For all of you who just want a simple sequel, this is for you.
I've started major revamping on this story since I haven't updated in two years! This used to be two chapters and I've combined it into one!
Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I own nothing, I swear.
Chapter 1: Say Goodbye to My Heart
Dinner had ended and Belle began her nightly routine of retiring to the library to read through as many chapters of the book she currently had her nose stuck in as she was able to before she grew tired. She had just settled into a large velvet chair as she dived into a new story that she had picked off of one of the vast number of shelves in the immense castle library. She soon found herself rereading the beginning sentences again and again. Her focus was elsewhere. She still could not believe where she was and why she was there, though she knew the place well. It all still seemed to be a dream. The transformation had taken place only a week before and Belle now found herself unable to accept that the royal prince that sat across from her at dinner each night had truly once been her beloved Beast. She couldn't help but feel guilty at this doubt because of the apparent love the Prince had for her. She shied away from him with flushed cheeks each time he showed affection for her. The Prince found this endearing though, oblivious to the fact that it was Belle's confusion and discomfort that had her acting so timidly. Everything had seemed so grand and perfectly in place after the castle and all of its residents had been restored to their former condition that she had not found the time to think anything through. All she knew now was that the Beast was gone and there was now a handsome, strong prince in his place that she was expected by all to be in love with.
Another problem that had yet to work itself out was the constant uncertainty as to whether or not she was in love with him. She no longer even felt comfortable in his castle, which had become her home.
Belle tried her best to set aside all of her uneasy feelings and scrambled thoughts as she attempted to continue reading her story. Not even the adventurous and romantic plot would assuage them, though. She feared that this would be one problem she would not find the solution to just by getting lost in a book. Belle sighed. Life used to be so simple before it became so interesting.
A soft knock then disrupted the silence Belle had grown used to. "Belle, dear?" she heard the cheerful voice of Mrs. Potts say.
"Oh, come in!" Belle exclaimed, thankful someone had come to keep her company or talk with her. She felt she would go insane if left alone with her thoughts any longer.
Mrs. Potts only opened the library door just enough to allow herself to reveal her plump and rosy face. "Oh, sweetie, I do apologize, but I just came to deliver a message. The Master would like to have a word with you."
"I see," Belle responded, once again filled with nervous feelings and confusion. She had been trying for days to avoid any private conversations with the Prince and now she felt trapped. She couldn't disobey his orders. She carefully stood from her chair and replaced the book back to its original position on the shelf.
As she followed Mrs. Potts' stout figure down the lengthy corridor leading to the West Wing, she felt a familiar sense of foreboding; the same one she had felt when she had first walked these halls not too long ago. This newfound intuition, though, was not as clear, as Belle no longer was sure what was wrong or right for her.
The two finally came upon the large doors of the West Wing. "Here you are, dear," Mrs. Potts said to Belle before opening the left door for her. Belle smiled at the old woman, exhaling before cautiously taking her first steps into the Prince's sanctuary. The door then closed behind her. Belle looked back for comfort, but Mrs. Potts had already gone to return to the kitchen.
Belle walked the elongated foyer to the large room of the West Wing, observing the changes that had been made since the transformation. It had once been such a forbidden section of the household that even the mention of its name evoked fear into any member of the Prince's, or at that time, the Beast's staff. Now it merely served as the Prince's living quarters, which he regularly allowed guests into. It was still a foreign place to Belle. The broken mirrors and torn portraits that had once hung slovenly on the walls had been replaced. Damaged furniture and decor that had been thrown about were now repaired and in order. They were just more changes she had yet to accept.
She gingerly made her way into the main room that had been the Beast's hiding place where he had kept the wilting enchanted rose. Now it housed a fireplace, the Prince's bed, his desk, and his armoire, among other belongings. The opened entrance to the balcony allowed the cool breeze of spring's beginning to make its presence known. The fire in the corner of the room burned bright, having only been lit moments before.
Belle's eyes wandered to the chair that was placed several feet before the fireplace, her eyes settling on the form in the seat.
There sat Adam, Dauphin of France, deep in thought. The light from the fire illuminated his chiseled features and his auburn hair hung loose around his broad shoulders. His intense blue eyes stared deep into the flames, seeming to be fixated on something Belle herself could not see. He hadn't even noticed her arrival.
Belle swallowed her nerves before addressing him. "Adam?"
