Here it is, my first Beauty and the Beast story! Although I've always loved Mrs. Potts and the sweet relationship she has with Chip, I never noticed until recently that the first thing she does when they both become human again is pick him up and hold him. It hit me that, for ten years, she was not able to hold him or him because, as a teapot, she didn't have arms. But when the enchantment was broken, imagine her joy! Seeing the way she was still holding on to Chip at the end of the movie only confirmed that for me, so I thought it would be sweet to write a story exploring Mrs. Potts's thoughts about holding her son once again, as well as a little background on his birth.

Special thanks to my dear friend HAFanForever, who suggested the title for this story. Love ya, girl!

Human again!

It started with a strange tingling sensation deep within her - not in the cold porcelain she had been made of for the last ten years, but in the very human soul that lingered within the enchanted teapot. As the magic, the glorious magic they had waited and prayed for, swirled around her, she felt a wonderful warmth spread throughout her being, one that far outstripped any heat that tea previously carried. The world suddenly became a little smaller as she shot up to her normal height, legs grew where a rounded base had previously been, porcelain turned into flesh, her body grew soft and warm rather than hard and cold, and - arms! She had arms to reach out and touch the ones she loved, to hug and hold them as she had so longed to do.

"Mrs. Potts!" the Prince cried joyfully, in a voice that was no longer the deep growl of a Beast. He pulled her cap away from her eyes, and what a sight to behold! The spoiled boy she once knew had grown into a handsome young man, who was now as beautiful on the inside as he was on the outside, thanks to the love of Belle. Looking to her left and her right, she also saw Lumiere and Cogsworth, both restored to their former selves and looking every bit as ecstatic as she felt. The Prince, however, summed up her feelings in three simple words. "Look at us!" he cried, seizing all three of them in a huge hug.

Mrs. Potts absorbed the hug as though her life depended on it. Oh Lord, that feels so wonderful! For one who had gone an entire decade unable to embrace or touch anyone, the craving for human contact was almost too overwhelming to take. She wanted to hug and kiss everyone around her: Lumiere, Cogsworth, the Prince who had found his humanity once more, and Belle, who had saved all of their lives. Most of all, she wanted to hug...

"Mama! Mama!"

Mrs. Potts spun around at the sound of her son's voice. The Footstool came sprinting onto the balcony, but he didn't remain a footstool for long. The magic took hold of him as well, transforming him back into the shaggy, oafy, loveable dog he was... and then began to transform the tiny teacup riding on his back. Mrs. Potts's heart leapt as the chipped porcelain cup gave way to a six-year-old boy with a mop of untidy blond hair, big blue eyes, and a charming gap between his front teeth. Chip! Her son was back! And the instant he saw her, he smiled and held out his arms.

Unable to restrain herself any longer, Mrs. Potts ran to Chip and scooped him up, nearly weeping as she took him in her arms. "Oh, my goodness!" she exclaimed, while Chip threw his arms around her neck.

"It is a miracle!" Lumiere shouted in glee, while the Prince whirled Belle around the balcony in celebration. A miracle indeed. Not only was it a miracle that the spell had been broken just in the nick of time, it was a miracle to Mrs. Potts that she had received such a spectacular gift: to hold her son once again.

It may have seemed silly to some, but just being able to hold Chip was doubly special to Mrs. Potts. She and her husband, God rest his soul, had been unable to have children for years, despite several attempts. Just like Hannah in the Bible, Mrs. Potts prayed day and night for God to open her womb and give her a child, and, finally, the Lord heard her prayers. At forty years old, the age when many women were considered long past their childbearing years, Mrs. Potts gave birth to Chip. A chubby, roly-poly infant with a tuft of blond hair, he stole his mother's heart the instant he was placed in her arms. Mrs. Potts cried when her son gazed up at her, her blue eyes gazing at her out of his sweet little face, and his tiny hand gripped her finger, never letting go. Thank you, Lord, thank you! she had prayed as she cuddled Chip to her bosom, just as she was praying now.

The prayer of thanks was still ringing to heaven a day later, at the ball celebrating the broken enchantment. Belle and the Prince were waltzing around the ballroom floor, their eyes never leaving each other for a second. Lumiere and Cogsworth, of course, were squabbling over who told who the spell would break or some such nonsense, and the rest of the servants were looking on, some crying tears of joy, some simply smiling in content at the soon-to-be wed royal couple.

Mrs. Potts was doing all three as she stood on the side next to Belle's father, Maurice. Her heart was full to bursting, with happiness for the young couple whose love had set them all free, with gratitude for being human again, and with love for the boy she was still cradling in her arms. The night before, when she tucked him into bed, she had nearly smothered him with kisses and was almost unable to stop hugging him. Reluctantly, she parted from Chip, letting him get some sleep and knowing that she would be able to hold him again when morning came. Sure enough, when he came bounding downstairs for breakfast, she lifted him up and spun him around, kissing his cheek. Then, she carried him in her arms all the way to the ballroom, where he remained, safe and sound in her embrace.

"Are they gonna live happily ever after, Mama?"

Mrs. Potts didn't need to ask who Chip was talking about. One look at Belle and the Prince, sailing by in each other's arms, told her all she needed to know. "Of course, my dear," she said, sighing happily. God be praised, all's well at last. "Of course."

A heartbeat of silence passed before Chip spoke again. "Do I still have to sleep in the cupboard?"

The question took Mrs. Potts completely by surprise, and her head swiveled to face her son, who was staring at her with a quizzical little frown on his brow. Maurice began to guffaw heartily, and Mrs. Potts, tickled by the adorable seriousness of her son's query, roared with laughter, the first true laugh she had given in years. "No, Chip," she said, hugging Chip even tighter. Thank you, God, for these arms to hold him. "Never again."

Chip kissed his mother's cheek. "Don't let me go, okay, Mama?"

"Don't you worry, love," Mrs. Potts assured him, rubbing her nose against his. "I'm never letting you go."