The song I borrowed lyrics from for this chapter is Carefree Highway by Gordon Lightfoot.

Mustard Lady, oh yes I can see why you thought of that scene from The Lion King.

"They call me MADAME HAGATHE!" LOL

Funny thing is, when I was a kid, I wondered why he was so ticked when Bonzai called him a pig but not when Simba did earlier.

Pumbaa: "I ate like a pig!"

Simba: "Pumbaa, you are a pig."

Pumbaa: "Oh. Right."

I get it now. Simba called him a pig affectionately. Bonzai not so much.

Actually what struck me yesterday was that part happened very soon after Timon and Pumbaa did their little "dress in drag and do the hula" hyena distraction.

Timon: "He's a big pig."

Pumbaa: "Yep yep."

Timon: "You can be a big pig too!"

Of course, like Simba, Timon's his buddy so he wouldn't get too upset. But it is funny that he's perfectly okay with being called a pig to the hyenas, but when a hyena calls him a pig, stand back!

Okay...digression over...

Ladivina, Well, keep in mind somebody's going to have to carry him around, and that's probably not gonna be the pudgy short guy. But yes LeFou will probably be doing a fair amount. Of course, Gaston is stubborn and doesn't want help, not in the way he needs it, so it will be interesting to see how Gaston treats his 'best friend'. He may not be able to lash out physically, but Agathe did not I'm pair his ability to speak.

Beast, Belle, Maurice and LeFou all stood staring at Gaston, lying on the floor of the entrance hall, waiting to see how he would respond to what just happened. After a moment of just lying there with a shocked expression, Gaston began to try to move. He was able to move his arms around, though they were weak, had diminished feeling, and his wrists and hands were numb and paralyzed.

Numb and paralyzed was also quite an accurate description of his legs. The legs that carried him wherever he wanted to go his whole life were now useless appendages. They were there but they might as well not have been. He tried to get them to move, but they would not. He tried to sit up, but found the muscles required for that were weak, and his torso lifted about an inch off the ground before falling back to the floor. He found his arms were not strong enough to bear weight for him to sit.

And of course that nagging ache in his chest just added another, in his mind completely unnecessary, level of unpleasantness. If you asked him, this whole curse was completely unnecessary and undeserved.

The four others stood watching. None of them enjoyed watching a man flounder helplessly, even if he did deserve the curse, but LeFou was likely the most bothered, just sadly watching his friend. The great, strong war hero Gaston, who could conquer just about any obstacle, was now helpless to do anything besides wiggle around on the floor, trying in vain to make his body cooperate.

And Gaston was getting frustrated.

"That filthy old hag!" he shouted. "She had no right doing this to me! No right! I am Gaston, and no one does this to Gaston! I'll show her! I'll make my body do what I tell it! I don't have to do what she says! Just wait and see!"

"It took me a while to come to terms with my curse too," Beast said. "I didn't want to admit that the only way to break it was to fulfill the conditions she set. It eventually became impossible to deny. The sooner you recognize and come to terms with the fact that nothing will break your curse outside of the conditions Agathe specified, the better off you'll be."

"Shut up Beast," Gaston said rudely. "I don't need a lecture from a creature that resembles something whose hide I'd use as a rug."

"Just trying to help," Beast said, a little irked by the insult. "Denying the truth will not do yourself any favors."

"I said SHUT UP BEAST!" Gaston yelled.

"Gaston," LeFou said, kneeling by his friend and putting a hand on his shoulder. "Think happy thoughts. Go back to the war. Remember that one enemy soldier you shot and he suffered similar paralysis to what you've got? Remember how you let him writhe for a while before you put him out of his misery? Think of that Gaston."

"That would be a happy thought if I weren't in that state now," Gaston grumbled. "Now I'd like to think of anything but this."

"All right," LeFou said. "That's understandable. Think of all the blood, explosions, countless widows..."

"Widows," Gaston said, becoming visibly calmer.

Beast, Belle, and Maurice looked at each other incredulously. This is what had temporarily calmed Gaston in the woods before he knocked Maurice out, but it was still unbelievable that something so disturbing had such a calming effect on him. Maurice just shook his head.

Well, at least Gaston was calm. For now anyway. It was well into evening now, and Beast decided now would be a good time to take Gaston and LeFou to their new rooms.

"I'll show you two to your rooms," he said. "Gaston, I will have to carry you. I know you don't like that, I don't like it anymore than you do. But that's how it shall be." He turned to Belle and Maurice. "Would you wait in the parlor? I'll be down soon."

Upon receiving nods from Belle and Maurice, Beast carefully gathered Gaston into his arms and started walking.

"LeFou, if you'll follow me please, we'll head to the East Wing."

