him he’s not my father and he can’t tell me what I can do and what not, but he looks so sad whenever I scold him...

“BLOODY HELL!” she startled as she heard that shout coming surely from the Brit. Oh my God, I knew this would happen! She thought as she ran the faster she could towards the voice. ([Name] always complained about Arthur being over-protective, but then she basically did the same.)

When she saw a blond on the ground, she instantly thought of the poor Brit being eaten by a giant monkey, with blood everywhere and his clothes all ripped off. (Now that’s an interesting idea). “Stay strong, Arthur! I’m coming!” she shouted as she heard the blond moaning... before she realized Arthur was in front of her, perfectly alright. “What do you mean? I’m fine.” He said confused. “But then who...?”

Near the two of them, between plenty of wrecked branches, a man was sitting on the ground, feeling his leg to find the fracture. He was quite tall and very slim, but his muscles were very developed; she could easily tell because he only wore some rags, covering just the bare minimum. [Name] didn't notice she was staring at the pleasant view until Arthur poked her. "Who is he? He's surely not part of our group... I'm not even sure he is human! I mean, look at him!"

His friend wanted to answer, but when she looked at the other man she couldn't help but think the Brit was quite right. Apart the fact he never said a word, he had very long hair - and with long, I mean it was nearly longer than himself. He had a wild beard that that almost totally hid his face and his body was dirty and covered with scars. She was really impressed... he didn't even look like a person, but like a beast, grown in the dark and in the terror of the forest. She and Arthur stepped back as he stood up, but they'd never expect what happened next, and how their life and themselves would change because of that single moment.

"Good morning," the beast smiled with unbelievable elegance in his voice, attempting a little bow.

"You... can talk?" the Brit babbled, staring at him without bothering to hide the incredulity in his look.

"Of course I can, do I look like a brute to you?" Arthur didn't know what to say, but then the other laughed. "Oh, right, I actually do! Did I scare you?"

"A bit..." [Name] nodded.

"Sorry dear, I didn't mean to! I followed you a bit because you looked interesting and I understood your language, but I saw you were afraid so I just came back. It looks like it's our destiny to meet each other, though~" he laughed again. He had a human laugh, a funny and kind one; [Name] instantly understood what he was not going to be a problem. Arthur, on his part, was skeptic about the man and kept his distance, suggesting that [Name] do the same.

"Maybe he used to be like us, but now he's a beast," he whispered, but the girl shook her head: the poor man surely had a good reason to live like that. They ought to help him, not to avoid him!

"At least be reasonable: we can't take him to our group! They'd start to ask him tons of questions and treat him like some kind of weird experiment. He has to remain here!"

"You're right," she mumbled, "but I can still visit him every day even if he remains here..."

The Brit let out a sigh of exasperation. "Fine! Do what you want. But don't blame me if you don't get what you expected."

[Name] hugged him in happiness. "Thank you, you're the best!" She exclaimed. Arthur blushed and stepped back, babbling: "T-There's no need to thank me like that! Now go say goodbye to your new... friend."

The girl turned to face the other man with a smile. "So we'll meet again tomorrow morning!"

"I'll count the seconds till then, because I already miss you," he replied sweetly, making her laugh. "Alright, Casanova, can I at least know your name?" she asked.

"My... my name?"

"Yes, if you have one."

The man looked perplexed for a moment, then he remembered and grinned. "Ah, yes! My name is Francis."

--------------

When [Name] returned in the forest, she was met by Francis’ lovely smile, barely recognizable under the beard. “Why isn’t the hot boy with you today?” he asked. She chuckled at that... mostly because he was quite right. “He couldn’t come with me today. He hadn’t got an excuse, and if they see us together they’d think we want to kiss or something.”

“Well, that wouldn’t be so bad, wouldn’t it?”

“I’d never kiss Arthur!” she exclaimed. “I mean, he can be sweet sometimes and I know him very well, and I have to admit he’s really handsome, but... no.”

“I actually meant that it wouldn’t be so bad to kiss you.”

The girl looked at him severely. “I don’t even know who you are. And– apart from that– you shouldn’t act so flirty in your condition.”

“What condition?” he asked confused. He clearly thought it was normal to wear rags and live in the trees.

“Dude, you look like a savage,” she explained to him. “You’re indecent. How did you even manage to get all dirty like this?”

