Beast's Castle
First Appearance: KINGDOM HEARTS II (2006)
Origin: Beauty and the Beast (1991)
On Roxas's first visit to Beast's Castle, he is on a simple mission to track down a Sergeant Heartless. He hears strange roars coming from inside the castle, but it isn't until he returns with Xion a couple of days later that he has a chance to properly investigate. They find the Castle strangely devoid of people, and can't help noticing the claw marks and huge footprints scattered around. The obvious assumption is that they've been caused by Heartless, but they also find breadcrumbs scattered outside, which seems to indicate that someone lives in the Castle and enjoys feeding birds.
Roxas and Xion come across Lumiere, and are dumbfounded at the idea of a walking, talking candlestick - one that, from what he's muttering to himself, appears to be a servant of the castle. After sneaking past they find more footprints that appear to be leading towards the room of the Castle's Master, and hear another terrifying roar. When they dare to peek through the partly open door at the end of the hallway, they discover that the Master of the Castle has been turned into a monster - but a different kind of monster to the Heartless. On their way back to report to Saïx, Roxas thinks he overhears someone talking about "Lady Belle" in a side room.
On their next visit to Beast's Castle, Roxas and Xion are troubled by yet another animated object - Cogsworth is patrolling the halls. Again they sneak past in order to carry out their duties, wondering whether all the servants in the Castle have strange shapes like the two they've encountered.
A few weeks later, while Xion is still struggling to recover the ability to use her Keyblade, she and Roxas are sent to Beast's Castle to destroy a Neoshadow Heartless. When they observe Lumiere muttering to himself about how to reconcile the Master of the Castle and Belle, they wonder whether the two have been fighting over something - and Xion wonders aloud what sort of person it would take to fight with such a monster. They track down and manage to defeat the Neoshadow, but just as they're about to leave two more attack simultaneously. Before either Roxas or Xion can move, the Beast appears out of nowhere, dispatching the powerful Heartless with one swipe of his claws.
As Roxas and Xion marvel at his strength, the Beast roars that he won't tolerate Heartless in his Castle. Roxas finds it strange that this monster is the owner of the Castle, and yet fighting to defend it - surely if the Organization's stronghold were under attack, it would be underlings like him and Xion, not their Master Xemnas, who would have to defend it. Why would the Beast fight so desperately when he clearly has servants of his own? Xion points out that the Beast may be fighting to protect something precious.
When Roxas and Xion are told that they'll be sent on separate missions, Xion's inability to use her Keyblade is almost revealed - Axel steps in to get them one last day together, and as a last resort Roxas lends Xion his Keyblade in the hope that it'll jog her memory. Together they fight their way through Heartless in the Beast's Castle, Roxas using a wooden stick as a weapon, and sure enough Xion regains the ability to summon her Keyblade.
When Roxas later returns to Beast's Castle with Xaldin, the latter is intrigued by the Beast. He explains to Roxas that the Castle is cursed, and after listening in on servants' conversations they ascertain that there's some kind of time limit attached to the curse. They overhear Belle upset about the fact that she can do nothing to help the Beast's fight against the Heartless, but the Beast himself is nowhere to be seen.
In the Beast's room, Xaldin and Roxas come across a strangely powerful and clearly unnatural rose. Xaldin believes that the rose must be what the Beast is fighting to protect - and that it can therefore be used as a weak point. A month later his suspicions appear to be confirmed, when on another mission he and Roxas overhear the Beast talking about how he must find a way to regain his former body before the rose wilts.
On his 171st day in the Organization, Roxas arrives at Beast's Castle to hear a mighty roar coming from outside the walls - and suddenly the Beast's body is flung into the courtyard, unconscious. A giant Heartless is outside, and after a long battle Roxas manages to defeat it. As he comes back inside to check on the Beast, he is forced to duck out of site as Belle runs over. As Roxas listens to their conversation, he realizes that what the Beast is fighting to protect isn't the rose - it's his Castle and the people inside it. The Beast says it's his duty as the Castle's Master. Roxas realizes that Belle must be an important person to the Beast.
Presently, Xaldin appears behind Roxas, and sneers at this expression of love by the Beast. Roxas asks Xaldin what love is, and he says that the power of love is no more than a worthless emotion. Roxas doesn't understand what he means by the power of love, but Xaldin sees no point in trying to explain to a being without a heart - he simply comments that it's something he can use. Roxas wonders if the power of love is something created when a person fights to protect something precious to them.
Many days later, when Roxas is sent to retrieve Xaldin, who hasn't returned from the Beast's Castle, he discovers that something strange has happened. Belle and the servants are worried that the Beast has been acting strange, and when Roxas finds the Beast himself, he's furiously pacing and muttering to himself. It appears someone has told him that Belle is planning to betray him and steal everything he has. When Roxas overhears the servants talking about a suspicious man in a black coat, he realizes that Xaldin must be involved.
Finally finding Xaldin by the Castle gates, Roxas asks why he hadn't returned to the Organisation yet. Xaldin is deliberately vague, saying only that he's been putting events in motion, and that in a little while things are sure to get interesting. Roxas suspects that Xaldin must have talked to the Beast, but can't figure out what Xaldin hopes to gain from all of it...
An even curiouser turn of events takes place on the 353th Day, when Xion arrives at Beast's Castle. Riku is there waiting for her, and she greets him with a smile. She finally found the right answer he asked her to find. She's on the verge of losing everything she ever cared for; she can't let that happen. He tells her to go to Twilight Town and look for Naminé. She shouldn't be too hard to find. Xion smiles and thanks him before turning back to the Corridor of Darkness still swirling behind her. She utters a final word before she leaves, bidding him farewell.