Once in the East Wing, Beast looked towards Belle's former room, thinking he'd put Gaston there. But he elected to put him in Maurice's old room. While neither Gaston nor LeFou needed to know who once occupied these rooms, Beast found himself not enjoying the idea of Gaston sleeping on the bed Belle had spent months sleeping on, considering he felt entitled to have her as his wife. So he went to the door of Maurice's former bedroom.

"LeFou, would you mind opening the door?"

LeFou did this and they entered the room.

"Gaston," Beast said. "Before I put you in the bed, perhaps it would be a good idea if you relieve yourself. I'll help you with the chamberpot."

"No," Gaston said firmly. "I do not need help with the chamberpot."

"You don't need to go?" Beast asked incredulously.

"When I do," Gaston said, "I will figure out how to get there myself."

Beast contemplated pointing out the pesky fact that seemed obvious to anyone but Gaston. Gaston wouldn't be able to get himself there, no matter how much figuring he tried to do. But he decided since Gaston was so stubborn, it would be best to let him learn the hard way.

"I wish you good luck with that," he said, laying Gaston on the bed after LeFou had turned the covers down.

Beast walked to the door while LeFou brought the covers over his friend. Once he joined Beast, they left Gaston and went to the room across the hall.

"This will be your room," Beast said as he opened the door. "I hope you'll be comfortable here."

"Thank you," LeFou said politely, stepping inside and looking around his new room. "And I'm sorry for the inconvenience, having to be host to us and having us stuck in your home and all."

"It's not your fault," Beast replied. "Seems you tried to be the voice of reason." He sighed. "Would you mind coming down to the parlor with me? I think we'd like to have a little chat with you."

Once all were seated in the parlor, LeFou gave Maurice a remorseful look.

"Uh, Maurice?" he said tentatively. "I believe I owe you an apology. You know, for what happened in the woods. I tried to talk Gaston into considering alternatives, but his mind was made up."

"Apology accepted LeFou," Maurice said kindly. "And really I don't blame you. I know you tried to get him calm before he knocked me out. Though I can't say I much enjoyed how you did it. Same as what you did a little while ago."

"Yes," Belle added. "Blood, explosions, and widows? Happy thoughts?"

"They are to him," LeFou said grimly. "Disturbing I know. And not what makes me happy. But it does him, and a happy Gaston is a calm Gaston, and sometimes going back to the battlefield is the only way to get him calm."

"I know you're very loyal to Gaston and don't like seeing him upset," Belle said. "And it must be hard seeing your best friend in his current state. But if he's to meet the requirements Agathe gave him for breaking the curse, encouraging him to return to those 'happy thoughts' may not be wise."

"But Gaston gets really mad sometimes," LeFou countered. "And when that happens he gets dangerous." He looked at Maurice. "You've seen this first hand Maurice."

"This is true," Maurice said. "And I know you can find him intimidating. But he poses no threat in his current state. It's best not to give into whatever demands he might make. Besides, with the implication of what his reaction to thinking about the widows says about how he values women, and the very thought of him wanting to marry my daughter, I hope not to see him calmed by those thoughts again."

Beast hung his head. He had been on the promiscuous side before the curse was placed. If Maurice had known this, surely he wouldn't want Beast within ten feet of Belle either.

"But he could get even once the curse is broken." LeFou pointed out. "He'll pose a threat then."

"No," Beast said softly, lifting his head again. "You needn't worry about that. If he breaks the curse, it is because he's met Agathe's requirements. That means he will have changed enough to not entertain vengeful ideas."

"But even with that being true, shouldn't we seek to keep him calm? And in good spirits? As much as possible with him having lost his dignity?"

"He's going to lose what dignity he has left soon I'm afraid," Beast looked sympathetically at LeFou. "Being cursed has a tendency to do that. And as hard as it is for you to accept, it has to be that way. And stroking his ego will not help. He must not be enabled to continue in his current mindset."

"But I hate seeing him unhappy," LeFou said.

"Do you like seeing him disabled?"

"Of course not!"

"Well he will be that way as long as his ego and mindset remain intact," Beast said. "Agathe gave him a curse designed to make his mindset difficult to maintain. He has to experience frustration that is not placated. When he gets upset it's best to let his anger run its course. The more you try to placate him, the more time it will take for him to learn some of the things he must, if learning those things isn't completely blocked."

"Think of it as you're actually helping him even if it doesn't seem like it," Belle said.

"I'll try," LeFou said with some reluctance. "It'll be hard though. I'm so used to boosting his ego. I never really questioned his actions until recently. Actually not until we were with Maurice in the woods did I really start questioning his behavior. Though in hindsight there were things I should have questioned, but refused to see."

"We'll help you remember," Beast gently patted LeFou's arm. "But now perhaps we should all retire for the night. It has been a long day for everybody."