A woman's voice, speaking Callian but accented with significant Albion, calls from the front hall.

"Hello? Is anyone home?"

The Beast is confused.

So is Belle!

"Hello!" calls she-of-Albion-accent again. "I got lost, and there was a fire and it chased me here, and I'm not packed for a long trip, and I can't find my friends! Can someone help me? Isn't there anyone here?"

He looks up at Belle.

"Do you want to go and explain?"

"I - sure. Probably best if I warn her what you'll look like to her."

Belle gets up and goes to the entrance hall.

"Oh! Someone is here! Hello - I'm Chelise - what is this place, who are you?"

"I'm Belle," says Belle. "I'm afraid you're stuck here - the castle is cursed, it's just us and Beast - despite the name he's quite friendly, though."

"Oh - well - but my friends -"

"You're welcome to try finding them, but you'll find that the curse will turn you around and bring you straight back here, and your friends will find that they're turned away if they wind up heading towards us," sighs Belle. "I'm sorry - I do understand; I was looking for my father when I got drawn in."

"But," says Chelise, "but then how long do I have to stay here - without any of my friends?"

"I'm really sorry," sighs Belle. "It's until I manage to break the curse - I'm studying enchanting - or until one of us manages to fall in mutual love with Beast."

"Oh. Well. Can you introduce me, then?" asks Chelise.

"Yes, but you should be warned that he's cursed too - he doesn't look human at the moment."

"That's all right, isn't he still a person?" says Chelise.

"Yes."

"If my friends aren't going to find me I'd better make friends with you two, hadn't I?" says Chelise reasonably.

And the two young women go into the library. Chelise is blonde and blue-eyed and a little older than Belle, plainer in the face but with a friendly expression to Belle's resignation. "Hello," she says to the Beast. "I'm Chelise."

He laughs.

"All right," he says, and gets up off the floor.

"Show me around?" asks Chelise winningly. "Do I get my own room? Is this your castle, it's huge."

Belle returns to her books.

And she picks one that is near a room in his wing that he appears to use, though it's not the only member of that category.

Apparently with Belle working on escape route number one, Chelise is going to throw herself into escape route number two.

He is soft and fluffy and pettable!

And purring.