Now we get Cogsworth's side of it. Still don't own.
Cogsworth meant nothing to Lumiere. He knew it. Everybody knew it. They fought all the time. And Lumiere had always been going off with every single maid in the castle. He sighed. He really needed to get over the man. They'd only been together for a couple of months before he found Lumiere shagging that bint Babette. He sighed again and decided to visit the kitchen for a late night snack. There shouldn't be anyone there at this time of the night.
He was surprised then, to find one of the maids was sitting at the kitchen table, her dress slipping off her shoulders.
"Oh, my! Are you alright?" There was blood on her swollen lower lip.
"Yeah, I'm fine."
"You know, the Master doesn't hold with his servants being abused."
"I'm not being abused!" She grinned, as though the very idea was ridiculous. "I had an encounter that ended rather abruptly, and he was very apologetic. We had a long talk, and he won't be doing it again."
"Well, are you sure you can take his word for it? I don't want the entire castle in uproar over this." He paused and frowned. "I'm sorry. I don't believe I know your name." He'd seen her around the castle, cleaning and such, but he hadn't had contact with her really.
"Rose, sir."
"Rose, are you much hurt?"
"I promise, barely even bruised. I would appreciate some help with my dress though. I was sitting here wondering how I would manage to get back to my room with my dignity intact."
"Oh, of course. I'm sure we can rig something." he came over to her and started adjusting the dress. She sat in silence and let him try and get a temporary fix going, but after a moment, the silence felt oppressive to her.
"Are you alright, sir? It is rather late to be wandering around the kitchen."
"I couldn't sleep. I was looking for something to eat."
"Ah. You know, the type of food you eat before sleeping can affect your dreams."
"Is that so?"
"Mais oui!" She smiled as he took a bobby pin from her hair and used it to close one of the rips. "For example, if you wish to dream of a certain special lady, you should drink buttermilk and eat strawberries."
"And what if I want to forget a certain special..." he paused. "Lady?"
A sneaking suspicion began to grow in her mind. But she kept it to herself.
"I know the feeling well! But food will not change the heart, I am afraid! Although sweet things work well for the broken heart." she paused. "So does conversation with a kind and discreet listener."
He sat down in the chair so recently vacated by Lumiere.
"First, will you tell me who did this? I can't have a man like that on the staff."
"What makes you think he's on the staff?" He frowned and she relented. "It was Lumiere."
He actually flinched and paled.
"I don't believe it."
"I knew it! You are he, the one!"
"The one what?"
"The one who he regrets hurting. The one who got him so worked up that he did this."
"Explain."
"I came in here, and he was sitting where you are now. Brooding. We had been having a casual relationship, and I decided to distract him. He got rough, which he never truly had before." She shuddered. "But I don't mind that so much. Then he stopped, and apologised. He didn't hurt me too bad. He was angry with himself, and it just happened. As I said, we had a long talk and I figured out what was wrong with him."
"What was wrong with him?" Cogsworth's hope looked almost painful.
"You! He felt bad for hurting you. He cares about you, maybe even loves you. But he is scared. He is not so good about relationships. He always does it wrong."
"Well, yes. That's true."
"He doesn't think he's worthy of you."
"That is certainly not true." But Cogsworth thought about how much it had hurt and wondered about whether or not he could open himself up for that sort of pain again.
"Be brave. He needs you to be brave because he can't be, not in this. He's too scared."
"Let me help you back to your room."
Cogsworth wrapped his jacket around Rose, covering the rough repair job, and the tantalising flash of flesh that was showing in the tears. Together, they made their way towards the servant's quarters.
"Are you in a shared room, or one of your own?" Cogsworth asked, his hand on her lower back, guiding her.
"I think you're afraid."
"Excuse me?" He was taken aback by the non sequitur.
"Of Lumiere. Of what he means to you. Of him breaking your poor heart again."
"Leave it alone."
"Why should I? I have been hurt by this as much as you. And I want you two to be happy. I think you could be good together."
"Rose, you should not meddle in what is none of your business." He sighed and she pulled away from him, hands on her hips.
"How is it not my business? I live and work here, I was hurt by him too, and I have however long discussing this with you, trying to put your mind at ease! I didn't have to do this. I could have roused the castle! Shouted Rape. I could have let Lumiere walk out angry and upset. Your relationship hurts more than you know. You fight all the time! It does not make working for you easy."
"Work is not supposed to be easy!" Cogsworth knew he sounded ridiculous, but he was flustered.
"Maybe not, but it's not supposed to be this difficult either! You and him, you are always sniping and snapping, and treating each other badly. You've driven more than one poor servant away! Maybe if you were both having regular sex with someone you loved, you wouldn't be so prickly."
"What do you know about it!" he shouted.
A head popped out from behind one of the doors along the servant's corridor.
"What's all this racket then?"
"Ah, Mrs Potts. I apologise for the disturbance, everything is quite alright," Cogsworth assured.
"That poor mite doesn't look 'quite alright'! What on earth have you been doing to her?"
"Me? I didn't-"
"Dear Cogsworth has not done anything but help me try and fix my dress and escort me back to my room, Mrs Potts."
The older woman came out of her room and bustled around them.
"Well, that might be good enough for a brief trip through the castle, but I'm sure that we can do better. Come on in then." She turned and headed into her room, expecting them to follow. They exchanged a helpless glance, and followed her in. Mrs Potts was like that. An immovable force of nature.
