summary: in order to save her sister, Elizabeth is sentenced to life in the custody of a renowned criminal. beauty and the beast au.

pairing: elizabeth/meliodas, ban/elaine, king/diane, gilthunder/margaret, past mentions of meliodas/liz. merlin/undecided, as well.

sidenote: i am a garbage fire sorry for taking so long to actually write for this fandom mm

It was just past twilight when Elizabeth heard the telltale squeak of her door being slowly opened. Soft footsteps followed the opening and Elizabeth sat up in her bed, alarmed by the disturbance.

"Elizabeth?" a familiar voice broke the silence, and a single, dim candle appeared in the center of her quarters. "Are you awake?"

"Yes," Elizabeth answered softly, "Margaret? Is that you?"

Margaret's face was illuminated next to the candle, revealing the grim expression scribed on her normally beautiful features. Worried, Elizabeth swung her thin legs off the side of her bed and leaned closer to her elder sister.

"Margaret? What's the matter, are you ill?" Elizabeth inquired, voice raised in concern. Her medical expertise was well recognized in the castle, after years of training with the nurses and doctors she was well-informed enough to be a doctor herself.

"No, I am fine." Margaret replied, voice thick with an unidentifiable emotion. Elizabeth's thin silver eyebrows knitted together.

"Then…what's wrong?" Elizabeth murmured, dusting her hand across Margaret's forehead to check for a fever anyway.

"I…I need to tell you something…" She whispered, her voice hushed with urgency.

Elizabeth nodded, signaling Margaret to continue.

"Listen to me, do you remember when Gilthunder went on that secret mission father gave him, alone?" Margaret asked. Elizabeth pulled up the memory and nodded, Gilthunder had been labeled missing in action for almost a month after he was enlisted with the task. Margaret had been racked with worry, but when Gilthunder returned he had offered little information as to his whereabouts. It was curious, sure, but Elizabeth had been rather distracted at the time, her anatomy assessment had been going on the week of his return.

"Y-yes." Elizabeth said reluctantly. She had a tugging feeling in her stomach that was telling her the outcome of this conversation wasn't going to be pleasant.

"Recently, he told me everything that happened in his absence. He was gravely wounded, close to death after he completed the objective." Margaret breathed out, the weightiness of the topic taking its toll on her. Elizabeth placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, but was shocked to see the appalled expression on her sister's face as she shook her hand off. "A-anyways…"

This isn't good, Elizabeth thought, Margaret never stutters…is she upset with me?

"Before he could die of his injuries, he was rescued…" Margaret trailed off unexpectedly, like she herself couldn't remember the next part of the tale.

"Rescued?" Elizabeth asked, hoping to reawaken the older woman's state of mind.

Margaret blinked. "Right…he was rescued, by a man…" Margaret sucked in an unladylike amount of air and continued. "He was no ordinary man, he wielded a strange power, and was the self-proclaimed deadly sin of wrath."

Elizabeth watched the candle flicker at the mention of the man. Strange.

"This man watched over Gil while he recovered, but when he was in good health, he made Gil promise him a favor in return for his hospitality." Margaret then lowered her brown eyes, normally filled with warmth and love, to Elizabeth's own shimmering teal one. They were completely void of emotion besides sadness.

"Three days ago, Gil was contacted by this man once more, Elizabeth…" Margaret sniffed, ducking her head low to hide what were possibly tears. "I was there, Ellie…I've never felt anything quite so powerful in my entire life…"

"Margaret-" Elizabeth was crudely interrupted.

"He's asked for the favor Ellie, and he wants…what he wants-" Margaret choked back a sob and buried her head in her hands.

"What does he want, Margaret?" Elizabeth asked quietly, her voice coming out in rushed, uncoordinated whispers. The sickly feeling of dread began to freeze, Elizabeth looked down and half-expected to see a blade of ice protruding from her chest.

"You, Ellie." Margaret said hollowly. "He wants you."

The candle sputtered, almost losing its life to the silent breeze.

Elizabeth found herself at a loss for words. Why…would someone ever want her? She was nothing – she was the third princess, no inheritance would be gained by her. Not even related to the crown by blood, no proper heir would be produced…

"I…don't know what to do, Elizabeth." Margaret admitted. The words sent a knife through her heart, Margaret was smart, sensible, strong. She always knew what to do – if she didn't know, then who did?

"If I don't do anything, Gil could die – that, that man," Margaret spit the word man, almost as if she didn't quite believe that he was real man, but a demonic entity that would wreak havoc on the Liones family. "He could kill him…he really could, I'm so scared, but Ellie, oh Ellie, I can't send you to him, I can't, I can't-"

And with those words, Margaret broke, the steel like eldest sister of the Liones family shattered like a fine piece of china. Elizabeth could do nothing but watch, watch her elegant sister crumble, a flower petal lost from its home and caught in the wind.