Adam, now awakened from his trance, snapped his head to the left in Belle's direction, jumping slightly from his seat. She had taken him by surprise.
Belle took a few meek steps in reverse, his reaction surprising her. "Oh, I'm sorry. I assumed you were expecting me. You wanted to see me?"
He found himself smiling at her, charmed by her innocent hesitation. "No, Belle, I apologize for allowing myself to be startled by you." He rose from his chair and closed the short distance between them before he captured her hands in his. He kissed her forehead gently and then met his eyes to hers. "I did want to see you."
Belle, almost involuntarily, returned the smile and then broke their gaze, averting her eyes to their clasped hands. "And what was it you wanted to speak with me about?" she inquired softly.
Adam did not dare waste a moment. "Here, come sit with me," he directed, leading her over to the fireplace. He pulled her down along with him and they sat facing each other. Adam knew sitting in front of a fire was an enjoyment of Belle's, so he found this to be the perfect spot to tell her what he needed to.
Belle, still perplexed as to what direction this meeting of theirs was going in, waited for him to begin. Adam cleared his throat, trying his best to collect his previous thoughts together before speaking. He had prepared what he wanted to say to her; his words were well rehearsed.
"Belle," he paused so he would not catch his breath on his words and look foolish in front of her. "I can only hope that you know that since your first appearance here at the castle, you have been a very important and very dear person to me."
Belle only nodded her head slowly as her reply to him, not showing how anxious she was for him to touch on the objective of his speech. She looked at him intently.
Now the one avoiding the other's stare, Adam continued.
"During your stay here, I came to the realization that I have never felt for any person the way I feel for you. Our time together has brought us close, and I," he delayed his words once more to gather his thoughts and emotions, "I feel a great deal of... adoration for you. You have taught me what it means to have a heart and how to actually live, how to be somebody. You have shown me that I have many strengths and much to live for and saved me from myself in many different ways." He stopped only to meet her gaze and observe any sort of reaction her face might reveal.
Belle was frozen by his unexpected profession. Many emotions filled the young woman all at once; guilt, confusion, flattery, excitement, intimidation, and concern. She could not stop from silently praying to herself that Adam would not progress this revelation of his in the way she feared he would.
He moved in closer to her, scared that the opportunity would soon slip away if he did not seize it at that instant.
"Belle," he breathed out yet again, "I can only see us moving forward from our experiences, which is why I have to ask you this." He moved his hands from Belle's so they could cradle her small, beautiful face in them. "Will you marry me?"
At that moment, Belle would have believed that her heart had stopped beating within her chest only to rise to her throat once the words had left his lips. He had asked just what she had been fearfully anticipating. She understood that his love for her was genuine, as it was what had broken the spell, but marrying him was an entirely different concept to grasp. She no longer was certain if she even shared his feelings.
"Belle?" Adam said in his gentle voice, attempting to coax a response from her.
Belle knew a "yes" or any kind of reply that alluded to a positive answer would be unfair to him and to herself.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, a tear escaping her now watery eyes. The drop fell a short way onto the side of one of Adam's right fingers.
The smile on his face vanished. Before he was able to ask for her reason, he received his answer. It was one he had not expected to hear.
"But you're just not him," and with that, Belle tore herself away from Adam and began to run, ignoring him as he called after her. She threw open the heavy doors and fled the West Wing, hot tears now flowing free from her eyes. She did not stop herself until she burst into her bedchamber, throwing her almost limp body onto her mattress. Heavy sobs began to wrack her chest as her tears dampened her pillow.
She had rejected him, and though she had found it to be the only explanation she could give, she still could feel nothing but remorse. Belle knew she had broken Adam's heart. He had promised her so much and had admitted to her the love he felt, but she just couldn't accept any of it. She longed for the Beast. She wanted nothing more than to feel his large, fury frame around her, to hear his rough voice speak words of comfort, to take her away. Belle knew, however, that he was gone and things could never again be the same. His place in the castle had been taken, but not the place he held in her heart. At this prospect, Belle soon cried herself to sleep.
Adam had not moved an inch. His body was numb and his pride was wounded. She had gone, but her words still lingered. Shocked by her reasoning as to why she couldn't make him the happiest man in existence, the young prince moved back towards his chair and sank down into it, letting his head fall into his palms. This feeling was all too familiar. It was the same he had felt just a week before when she had left the first time for her father's sake. At that time, he had thought he would never recover from the heartache that come with her leaving him, only to have her back hours later, right before everything changed. When life had returned to normal, his normal, he had promised himself he would never again let Belle go. After all that had happened, he knew they were together by fate's will.