"Everything alright, love?" A man's voice came from the bed. It was Belle's father.
"Yes, yes. Soon be mended." She went over to a small table in a kitchen area, carefully skirting around the small bed in which Chip was sleeping. "Come along, dears."
"Oh my! What happened to you?" Maurice was out of bed and over to Rose's side in a moment. He hated the thought of a young woman being harmed.
"Really, I'm fine."
"Nothing a cup of tea and a good seamstress won't fix," Mrs Potts added, and motioned for them to sit at the kitchen table. Rose and Cogsworth did as they were told, but Maurice went over to set a pot to boil.
"Really, you don't have to do this."
"It's no trouble my dear." There was a sewing box out on the table along with a selection of ribbons, and Mrs Potts gently helped Rose out of the jacket so she could see the damage. She tutted. "Now, who would do such a thing?"
"Please, it was an accident, and he was very sorry."
"Hmm."
"Please, Madam," Cogsworth put in. "It has been sorted."
"I'll be the judge of that. It's about the safety of my girls." Mrs Potts threaded a needle.
"I have reason to believe that the particular set of circumstances that led to this will not be repeated."
"What do you mean? How can you say that? I mean to say, how is it possible that you know the circumstances shall not repeat themselves?" Cogsworth flustered.
"He has realised the error of his ways, and has had an epiphany about the nature of his feelings," she explained as Mrs Potts began stitching the rips and torn seams in her dress.
"And you are sure of this? You believe it to be genuine?" Cogsworth sounded almost desperate with his hope and fear.
"Of course!" She shrugged, and Mrs Potts jabbed with a needle. "Ouch!"
"Sorry, dear, but do try and be still."
"Sorry."
"His feelings though?" Cogsworth asked, impatient.
"His feelings are true or he never would have acted as he did. He is very much in love, and does not know how to deal with it."
"Then how can we... erm, he and his love ever have a true relationship? Are they not doomed from the start?"
Mrs Potts laughed gently, and gave her opinion.
"My dear, nine times out of ten the relationship appears to be doomed from the start. That's what makes true love so precious. Just look at the Master and Mistress! They were as doomed as any couple ever was, and yet, they are as happy now as any couple ever was. Love is worth all the trouble it causes, trust me."
"But how can I know if it's truly true love or merely curiosity and lust on his part?"
"I am telling you, he is in love!" Rose burst out, annoyed. "You love him too, I know it! You could have one of those great loves that is spoken of in song and story, but you refuse it! Ai!" she threw up her hands.
"Hold still, dear!"
Cogsworth looked at the maid for a long moment, trying to understand.
"Why are you getting so worked up by it? I mean you have nothing to do with him or me?" He'd given up on the pretence that he wasn't talking about himself.
"I had a love once, and I was too cowardly to pursue him. And he left the village where I lived to go to sea and make his fortune. He never came back. I found out afterwards that he had told his friends that he wished to marry me and that is why he sought his fortune. He said he wanted to be worthy of me." She looked down at the table. "If I had only spoken to him of my feelings..."
"Oh, you poor child!" Mrs Potts laid a hand on her arm.
"It was a few years ago, I have come to terms with it." She shrugged again and she smiled in a sad bittersweet way.
"I am sorry." Cogsworth seemed almost shocked.
"Don't be sorry for me, be sorry for yourself. You are the one denying yourself such a wonderful thing because you are afraid. Afraid that he will hurt you again!" she laughed, but it was a pained sound, and she slammed a fist down on the table. "Pain is a part of life, and if you do not hurt sometimes, then you are not living correctly." Cogsworth had no response for that.
"Momma?" Chip appeared, rubbing his eyes. "What's going on?"
"Nothing dear, Rose here tore her dress and got upset. I was just trying to fix it for her."
"I'm so sorry. I didn't think, I didn't mean to wake him."
"No harm done, dear. He'll go back down easily enough. You drink your tea and relax." She picked Chip up and carried him over to the bed as Maurice put china cups and a pot of tea on the table for them. He sat down.
The three of them drank their tea in silence.
Mrs Potts came back over a few minutes later, and shook her head.
"Really now, have you all gone mute?"
"Some of us are comfortable with silence, my dear," Maurice smiled.
"Right," she smiled back, and then tilted her head. "Now, you. You go to bed; you aren't as young as you used to be. You, you go and find Lumiere and talk to him. That's all I'm asking. Just talk. And you, you hold still while I finish your dress and then take tomorrow off. You've had a busy night."
They all sat there for a moment, then Maurice stood and inclined his head.
"Goodnight, my dear." He nodded to Rose and Cogsworth and headed back to bed.
"Well? On with you, my lad." She flapped her hands at him, and he hurriedly swallowed his tea, before turning to Rose.
"Are you sure?"
"Always." She grinned.
"Are you going to be alright?" he was very serious, and was annoyed when her smile just brightened.
"Told you, just bruises."
"Very well. But you should take tomorrow off, as Mrs Potts decreed."
"I'll do as I'm told. Now, stop hanging around and go talk to your man." Rose flapped her hands in an impression of Mrs Potts.
He shook his head, but turned and left the humble abode.
Thanks for sticking with me. Next chap, the stunning conclusion! Plus:MANSEX!