(A/N)- I'm sorry for this year long delay! please review! I'm trying to finish it
Lefou stared helplessly at the hedges where he'd last seen Stanley as he took off, and Lefou was left alone with Maurice, he looked to him in confusion.
"Well?"
Lefou's brow furrowed in annoyance through his tears, "Well what?"
"Aren't you going to go after him?"
"Why would I do that?" he spat venomously, readjusting his legs uncomfortably as he sat on the bench, "I don't deserve him … his- his company."
Maurice sat down beside Lefou, causing him to flinch.
"You may not have been right, at the start. But do not condemn yourself for your mistakes. You've learned, you've grown. You must forgive yourself, just as I forgive you."
Lefou pinched his eyes shut briefly, struggling to come to terms with this. He envied the residents of the castle for being so forgiving towards their master, having been turned into objects all these years. Meanwhile, he couldn't forgive himself for the actions of his best friend.
"And that Stanley fellow," Maurice added, nodding in the direction that the young man had gone off in, "You must learn to forgive him as well."
"He won't forgive me," Lefou mumbled, fiddling with his handkerchief.
"He's your friend," Maurice reminded, "It's obvious he loves you."
Lefou could feel a blush creep up his neck but he didn't respond, for he knew if he did, he'd stumble over his words and give himself away.
"He may be angry now, but he won't be forever."
"Sometimes a moment lasts forever," Lefou murmured sadly.
Maurice sighed, nodding his head as he threw his arm over the younger man's shoulder, shaking him lightly, "Come, let's go find him."
"Stanley!" Dick called happily across the courtyard as he saw him approach, "Come meet my sister, Genevieve!"
They were gathered around their horses, presumably getting ready to head back into town. Stanley's triplet cousins, Elise, Eloise, and Eliana, were there as well.
Dick's smile faded when he saw noticed the dark look in Stanley's eyes, and Stanley ignored all of them, mounting his horse, Rosie.
Tom grabbed him by the ankle, "What's wrong? What's happened?"
"I'm going back to town," he said simply, nodding towards his sisters, "Come girls, mother will be sick with worry."
They paid no attention to him, too busy talking with Dick's sister.
Tom snatched Rosie's reins from his hands, "Stanley, what happened?"
"Lefou lied." Stanley replied under his breath, "What Maurice claimed in the bar last night was true."
"I figured as much."
"And you said nothing?"
"You know how Gaston is … was. Whatever he says, we were bound to stand by his word. Lefou knew his place."
"Then it is our fault. We should've questioned it, stood up for him …" tears started to form in his eyes, "I failed him … Je ne le mérite pas."
"Stan-"
Stanley yanked Rosie's reins from Tom's grip, and Tom's hand fell to Stanley's boot, gripping the heel tight.
"Let me go," Stanley growled through gritted teeth.
"Talk to him."
"Non, Lefou-"
"Etienne."
Stanley's eyebrows knitted together slightly in confusion, "Etienne?"
"That's his real name." Tom said under his breath, "Etienne. Etienne Lefevre."
Stanley's eyes widened slightly as he took in this new information. The next moment, Tom released his grip and Stanley was instead yanked off of his horse from the other side by a pair of arms, and he found himself landing hard into the gravel below, his hat falling off of his head and rolling away as he fell. He fought back, kicking and grappling, as Dick tried to wrestle him into a chokehold. Dick clearly didn't understand the situation, other than coming to the realization that Stanley was attempting to leave and that Tom didn't want him to.
The triplets took notice and yelled at them to cut it out, and soon someone whistled sharply, and Dick released Stanley, who was pulled to his feet by Tom, and a fancy-dressed man with a mustache and white curled wig, similar to Stanley's own hairstyle.
"What's the matter with you two?" The man chastised, "On a day like today!"
Stanley looked up to see Maurice and Lefou … Etienne … standing idly by. By the looks on their faces, he could tell they witnessed the entire thing. Stanley caught his gaze and held it, eyes glassy and filled with shame. Lefou looked as if he were about to cry as well, and he tore his gaze away as Maurice spoke to him.
"Stanley?" A voice called out.
Stanley looked over to see Madame de Garderobe, holding his hat, her gaze hard and concentrated as she marched over to them, holding long intimidating looks with Tom and the other man who seized him, and they both released Stanley.