Now she had departed once more and he could only feel this time to be permanent. The change had not been what she wanted, and though she seemed to be unsure of most aspects of her life right then, one thing that she was certain about was that she didn't want him.
Like that night only nights ago, Adam once again began to feel his heart start to break.
As the first rays of sunlight began streaming through her bedroom window, Belle's eyes fluttered open. She had awoken earlier than she usually did. Events from the previous night suddenly came flooding back to the front of her mind after a long sleep filled with dreams of another life that no longer existed. The pain that had pierced her heart hours before returned and she felt no strength to help herself out of her bed. She wasn't sure of anything now. Her mind was hazed, her feelings had betrayed her, and she didn't want to begin a new day, but she also didn't want to stay in the castle any longer. The place that had once been her home was now filled with unfamiliar faces and memories of a past that seemed dead and buried. Belle began to feel as if she were being suffocated. Should I stay and try to work this out, or pack my belongings and return to the village? she thought to herself. Realizing this to be a much more difficult decision that she would have hoped, her only solution was to think it over, but not in the room she now stayed in. At that moment, it felt stifling and blanketed with uneasiness. She needed to get out of the household for a while. Knowing that breakfast with the Prince was out of the question, she figured taking a walk to clear her mind for a few hours would do no harm.
Belle slowly rose from her position on the bed and sat up, sliding her feet down over the left side. She stretched lightly and let out a small yawn before standing up. She then noticed she was still in her frock from the night before. Having returned to her room and gone to bed so abruptly, she had failed to change into her nightgown. Though no one was around, Belle could not help but feel embarrassed by this. She quickly slipped out of the softly wrinkled garment and opened her wardrobe to pick out a lavender dress that was one of her own and not one that had been made for her during her time at the castle. After changing, she washed her face and gently brushed her long hair. She wrapped her dark blue cloak around herself for warmth, as the early spring mornings were still cool. Belle then quietly slipped out of her room and down the hall.
While finding a small side door to escape from, she hoped silently to herself that no one would come across her while she searched. The last thing she wanted was to talk to another person of the castle, whether it be Cogsworth, Mrs. Potts, or Adam. She especially did not want to run into Adam. She was unsure if she would ever be able to face him again after her lack of an explanation for her words or actions. If word had also spread of what had happened between the two to the others, she was certain none of them would have anything good to say to her. She steadily increased her pace around a corner only to come upon a pair of doors that led to the outside gardens. Looking to check again that no one had appeared or followed her, Belle very discreetly opened one of the doors to let herself out, then closed it with the same caution.
The gray, mountainous backdrop that encircled the castle grounds greeted Belle as the cool morning air bit at her face. Bundling her body in the cloak more tightly, she moved forward and down a stone stairwell carefully, as they were barely still covered in frost. She stopped at the foot of the steps to peer around the stone wall before she found herself running into a groundskeeper who would only end up sending her to the dining room for breakfast. When she saw nothing but stone benches and flower beds, she ventured out into the gardens, past the array of fountains that were void of water, once again quickening her steps in search of a private destination where she could sift through her thoughts and weigh her options.
As she began meandering through the large assortment of flowers the castle gardens held, observing the white carnations, forget-me-nots, and yellow chrysanthemums, a certain one caught her eye; a red rose. This specific kind of flower was the very reason why she was in her situation and had become the definition of her new life. A rose was why the Beast had existed, why he had almost died, and why he now lived as a man yet again. A rose was what had brought her to this moment. She could not rely, though, on if it was what could keep her there or not. Funny how the roses are now what decorate the majority of the gardens, Belle said to herself, making her way over to where the nearest bunch grew. She knelt down to pluck one of the long stems from the earth before she brought the flower to her nose and breathed in its fragrance. She stood again and began walking the laid-out path, all the while still scrutinizing the rose she held in her hands. She wasn't sure whether to curse it or thank it for all it had given her.
Looking ahead of herself, Belle soon realized that she had wandered over to the stables towards the back of the castle. Perfect, she thought, opening the wooden door to the inside, a smile touching her lips. The stables were not often visited in the mornings unless the Prince needed his horses ready, which was a rare occasion. She decided that they were to be her escape for the next couple of hours.
