The Return of the Curse

By: dispix208

AN: Hi, I'm dispix, and this is my first Fanfic. I love the movie Beauty and the Beast, but I didn't like how the prince turned out at the end. I preferred his beast form to his human form. That's why I decided to write this story. Please read and review, and constructive criticism only, please! I do not own any characters, they are all property of the Walt Disney Company! Thank you and enjoy! :)

Category: Romance

Rating: K

It was a beautiful day at the palace. The sun was shining outside and everyone in the castle was in a good mood, even though they were pretty much doing the same things they've been doing every day. Maybe it was the fact that the curse had finally been lifted, or the fact that Prince Adam was now happily married, but whatever it was, everyone in the castle was always in a good mood lately.

That day, Princess Belle and Prince Adam were sitting on the floor, Belle reading to Adam, one of their favorite things to do. After a few minutes, there was a polite knock at the door. Adam opened the door to reveal an elderly woman carrying a tray with dishes, teacups and other things used for drinking tea.

"Would either of you care for some tea," asked the woman.

"That would be lovely, Mrs. Potts," answered Belle. Adam them stepped aside to allow Mrs. Potts to enter. Adam then sat back down across from Belle. Mrs. Potts sat down her tray and gave the couple one cup each. As she was pouring Adam's tea, she accidentally spilled some on his leg. Belle and Mrs. Potts gasped and ran to the prince.

"Oh my! I am terribly sorry, sir," exclaimed Mrs. Potts. "Are you all right?" Adam was slightly annoyed at Mrs. Potts's clumsiness, but forgave her. "I'm okay," he said. "Don't worry; it's not your fault." Belle and Mrs. Potts got some towels to clean up the mess, then Mrs. Potts left the couple to continue reading and drink their tea.

Later, as Adam was walking down the hallway, a servant passed by and wasn't paying attention to where he was going. He accidentally ran into Adam, who made a quiet annoyed sound.

"My apologies, sir," said the servant. "I didn't realize you were there." Adam looked at the servant for a moment as if he wanted to yell at him. But, he immediately composed himself and politely said, "It's all right, Cogsworth. It happens. Please, continue on your way." Cogsworth did just that, relieved that Adam had not yelled at him.

A few hours later, as Belle and Adam were being served their dinner, they heard a crash coming from the kitchen. The two immediately got up from the table and went to see what had happened.

When they got to the kitchen, Belle and Adam saw a group of servants cleaning up a pile of broken plates.

"What happened," asked Belle. The servants looked up from their work upon hearing their mistress's voice, some a little frightened. One of the more timid servants said, a little panicked, "We're sorry. It wasn't our fault. There was a spill of water on the floor…" As the servant was talking, Adam sighed and shook his head, annoyed.

"This is the third time this has happened," he said to Belle. And then, he asked the servants, annoyed, "Why can't all of you be more careful?"

"We're sorry, sir," apologized another servant.

"You know what, I've had enough of this," yelled Adam. "Everyone clean up both messes, or you're all fired!" Adam then stormed out of the kitchen angrily, Belle running after him.

Once they were out of hearing distance of the servants, Belle said to Adam, "You didn't need to yell at them."

"First, Mrs. Potts spilled my tea," said Adam angrily, "then Cogsworth ran into me, and now they all broke the dishes and spilled water all over the kitchen floor! Haven't they learned to be more careful? It's their job!"

"It was only a few mistakes. It happens all the time," said Belle.

"Four mistakes," asked Adam angrily, "In the same day?"

"Settle down," said Belle, trying to calm Adam down. "It's all right, take a deep breath." Adam did just that. After a few minutes, Belle said, "All right. Now, let's go back to the kitchen and apologize to everyone." Adam looked at Belle, unwilling to apologize, but he sighed and did as she told him.

As Belle and Adam were going back to the kitchen, there was a knock on the front door of the castle.

"I'll get the door," said Adam to Belle. "You go back to the kitchen." She did as she was told.

Adam opened the door to reveal an older woman who looked vaguely familiar to him dressed in a cloak. Adam couldn't think of where he had seen her, though.

"Good evening, Your Majesty," said the woman.