Francis ran a hand trough his hair, embarrassed. “Do I really look that bad?” he asked mortified. She suddenly felt guilty for telling him something so rude. “I’m sorry, I thought... I thought you did it in purpose. Like some kind of protest and stuff.”

He laughed, with still a melancholic look in his eyes. “Why would I want to look unattractive? Come on, that’d be so stupid! It’s that here, no one tells me that my beard is too long, my clothes are too ripped and so on, so even if sometimes I feel uncomfortable, I know I can’t go out from here so I slowly forget about it.”

“Why can’t you just buy new clothes or have a haircut? There’s a town not far from here. You can reach it in twenty minutes.”

“No, someone could recognize me and… well, it’s a long story. But anyways I must stay here... unless you helped me!” he suddenly exclaimed with sparkling eyes. [Name] widened her eyes, surprised. “W-What? Help you? But how?”

“Yes, of course! If you came with me you could just tell them you’re my fiancée and we come from, I don’t know, France!”

“F-Fiancée?” the girl babbled. Francis was a nice guy, but… that was a bit too much! His eyes full of expectation and thankfulness, trough, told her he really needed her help and she couldn’t help but nod. The man smiled brightly and hugged her. “Thank you thank you thank you! This is going to be so amazing! I'll be waiting for you tomorrow!” he exclaimed happily, then he disappeared behind the trees, jumping with joy.

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[Name] found her new friend in the forest, with a wide grin on his face. "Are we going to the town?" He asked excitedly.

"No," she replied, telling him to follow her with a move of her head. "You've gotten lucky, so there will be no need for that."

Francis walked behind her as they left the forest, with a curious glance in his eyes. As if she had read his mind, the girl explained: "All of my group went on exploration in a little wood quite far from here and they won't return until 2 p.m.; they left me here to protect the encampment, so we have enough time to turn you into... well, a human."

"Your boss left a lone girl to protect the camp?" Francis replied, surprised.

[Name] snorted: "Hey, I'm strong! And anyways, I'm not alone... oh, here we are." The small yet functional encampment appeared in front of them. Arthur, who had his back leaned on a tree, raised a hand (I guess it was his awkward way to greet people). "So, shall we start?" He said with an annoyed tone. "First of all, Francis–" he almost spit out his name– "you need to take a bloody shower. The public bathroom is there, we finished it some weeks ago. And yes, I know it's not the best if you want to be one with nature, but we bloody need it. Have fun."

Fifteen minutes later Francis asked from behind the door: "What now?"

"Well, you could have an haircut and shave!" [Name] suggested, but then a thought hit her. "You can shave, can't you?"

"Aahh, well..." from his voice, [Name] could easily deduce he was embarrassed. "Maybe I could try to cut my hair, but shaving... I only was little more than a child when I escaped from my house, so..."

"Alright, I got it!" Arthur sighed opening the bathroom' s door. "I'll teach you. [Name], I found some clothes for Francis, they're in a white bag near my tent. Could you please bring them here?"

"Found?" she asked giving the bag to him.

"Bought," he replied blankly, closing the door.

She waited for about half-hour, sometimes smiling at the swearing (Arthur) and the laughs (Francis) she could hear trough the door. When finally the Brit came out, he just affirmed: "Well, at least now he looks like one of us... kind of." and then he moved out to let Francis pass.

[Name] thought she was about to have an heart attack. At first she didn't even believe that that man - the man who just come out from the bathroom - was the savage she met before, but then she recognized those sweet, blue eyes; those eyes full of joy and kindness that she never realized to be so ridiculously beautiful. His blond hair was now shoulder length– he didn't want to cut it all– and it spotlighted his natural elegance. He also kept a light beard, but now the most noticeable things were his wonderful smile and the flawless face. He wore the clothes Arthur "found" for him: a pair of black shoes, tight blue trousers and a red shirt that suited him perfectly.

"Am I still indecent, dear?" He purred with a little smirk. The girl gulped, babbling a "no, of course not, I'm sorry" before disappearing into the nearest tent. He turned to Arthur with a perplexed look, which he replied to with a shrug. "Maybe she has her period... maybe she's a bit of a lunatic," he shrugged.

