heavy tw for eyes being hurt! and monsters! and slightly bad 7th grade writing!!! “By Verdict of Tooth and Coin” By: [no no no this is marshy's real name] “Justice delayed is not always justice denied- sometimes it simply sharpens its claws.” -Anymous Angelique stood at the path hugging the fence that separated the pasture from the forest. The forests of Gevaudan were something otherworldly, lush, but full of venom at the same time. At the moment, the leaves whispered caution on the wind, another sound in the cacophony of the small backwater village that Angelique didn’t seem to quite hear. Wheels clattered down poorly-made roads, and voices haggled, following their evening routine. Angelique was oblivious to it all, however, and was clutching her greed to her chest. She had recently swindled the coins from a farmer using her status as the tax collector’s daughter to take from the people, and such easy targets they were, Angelique was practically a wolf hunting down the sheep! When the moon and stars finally came to the sky, Angelique’s head snapped to the spot where the leaves had begun to quake on the bushes. They were a dark brown, close to the color of dried blood. She wouldn’t be surprised if it was, the villagers had been dumb enough lately to get picked off by a “monster” in the hundreds. She cautiously stepped toward them, forgetting the weight of the pouch in her hands. As her open hand, shaking with anticipation, neared the bush, a beast surged toward her, sending a spray of leaves everywhere, his wild jaws snapping at the poor girl. But he wasn’t just any beast, it was the Beast of Gevaudan. Angelique leaped backward, and her eyes shone with fear. The Beast tried to pounce on her again, so she yelped and leaped into the forest. He was not easily deterred, though. Away, then, she fled, through muck and branches, skirts fluttering and coins jingling at every frantic step. He wasn’t far behind though, and heavy footfalls of the Beast’s paws soon pursued her, echoing in her ears, a mantra of death. He felt so close she could feel the hot, sticky, stinking, sickly breath on her neck, displacing her now disheveled golden locks. Soon, the heat disappeared. Angelique warily turned her head when the cold had laid its icy hands on her neck like a scarf. A shiver recklessly made its way down her spine. No monster stood behind her… Her knees buckled as her teeth began to chatter, repeating prayer upon prayer under her breath. Fear ransacked her, was she going mad? A whole life set out in front of her could not be ruined by a trip to the madhouse. An asylum would not be her fate! Big, fat tears clouded her vision and rolled down her face. A quiet lady-like sob racked her, a sad, hushed melody in stark contrast to the now silent woods. Soon, Angelique’s eyes squinted through the teardrops caked onto her eyelids, spying something on the ground. Her hands let go of her dress, but still held tightly to the pouch, and wiped her tears away. It seemed like there were large indents in the leaf-litter. Angelique’s eyes tracked the sets of four small craters to a large bush, like an animal had walked away. Walked away. Walked away. Walked away. Walked away… Like the Beast? Angelique slowly rose, and backed away from the bush, now ominous and menacing. Her breathing became quieter, and it felt like her lungs were clawing for air. But none came. Her eyes that had now dried widened in realization, the tears pricking at them and threatening to surface again. A paw mirrored her footsteps in the inverse, stepping toward her without hesitation. His face peered out, like a wolf’s but not quite there, like God had forsaken him midway through weaving him, and left him to rot. His snout’s grin at finding his prey grew into a snarl as it prepared to deliver his verdict. As the Beast began to eat up the ground between them in long and effortless strides, Angelique reacted almost automatically. In one swift motion, she whipped off her coquette, cute, cherubic shoe with her free hand. The shoe was bedazzled, with a low heel for walking in the country. Well, regardless of how fashionable it was, Angelique was desperate and threw it with all her might at the Beast’s face in a graceful arc. Without looking back, Angelique ran further into the forest, desperately looking for someone, anyone, to help her.
cont below A strangled cry almost escaped from her, but she was careful to choke it back. After all, she wasn’t alone, a pained grotesque, guttural, growling howl sounding on the horizon was enough to prove that he wouldn’t be stopped easily. Spying a large pine tree with a thick trunk, she sank down behind it and let out a heavy sigh, thick with fear, rage at the Beast, and the same for God. Anyone but herself. She wanted to scream, not sigh, scream at the world for being so downright cruel to her. She had never done anything that terribly affected someone, the most being taking some more linings for her pockets now and then. Nothing was ever really her fault, other people just set themselves up for failure and she was doing a mercy by felling them so early on. She was a good person. Her thoughts drummed in her ears. She was good. She was good. She was good. Angelique closed her eyes, took some breaths and calmed herself. She felt at peace after a few of them. As her eyes slowly fluttered open and a lazy, languid, lethargic smile graced her face, the grin dripped off seconds later. He was here. A large yellow eye bored into her own gaze, the other eye had the heel of a shoe stuck into it, the fluids from the Beast’s eye dribbling down and crusting on his dark, matted fur. Angelique whimpered at the sight. The Beast was watching her go crazy only to return to sanity again and again. She held his stare. The Beast’s was one that knew his power, while Angelique’s was that of fear for everything besides the monster in front of her, and so her eyes were faraway, like she was a husk of the thieving girl that had stood on the path. Her own heartbeat melted away, and the forest’s scents of sickeningly sweet pine and decay swirled around her head. The coins became heavy in her hand while the Beast’s jaw slowly opened. Angelique braced herself. “Courir.” His voice was gravelly and commanding, and Angelique was dumbfounded. Understanding suddenly, she sprung up and plunged into the woods, running and running as the Beast told her. The forest swallowed her like a mother embracing her child as the Beast’s word echoed in her head. Her mind was like a storm, the rains of it harshly pelting her. As she plunged further and further into the trees, each passing second blurred her vision. She ran, and no one was quite able to catch up to her again. The original concept had an epilogue, and I'll tell you what was in it. After the attacks had ceased, the villagers went into the woods, and found ditches and ditches of bones (this is not a historically accurate fact.) and in one of those ditches, was a pouch of coins. It leaves you to wonder, when Angelique ran, did she let go of her greed, or did it destroy her? This story is based upon something that did happen, something that still puzzles historians, the Beast of Gevaudan killed over 100 people and injured dozens. I encourage you to look into it if you haven't already, it's one of my favorite history tidbits!