She gave him back his hat, which he promptly put on his head to hide his eyes, which were now brimming with tears despite himself, and she put her arm around his shoulders, leading him away from all the commotion and into the safety of the castle walls.
She sat him down in the foyer by the empty fireplace on a small ornate couch, and gripped him by the shoulders. Stanley still kept his eyes hidden under the brim of his hat.
"What was all that about? Rolling about on the ground like that! That is no way for a pretty boy like you to behave!"
Stanley kept his head bowed as she scolded him, still hiding shamefully under his hat.
"And after I just put in a good word for you, too! You're lucky his Majesty didn't see that, but Lumiere would be hard pressed to consider you now."
"Je suis désolé …" Stanley murmured quietly, but still would not raise his eyes.
Madam's soft bronze fingers reached over and grasped him by his stubbled chin, gently making him meet her gaze.
"What is wrong, amico?"
Stanley couldn't help the tears that were now glassing his eyes. He still held the gaze, shamefully, determined to refrain from all out sobbing and collapsing into the lady's arms.
With a heavy sigh, she wrapped him up in her arms, hugging him tight in an embrace as intense and loving as her voice.
"We are all feeling so many emotions today," she excused, "There's no need to hold back, or feel ashamed …"
Ashamed …
Stanley's own words echoed in his head … what he had said to Lefou, that he was ashamed of him for lying … but more than that, he was ashamed of himself. On a day of celebration such as this, where affectionate hugs and kisses would not be questioned … and he was ashamed to even be seen holding his friend's hands …
"I love him so much," Stanley said finally, muffled by Madam's dress, and it opened the floodgates as he sobbed freely, face contorted in pain as he crumpled into almost a fetal position in the woman's arms.
"Who? The man that fell?"
Stanley shook his head vigorously, almost as if he was trying to physically shake the image of his fallen leader from his mind.
"Non, not him …" Stanley dismissed, "Lefou."
"The young man who saved Mrs. Potts?"
"Oui …"
"Then why these tears?" she asked incredulously, rubbing his shoulder "He's a selfless hero! You should be happy, to have such good judge-"
"He is a man," Stanley reminded pointedly, glaring at her, "As am I. It is one thing for a man to dress like ..." he couldn't bring himself to even mention the dress she'd thrown on him moments earlier, "let alone ... be with another man. Romantically."
"Oh, the simple peasant folk …" Madam chided with a warm smile, "Monsieur, my husband and I have traveled across the world, performing for the rich … in the arts, there are plenty just like you. People are aware of it. They may not approve of it, but they keep their thoughts to themselves. And don't get me started on the rich …"
"But I am not in the arts, and I am not rich," Stanley reminded, "Our village is small, close-minded … I can't be with him. I'll only put him in danger. He's already bound to get retribution for backing Gaston, all of us will! We were so close to him, we could've done something!"
"Don't beat yourself up for what is already been done," she soothed, "Look to the future. Things have a way of working themselves out."
"And now I've ruined a possible position here at the castle, for my behavior," Stanley continued, shaking his head, "I don't know what I'm going to do, but I know I can't go back to the village."
"I'll take care of it, don't you worry. What you need to do right now is tell your friend that you love him."
"I did," Stanley replied numbly, looking away.
"And?"
"He didn't say it back …"
"But did he reject you?"
"Non, but …"
"No buts!" she scolded, "Go, tell him again!"
"I can't!" Stanley protested, "I've hurt him."
"Then apologize! Go!" she shooed, practically pushing him off of the couch excitedly, "I need to speak with Cogsworth. Take care of your business, the longer you wait, the worse off!"
Stanley felt sick to his stomach as he forced himself to hurry away, if only not to receive any more slaps and scoldings from the opera singer. He couldn't bear to look at Lefou again, not after what he'd learned about what he did with Maurice, not after he'd told him he loved him and stormed out on him without bothering to hear his side of the story …
It was Stanley's fault.
He turned the corner, about to head out into the sunlight once more, and he walked headlong into someone. He grabbed their shoulders to regain his balance.
He found himself looking straight into Lefou's glassy eyes.
(A/N)- I'm sorry it's trash, support my trash and review please! I'm trying like hell to finish
translations!
Je ne le mérite pas - I do not deserve him
Je suis désolé - I'm sorry