Francis nodded. "Ok, just tell her that I'm waiting for her, tomorrow." He waved at him, then jumped on a tree (he still was the same, even with less hair) and vanished.

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"Francis... Francis!" [Name] called, walking trough the forest. It had been four days since she and Arthur first took the man to their encampment, and they had met every day at the same hour in the same place. But that day, she had been busy for hours and when she finally managed to go to the place where they usually met, Francis wasn't there. The sun was setting, and she had to find him before the night came; it was too dangerous, and she wasn't as strong as she claimed to be. Finally, when she arrived at the shore of a little lake, she saw him sat on a long trunk. "Francis?" She asked hesitantly. The man turned to face her and a wide smile appeared on his handsome face.

"Oh, here you are! I thought you weren't coming today!" He exclaimed, making the girl feel even more guilty. He told her to sit next to her, then he stared at the sunset. "This has been my special place since I was thirteen. The stars here are just too beautiful to not stare at them... But tonight I'm lucky: I have something even more beautiful to stare at."

It took her a moment to realize he was talking about her. Good thing the sunset is nearly over, she thought, so he can't see me blushing. "Hey, you never told me; how do you speak English so well if you grew up in the forest?" she said, trying to change the subject. The man laughed: "Well, it's not like I want to turn into a beast! I practice it every day, so I won't forget it." They stayed a bit in silence, then the man added: "Arthur can speak English very well."

[Name] looked at him curious. "Of course he can, he's British. Why are you saying that?"

"He's sexy when he speaks English," he simply stated, making the girl laugh. "Well, yes! Do you like him?"

"No, I don't, but I know someone who may like him."

Again, it took her a bit of time to understand he was talking about her. "Me?!" She replied surprised. "I already told you I don't like him that way!"

"You two would make a great couple~"

"I don't think so. One day, maybe, but not now."

"Mm." Francis ran a hand through his hair– God, those hands– and chuckled. "What a pity. I think he really likes you."

"Really?" She exclaimed. Her friend nodded. "Sure as hell. He's totally in love with you."

"Oh." [Name] didn't know what else to say. Then she remembered and turned to face him. "Hey, Francis... you never told me your story. Why you live here and so on."

"You're right," he nodded. "It's about time. I will make it short, because I don't really like to talk about it, but I hope you will understand anyways."

She nodded, waiting in silence for her friend to explain his past.

"My mother was only 17 when she found out she was pregnant. Her boyfriend, my father, told her he was really happy and that he would marry her; the next day, he disappeared. My mother still didn't want to abort, and so I was born. Luckily everyone helped her, even if some insulted her or called her a whore. But she was strong, and never gave up: I grew up happy and without problems.... until I fell in love with her." He laughed a bit, smiling at the rising moon, but with sadness in his eyes.

"I think I was 7. I thought she needed a man in her life, and that I was what she needed: I'd marry her when I grew up up and make her happy. I really was in love with my mum, but I didn't worry at first, thinking it was just normal and it'd pass. It didn't pass, though, the years went by and my mum started to meet people, to go out with other men... and that's when I realized I couldn't live with her anymore, because I was jealous. Seriously, I wanted to kill those men, but at the same time I knew they made mummy happy and I felt guilty. I was confused and I talked to my girlfriend, but she just told me I was crazy. Soon everyone began to avoid me, to insult my mother, and I started to believe the things they told me were true: that I was mad, a true danger for everyone. On my 14th birthday, I wrote a note to mum explaining everything and ran away. My plan was was only to move to a different town, but I never expected that the police would chase me. I was young and afraid; I escaped from them, but everywhere I went someone recognized me. They started to tell stories about me, that I was a killer, I raped people... I was scared and tired when I got here. I sat right here, looking at the beautiful starry night, and I understood that this was going to become my new house. And so now I live here. Seems kinda like a fairy tale, doesn't it?" he chuckled.

[Name] looked at him: how could he be so cheerful, so sweet, even with a terrible past like that? He either was a fantastic actor, or a very strong person.

"Don't you ever miss your mother?" she whispered, still stunned by what she had heard.

"Yes, sometimes, but I know she's okay so I'm not worried about her."

"Are you... are you still in love with her?"

Francis raised his head. The sun had totally disappeared now, and thousands of shiny little stars invaded the blue sky, piercing the transparent clouds.