Adam sat at his large dining table in his very large dining hall, alone. He leaned forward, his chin propped up by his elbow as he stared longingly at the empty seat and untouched place setting in front of him. His hopes of Belle joining him for breakfast and explaining that last night had been a nothing but a misunderstanding, as well as accepting his proposal, had been in vain, and he had doubted them anyway. His newfound feelings were still hurt and his heart still lay broken within his chest.
At that moment, Mrs. Potts entered the dining room with a tray that carried two warm cups of tea.
"Good morning, Master," she greeted him with her usual exuberance. "I trust you slept well." Adam gave no response.
Mrs. Potts stopped at the head of the table next to Adam when she saw the unoccupied chair across from him. "Oh, now, is Miss Belle not joining you for breakfast?"
Adam sighed and then sat back in his chair, crossing his arms. "No, I guess she's not."
Setting one of the tea cups in front of Adam, Mrs. Potts began clearing off the unused dishes and utensils, scouring at the untouched food on his plate. "What's the matter now? Are you both ill? Is Belle unable to get herself out of bed? She seemed fine last night when I-"
"Mrs. Potts," Adam interrupted, raising his hand, "Forgive me, but I must say that," he paused, swallowing hard, "wherever Belle is at now, I can guarantee that she feels a lot more comfortable there than she would if she were down here with me." He then looked away so she wouldn't see the tears that had touched his eyes.
Deep concern washed over Mrs. Potts. She took the seat next to Adam, gently touching his shoulder, her maternal instincts taking a hold of her. "Adam, my dear" she started, not bothering to call him by his title as she knew under these circumstances that it wasn't necessary, "what's going on? Is there something wrong between you and the young girl?"
Adam, who had never really been one for opening up to another, found himself easily confiding in the old Englishwoman who had always been a motherly figure to him. He revealed to her the way he had poured his heart out to Belle, telling her of his love, before asking for her hand in marriage. He painfully recalled the way Belle had declined because he was no longer the Beast she had known and how she had ran away from him. He told her of his heartbreak and how he now feared she was going to be gone from him for forever.
"Mrs. Potts, I can't lose her! I don't know what I can do! She tells me I am no longer the Beast and that's why she can't accept me now. She seems to think I am no longer the same as I was before!"
Mrs. Potts sighed, understanding his predicament and the difficulty of the situation. "Oh my, this is quite complicated," she thought aloud, bringing her hand to her cheek to think.
The young prince returned her look, hoping she would help him with his search for a solution, as this was usually Mrs. Potts' forte.
"To be honest with you, love, Belle is justified in her confusion. Remember, it was the Beast she fell in love with."
"Yes, but are we not the same?" Adam questioned, his volume increasing. "The Beast was my encasement for so long! This is who I truly am! My heart is still the same, as is my love for her, is it not?"
Mrs. Potts nodded her head. "Adam, yes, I can see what you mean, but Belle never knew who you really are when you were the Beast. This is all very new for her and it is not what she was expecting. She must feel as if everything has been taken from her. She no longer can identify with you, or me, or Lumière, or Cogsworth, or any other friends she made during her time with us."
"So I am nothing but a stranger to her," Adam asserted, his features falling into an expression of sorrow.
The former teapot took his hand in hers. "Oh, you poor thing. Listen to me, Adam. Belle is a smart young woman. All you must do is show her that you are the same soul she fell in love with; that you are the one who she professed her love to that one night when all hope had been lost."
"There is no way to!" Adam finally shouted. "After a week of seeing me now and she still does not want anything to do with me! I don't know how!"
The head of the kitchen dropped Adam's hand unexpectedly, her face growing stern. "And how many times during the past week have you left that West Wing of yours?" she asked, taking control of the conversation. "We are not going through this again, Adam! I will not see you turn into the stubborn, reclusive young man you once were! You will only scare the girl away even more so if you do!"
"This is all just so frustrating!" Adam exclaimed, leaping from his chair. "I have never been so disheartened by anything! I spent so much time with her, it was all so easy, we just fell in love and it was something I never thought could possibly happen, but it did! Now, after all that time, I have to prove myself to her again? Is that what you're saying?"
