*I do not own any of these characters*

Chapter 2

"This was a mistake! A huge mistake!" Louise shouted as she burst through the doorway into the sitting area.

Belle was sitting at a table reading a book on the history of Agrabah.

"What are you talking about?" she inquired concernedly.

"It is too damn hot, here," Louise said. She fell onto a chaise with dramatic flare. Indeed, the women had found that they had collectively only packed three dresses that could withstand the heat of day in Agrabah.

The layers and corsetry that kept them comfortable in rural France were essentially a death trap in this desert. In fact, when Jacques wasn't around, they both took to wearing the bare minimum required to be decent among female friends in order to survive.

This state of affairs saddened Belle. They had already been in Agrabah half a week. She wanted to explore the streets, to see what the city had to offer. For too long she had studied the illustrations in history and travel books. For once she wanted to behold the wonders of the world with her own two eyes.

"This could be easily resolved if we just took to wearing what the local women wear. I'm sure that Nadia could help us with that."

Nadia was the keeper of the home they were staying at, which belonged to another Frenchman whom Jacques had known since childhood.

"Dress like locals?" Louise threw her head back with a laugh sending some pinned curls from her otherwise perfectly coiffed hair. "Belle, that is ridiculous. I'm more than happy to shop for some of those luxurious silks and fabrics I've heard about—but I am not about to dress like a local."

Belle let out a discontented sigh. Though she loved Louise, her high breeding made her at times just as ignorant and judgmental as the villagers who treated Belle as an outcast.

And so another day passed with Belle contenting herself with reading and Louise occasionally complaining in between naps, before Jacques came home. Though the heat kept them in, it did not keep out the local cuisine that Nadia prepared for them.

Belle enjoyed the sumptuous food and various flavors she had never tasted before. It reminded her of when she had secretly feasted in the palace, before Adam discovered her.

The memory at first made her nostalgic and happy, and then suddenly sad.

"Belle?" Jacques asked. "Are you alright?"

Realizing her sad expression must have been painted on her face, Belle blushed a deep scarlet.

"Oh, yes, I'm fine. I just think I might turn in early, if you both would allow me," she said hastily getting up from the table.

The couple acquiesced and Belle hurried toward her room. Lost in both her memories and the labyrinthine hallways of this home, she suddenly found herself crashing into Nadia.

"I am so sorry," Belle apologized.

"Do not apologize, my lady," Nadia said as she picked up the linens she had dropped.

Belle stooped down to help her, which seemed to surprise Nadia. The short, dark-haired woman nodded in gratitude and smiled at Belle. The smile reminded her of Mrs. Potts when she had first taken on human form. It was warm and welcoming, as if inviting the question that Belle wanted to ask.

"Nadia, I hope you'll forgive me for asking you this. But, do you know where I might be able to find some more, how should I say, appropriate clothing for this climate? Mrs. Biron and I have been suffering tremendously with what we've brought."

Nadia let out a chuckle as she shifted the linens in her hands.

"Of course I do, my dear. Some of the ladies who have occupied this house in the past have left quite a collection of clothes that I hope you will find suitable. Some might be a bit outdated, but I think they will serve your purposes. After all, even if your clothes don't make you stand out, that fair skin and your accent certainly will."

Later in the evening, Nadia came to Belle's room with a trunk full of clothes for her to wear. They varied from diaphanous frocks that made Belle blush just thinking about wearing them, to long tunics that went from head to toe.

It wasn't long before Belle and Nadia were laughing as the French beauty modeled the various fashions brought to her.

"Oh, thank you, Nadia, truly," Belle said clasping her hand.

Nadia smiled back at Belle. "Thank you, Ms. Belle, for your kindness and for letting me enjoy this evening with you. Most visitors to this home treat me as though I am a ghost who conveniently places food before them and cleans their messes. But you, you are one of the first to treat me as if I am a person. I can see now that the beauty I see on your face is truly reflected in your heart."

They hugged before Nadia left the room. It was, after all, getting late and Nadia had her own family to return home to.

Belle danced in a sky blue tunic before the mirror in her room. It fitted loosely about her and was decorated with intricate embroidery. She pulled the matching veil about her head and pulled it over her face.

She felt free for the first time since she had arrived. She felt like she could do just about anything now that she was unencumbered by her Western clothes. It was then, just as her large brown eyes peered back at her from under the matching veil she placed around her head, that she felt a sudden spark of spontaneity.

She was going to see Agrabah.

Now.