"I don't know," he eventually replied, with a little smile. "I may be... but honestly, I believe I finally got over it. I don't feel that kind of love for her anymore, or at least I think so. Yet..." he let out a sigh, "... I can't go back now. I'd get chased, and I'd give mum a heart attack, and I have no friends there. And anyways," the man turned to stare right into her eyes, "I don't want to lose you."

[Name] looked away, and noticed that lately Francis' compliments had had a different effect on her. She blushed when she heard his voice, got mad at Arthur when he insulted him, and gulped at his smiles. Unfortunately for her, Francis noticed that too, and giggled softly when she widened her eyes, shocked by the sudden realization.

"You know, if you took me with you, you could teach me everything I don't know. And, to make up for it, I'd teach you something you don't know."

The girl raised her eyebrows. "What?"

"I'd teach you how much I can love a girl." He caressed her cheek and leaned down to kiss her, but [Name] stopped him, putting her hands on his chest. "But... if what you told me about Arthur is true..."

"It's true that Arthur loves you. But I love you too. You only have to choose." He took her hand and put it on her chest. "Listen to your heart. What does it say?"

[Name] closed her eyes, feeling the wind muss her hair. She needed time... she needed to think of anything that wasn't love. The first thing that she thought of was the sky. The starry sky of the forest... the most wonderful thing in the world. Stunning, shining and a bit melancholic... like Francis. The most wonderful man in the world. She took a deep breath and reopened her eyes, just in time to see Francis leaning down again to kiss her. But this time she didn't stop him. The man kissed her passionately, and she happily returned the kiss. When they parted, he stared in her eyes, feeling them breathe in unison while a smirk rose on his mouth.

"Well, after all that wasn't a hard choice, wasn't it? I'm still sexier than him."

That night Francis received his first slap of his life as [Name]'s boyfriend.

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Arthur handed the bag to [Name]. "Here you are, it's ready now. I put in everything that was in your closet."

"Thank you, dear!" she smiled warmly. The Brit remained in silence for a while, then, trying to fake a detached tone, he said: "So. Francis told me what happened between the two of you."

[Name] felt like a sword had pierced her heart. "R-Really? Did he tell you everything?"

Arthur just nodded. His face seemed completely emotionless. She couldn't stop herself from asking, "What do you think about it?"

He just shrugged. "It's not that you have to ask my permission."

She took a deep breathe before asking the next question. "Did he tell you about what he thinks of...?"

"Of my feelings towards you?" He finished you sentence with nonchalance. "Are you asking me if he told me that you think I love you? Yes, he did."

"Will you deny it?"

"No. H-He also told me what you think a-about it." Arthur desperately tried to brush off his tears before [Name] could see them, but she still understood how bad he was feeling. She grabbed his face and looked right in his watery, green eyes.

"Oh, Arthur," she sighed. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you... I never imagined that you'd feel that way towards me. I'm flattered, but I don't want to mislead you. You're my best friend, you're sweet and funny, and quite handsome too, but I don't love you. We can still be friends, can't we? And who knows, maybe one day I'll fall in love with you, if you wait for me. Alright? Please, don't cry, tell me you're fine."

Arthur nodded. "I'm fine now. I'll get over it someday. Can I just... just have a kiss? I-If you don't want to it's fine." She was about to reply to him, when she saw Francis staring at them with a severe look. [Name] startled and opened her mouth in order to explain everything, but her boyfriend just mouthed: "Go for it."

The girl gave him a thankful look and gently kissed Arthur on the lips. He blushed, his expression sweetening, and Francis cleared his throat.

"[Name], are you ready? We have to go." She stood up and ruffled his hair, but he stepped back horrified. "D-Don't touch my hair! You'll ruin it!"

Arthur laughed sarcastically. "Looks like our savage likes to be human."

"We can't say the same thing of you, judging by how you dress, don't you think?"

"Ah, really? Who bought you your first real clothes?"

"Guys, stop acting like 5-year-olds!"

"Ahah, I love you too!" Francis exclaimed, placing a kiss on her forehead. Arthur stared at them. Then he had a brilliant idea. "[Name]!"

"Yes?"

"Would you like me more if I grew my hair like Francis'?"

"No, Arthur, I wouldn't. I just like you as you are."

"Oh." He was quiet for a bit, then another idea hit him. "And what if I had a mustache?"