Mrs. Potts shook her head, before standing up as well, though still failing to meet his eye level. "What I am saying is, you can't change everything at once. You are either trying too hard or not trying at all! If it is meant to work out, and I promise you that it is, then everything will fall into place. Give the girl a chance, just like she gave you a chance!"
Adam fell back into his seat as Mrs. Potts' words hit him. She was right. Since the transformation, he'd barely made time to see Belle. When he had, it had only a couple of instances to attempt to give her a kiss or hold her hand during dinner, but never to spend any time with her. Then, he had sprung a marriage proposal on her. How could he have expected her to feel confident with everything that had happened? How could he have been so thoughtless? He now knew he had to start over and show Belle he was the same, that he was still her true love. He was willing to and wanted nothing more than for her to see.
As if she were reading his thoughts, Mrs. Potts bent down to look Adam in the eye. "Coming full circle isn't always a bad thing, my dear." She then gave his knee a comforting pat before picking up her tray and exiting the room, leaving the Prince to his thoughts.
Belle walked the cobblestone floor of the stable, taking in the oddly comforting smell of the hay combined with the smell of the horses. There were a total of fifteen horses that occupied the stable and she was in search of a particular one to keep her company. After the transformation, Adam and the entire castle staff had given Belle a beautiful chestnut brown mare as a gift. She had fallen in love with the horse immediately and named her Lilly. Belle had yet to neglect to ride her out into the forest and along the river at least once a day. She came upon her stall, the horse nickering in excitement at her owner's arrival. Belle smiled at her as she leaned against Lilly's stall door, setting her rose on the ledge. She stroked the horse's long nose and sighed. "Oh, Lilly," she said quietly, looking into her large, brown, knowing eyes, "what am I going to do?" Belle picked up the rose once again and twirled its thin stem between her fingers. She continued speaking her thoughts, Lilly as her only audience.
"How can I marry him? How can I even be in love with him? I feel like I don't even know who he is." Belle had never been so lonely. Even in a setting much different and far away from the small, close-minded village she had lived in, the same misery she'd once felt now loomed over her again. The ones she had loved had vanished. The transformation had taken everything from her. She no longer heard the loud clanging of the bottom of Mrs. Potts' as she made her way towards the kitchen, or the squeal of the tiny feather duster in the arms of Lumière after he had accidentally burned her with one of his flames. She no longer saw the small teacup giggling as it rode the back of a footstool or the husk of the Beast's voice talking to her across the dinner table. It was all gone. That time of her life had disappeared when Belle had uttered those three simple words to the Beast as he lay dying, only to transform into a man who now seemed nothing else but a stranger to her. Those wonderful moments she had grown so fond of had left when she and the Prince shared the kiss that had preceded the completion of the drastic change the castle underwent that night.
Belle's mind suddenly wandered back to that kiss, her cheeks turning red at the memory. "It is you!" she had admitted to him right before their lips had met. Why didn't she believe her words now?
That kiss, though, had been something much different. It was one that even the storybooks could not have prepared her for; filled with relief and gratefulness and passion. Over the past week, she had failed to remember it, but how? Her heart had skipped a beat, several, actually, when he had embraced her and caught her lips in his. Never had there been such a fairy tale moment in her life, not even during her entire stay at the castle with the Beast and everyone else under the spell. The enchantment had been broken because of that shared kiss of theirs, because it had been a kiss of… true love.
"True love?" Belle heard herself mutter. If that was a fact, then that meant that her heart really did feel the same for Adam as it had for the Beast. So why did she doubt it? Adam was completely different. He no longer looked the same, he no longer talked as the Beast had, and his touch was no longer what it had once felt to her. The man that she faced everyday was physical evidence that the Beast had evaporated from existence.
She stopped herself then, finally realizing the complete fool she had been. Belle's doubts and uncertainty and the distance she had put between her and Adam had all stemmed from his new exterior. She had never been the kind of person to push away another because of their outward appearance, but now she was doing so to the heart of the one she was supposed to love the most. She had judged the Beast at first because his loathsome, rude attitude and behavior had shown on the outside of him as well. Over time, though, she'd found he had a beautiful soul and was filled with care and kindness. She had completely disregarded how he looked and loved him for what was on the inside. Belle should have seen that, though the Beast and Adam were two different bodies, they shared the same heart. She had rejected Adam for all of the wrong reasons and hadn't been fair to him. He deserved much more, especially when it had not been his fault. Was she in love with him? This was something she still had to find for herself, but she knew he was worth the chance, just as he had been before. She needed to find him immediately. She at least needed to apologize to him.