"W-what do I do – what can I do?" Margaret gasped, her hands grasping Elizabeth's shoulders firmly, leaving crescent moon shapes in her soft porcelain skin.

"How much time do you have?" Elizabeth asked blankly, there was still time, there had to be time, they could figure this all out then…

"Today is the last day…I'm sorry Ellie, I thought I could've made a choice by then…Gil left it up to me, he said he'd refuse if I asked him to…" Margaret choked on her thick, shining tears and Elizabeth felt her insides churn with uncertainty.

Without hesitation, Elizabeth made up her mind.

"I'll go."

The room went silent, Margaret's tears stopped falling and Elizabeth heard the wind bite at the curtains to her balcony.

"E-Ellie…"

"I will go to him, if it's to save Gilthunder…and you…" Elizabeth added, knowing full well that the loss of Gilthunder would kill her sister on the inside.

"Don't say that, Ellie, please…"

Elizabeth looked her sister in the eye, taking in her majesty for what might've been the last time.

"What else do you want me to say?"

With a horrified wail, Margaret, buried her face into the smooth fabric of Elizabeth's nightgown, pouring out her remorse and sorrow into the gossamer threads. With dead-like calm, Elizabeth raked her hands through Margaret's hair, relishing the feel of the soft indigo locks against her palm.

"Now," she said, surprised by the lump in her throat. She might never see her sister again, or Veronica, or her father, or anyone- "How do I get to him?"

"T-this," Margaret shuddered, rubbing her eyes and thrusting a sapphire amulet in her younger sister's direction. "I…I do admit, I've no idea how to use it."

Elizabeth swallowed. She recognized it from the old magic supply research center, it was a location crystal. If it was crushed or smashed, it would take whomever closest to the desired location of the caster. A clever, non-traceable transportation method (unless thwarted by legitimate tracking magic, in which case it might not be so useful) that was often used by military personnel to cover the tracks of an oncoming ambush.

"Break it." Elizabeth instructed firmly.

"A-are you sure?" Margaret asked worriedly.

"Yes. You will tell father and Veronica that I love them, yes? And Gilthunder too." Elizabeth said flatly, mind-numbing calm seeping throughout her body. It was like her soul had already accepted death, and she had nothing left to feel but cool apathy. It was a harsh feeling, Elizabeth disliked it, but preferred it over heart-wrenching goodbyes.

"I love you Ellie, I love you so much and I'm sorry-"

"I know," Elizabeth echoed. "I love you too, would you tell Gil not to be sad? You too, don't feel guilty. I'm choosing this."

"Ellie…this isn't goodbye, promise me." Margaret asked.

Elizabeth stared straight through her. "Break the crystal."

"Elizabeth, promise me!" Margaret cried shrilly. Elizabeth just gave a tiny, tiny shake of her head.

"I can't promise you that, I'm sorry." She said, and finally, a well-rounded, silver tear fell from her eye.

Margaret's mouth opened, then shut again, her grip on the crystal loosening.

"I…I don't think I can let you do this…" Margaret lamented, the controversy tearing at her eyes.

In one last bout of courage, Elizabeth swiped the crystal directly out of Margaret's hand and smashed it against the wall all in one fell swoop.

The crystal exploded, black smoke pouring out of the center and swirling at the base of Elizabeth's floor, licking at her ankles and sliding up her skin eerily. The smoke was freezing cold, and seemed to grasp onto her as it crawled up her body, higher, and higher…

"No! Ellie, make it stop!" Margaret screamed, batting away the smoke fruitlessly. The smoke clung to Elizabeth's body relentlessly, whirling like the eye of a hurricane and she could only watch as it devoured the rest of her with sadistic fervor.

"I love you Margaret," Elizabeth repeated, the smoke clogging up her brain and making her feel dizzy. Was it supposed to be like this? She felt sleepy, the smoke was dragging her into a comatose like state, her eyelids drooped and her hand hit the bed, limp.

Her sister screamed and she was weightless, the feeling of falling attacking her senses, panic began to seep through her mind, was she dying? She was definitely falling – she would hit the ground any second now…

She inhaled one last breath before she hit the ground, only the ground was warm and less painful than she had anticipated.

…and the last thing she remembered were two piercing green eyes and a voice telling her that everything was going to be alright.

i think i just broke a fanfiction cliché record? wow am i ever proud.

my first (possible) multichap in the nnt fandom (took me long enough) and pls forgive me i wrote like…78% of this at midnight last night so it might be a little weird

pls review/favorite/follow for my sad writer soul to continue living! ilyy