"Good evening, Madame," said Adam. He was in no mood to be hospitable to a guest, but he did his best to be polite to the woman.

"What brings you to the castle this evening," he asked.

"I was simply wondering how things are going here," replied the woman. Adam became a little frustrated again because he was reminded of what had happened earlier. He then tried not to think about that, because he knew it would cause him to lose his temper again. So, he took a deep breath to calm himself down and said politely to the woman, "Things are going well, Madame. Thank you for your concern." The woman looked at Adam for a moment. Then, she said, "It has come to my attention that things are not going so well for you." Adam looked at the woman, shocked. Did she know about what happened earlier? He decided to find out for himself. He asked her, "Why do you say that?"

"Is it true that you and your servants had a little….shall we say, 'argument' earlier?" So, it was true. She must've been passing by the castle and heard him yell.

"Oh, I'm sorry about that, Madame," apologized Adam. "I didn't realize my yelling was that loud. No need to worry. It was just a misunderstanding." Some of the servants had gathered quietly in the hallway behind Adam and were now listening to the conversation.

"I understand this has happened more than once lately," asked the woman. Adam thought about this. The servants had been a lot clumsier lately, and Adam had yelled at them a few times, but not as much as he used to. But, how would this woman have known about these times? Adam was now confused. The woman looked at Adam sternly and asked him, "Your Majesty, do you know who I am?" Adam shook his head, still confused.

"Oh, I think you do, Your Majesty." Adam stared at the woman, still confused. The woman then pulled back her hood and immediately transformed into a beautiful woman that looked about the same age as Belle. Adam and the servants behind him gasped in shock and recognition. The woman was the enchantress that had placed the curse on them before.

"You," said Adam angrily. "What are you doing here?!"

"I think you know exactly why I'm here, Your Majesty. You have not been treating your servants very kindly lately."

"I'm trying," Adam shouted. He immediately realized that he could have answered the enchantress in a better tone, so he corrected himself by saying calmly, "I mean, I'm trying my best, Madame." By this point, Belle and the other servants had gathered in the hallway. They too were shocked at what they were seeing.

"That's not good enough, Your Majesty. I shouldn't even be calling you that. I should simply call you 'Young Man.' You obviously have not fully learned what others have taught you."

"What are you talking about?! I have learned a lot of things from the people in this castle.

"Not enough, young man. There are still many things you need to learn. Sadly, I don't think you will ever fully understand them." Adam was now furious with the woman. "How dare you come here and insult me," he shouted at the enchantress. "I am a very intelligent man!"

"You may know many things, young man, but you have not fully mastered your manners," said the enchantress, her hands now glowing. Adam was still angry, but now he was also confused as to what was going on.

"Since you have not learned your lesson the last time I punished you, I am going to punish you again. This time, the punishment will be permanent, and you will never be able to undo it." Adam now became frightened, as did everyone else in the castle. The enchantress raised her still glowing hands. Immediately, a bright light filled the castle, knocking everybody except for Belle unconscious.

When Adam became conscious again, the first thing he saw was Belle's face.

"Belle," asked Adam. "What happened?" Belle looked at him sadly. She held out a hand mirror to him and said, "See for yourself." Adam took the mirror and looked into it. He was shocked, angry and confused to see that he had once again been transformed into a beast. There was silence. Then, Adam asked, "So, is everyone else objects again?" Belle nodded sadly.

"How could this happen again," asked Adam. "You still love me, don't you?"

"Of course," said Belle. "I will always love you."

"Then why did," Adam began.

"I don't know. But, whatever the reason, we can get through this. We've gotten through this before, haven't we?"

"Yes, but-," began Adam. Belle interrupted him by shushing him.

"Come on," she said, helping him get up. "Let's talk about it with everyone else." The couple then went back to the kitchen.

Everyone else was just as shocked and confused as Adam was. After a few minutes of discussing what happened, everyone agreed to continue on with their lives as if the enchantress had never came to the castle. And, so from that point on, everyone lived their regular lives at the castle in their magical forms.

The End

Well, I hope you liked my first FanFic. Remember to read and review! Thank you! :)