Leaving the rose at Lilly's stall, Belle swiftly made her way out of the stable and through the gardens towards the door from which she had first came through. As she reentered the castle, she stopped, unable to decide where to search first. She still never entered the West Wing unless she was invited in. Though it was no longer the mysterious and restricted part of the castle, it was still the Prince's private space. Belle then assumed he might still be at breakfast. She turned right around a corner that would lead her past the stairs to the West Wing. With the luck of perfect timing, she then caught sight of Adam ascending the grand staircase.
"Adam!" she called out before she could stop herself.
The sound of her voice hindered him from continuing his steps. Did she just call my name? he questioned silently as he turned around to face the young woman at the bottom of the stairs. Belle was indeed there, meeting his gaze, her face turned up to him. He was stunned. It had only been the night before when she would have done almost anything to get away from him, and now she was right there in front of him, wanting to speak to him.
"Yes?" he finally spoke, trying his best to conceal his astonishment. Don't scare her away, he reminded himself. Stay calm.
Belle moved forward up the stairs. "I, um," she began as she finally became even with Adam on the stair, "I just wanted to see you. And to tell you how sorry I am." She lowered her head as if to show him how ashamed she was. To give the prince another surprise, she took his hand and held it in hers. Adam felt his pulse beat more rapidly. He couldn't believe she was doing this after what had happened the previous night.
"Adam," she began, looking him in the eye, "I can only hope that you can forgive me for my behavior. You and your staff are very dear to me and I am so grateful for everything you have done for me and given to me. You are a good, kind person who has taught me many things."
Adam could barely focus on her words as he now worried she could feel his palms sweating.
She gave him a small smile. "Adam, I would like it very much if…" She stopped, her smile then twisting into a smirk.
"If what?" Adam pressed, eager to her the rest of her words.
"If we could go horseback riding together this afternoon."
Adam's heart sank only a little, but the smile still stayed on his lips. He couldn't help but throw his head back in laughter before answering her. "Of course, Belle. I would like that very much as well."
"What do you mean he has returned? And without any notification? Who does he think he is?"
Silence fell over the group of men as they stared at the chancellor. They were all thinking the same thing. The King of France.
"You mean to tell me that, after ten years of an extended vacation and no word of his whereabouts, the Dauphin is back in France? And inhabiting that isolated, poor excuse of a vacation home of his parents no less?" the chancellor spat out.
Chancellor Henri de Lamarliere was a small, rotund man who was, to put it frankly, quite angry most of the time. As the leader of the King's Council, he took his job very seriously, and felt that everybody else who surrounded him and participated in the same political game he played to be nothing short of an incompetent idiot. Now, at this particular meeting of the Council of Messages that he headed, he found himself turning a bright red at the news he had just received.
A councilor cleared his throat before speaking. "It's true, sir. The message we received from an intendant in Alsace said that the Prince had been seen making a brief visit to a small village near the mountains as well as throwing an unplanned celebration of his return, and this all being only a week ago."
"Weeks have gone by and he's yet to send us any sort of statement? Is he unaware of the fact that he's the Crowned Prince of France and his uncle, the Regent, lies in the next room on his deathbed?"
The council fell silent once again out of respect for their king. The First Minister quietly said a brief prayer.
Chancellor de Lamarliere rubbed his face in frustration, trying to calm his nerves. He spoke again, his voice more steady. "King Alexandre has been near death for months now and we have been scurrying around, attempting to find a successor."
"Well, then I should say this is perfect timing!" Secretary of State Martin Guillou exclaimed. Guillou was always the optimist and constantly attempted to keep all of the council members in high spirits. He was de Lamarliere's complete opposite and this was why the chancellor could not stand him.
Henri huffed. "Perfect timing is an understatement. And he is now only making matters worse for himself by ignoring his duties. He must be notified at once! We have no time to lose!" The rest of the council murmured to one another in agreement.
"Nicolas!" the chancellor then called to one of the newer councilors. "Begin writing a message to the Prince this instant!"
The nervous younger man only nodded, frantically searching for a writing utensil. Henri de Lamarliere grinned devilishly at the words he told him to write.
"Tell him his presence is requested at Versailles."
