Here is the next chapter. It is really chapter 29, I had some trouble and that's why the last one said 29. I hope that did not confuse people. I own nothing, but Chantal and the plot twists. Everything else belongs to Disney. Oncemore I have no BETAer for this story, so if I make any mistakes I am sorry. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Belle felt her heart drop into her stomach as her hand flew in front of Chantal's innocent eyes. The whole scene felt like a painting or scene from one of her books when the monster had been vanquished by the prince. Gaston lay lifeless on the ground, blood bled onto the stones from an open head wound. His empty crossbow had slide back into a darkened corner little ways off from his right hand.

Belle shivered, the beast's painful roar still ringing in her ears as her gaze shifted over to the beast, his own blood falling onto the cobblestones from his numerous wounds. Her mind screamed at her that he needed medical attention, but her heart was filled with crushing guilt as she stared at him. All of it was her fault.

"Maman, Maman, we have to help him!" Chantal pulled away from her grip and ran over to the fallen creature, her small hands trying to vain to help.

Belle blinked, the spell terror broken as she moved over and knelt down beside Chantal and the beast. Her breath caught in her throat as she saw the arrow sticking out from his side. She longed to turn her eyes away, but found she could not as her fingers moved up through his thick warm fur, resting against his neck. A small sigh of relief escaped her lips as she felt the weak pulse. She sent a silent prayer as she heard a moan of pain escaped the beast's lips, his blue eyes fluttering open. His gaze flicked between the two until the rested on Chantal.

"Are… you…all right?" He choked out.

Chantal nodded. "Oui, are you, Beast?"

The beast breathed heavy, but managed a small smile through the pain. "I'm…fine, little one. Go…find …the others okay?"

Chantal blinked, fighting back tears as she looked back at her mother. Belle gave a small nod, unable to say anything. Chantal nodded to herself before she scrambled up and ran back toward the castle doors, calling out for any of the servants. Belle watched until she was out of ear shot before she turned back to the beast, her own eyes wet with oncoming tears. Gingerly, she shifted over and placed her hand on the arrow, its cold lifeless touch sending shivers down her spine. A few tears ran down her face as she forced her fingers to curl around it.

It was all my fault.

"Be…Belle, leave… it." The beast choked out.

She gulped, forcing her voice to remain calm. "It… has to come out or it could become…infected."

"Lea…leave it." He reached over, ignoring the eminence pain and rested his paw on her arm. "I…just glad…you came back…"

Belle paused and glanced over at him, their eyes locking. She gulped, but did not look away from him. "Of course…I came back…I promised."

The beast lowered his gaze. "Is…that all?"

Belle shook her head. "No…I couldn't let him!" More tears began to roll down her cheeks. "If only I had gotten here sooner." She paused, positioning her hand around the arrow. "This might hurt a little."

The beast roared in agony, but it was less gruff than when she had tended to his wounds all those months ago after the wolf attack. A lump lodged in her throat. Twice he had saved her daughter from danger at the cost of his own life. How could she ever repay him for what he had done? Yet, if he died it would not matter.

She raised her head, her gaze scanning the silent courtyard. How long would it take for Chantal to get help? Quickly, she unclasped her cloak and pressed it to his wound, applying pressure. They had to get back inside, but she was not strong enough to carry him. She bit her lip in thought while more tears began to roll down her face. A shiver of surprise and sadness ran down her spine as the beast's paw reached up and caressed her cheek, forcing her to look back at him.

A small glint of something shone in his eyes as he stared up at her. As though reading her fearful thoughts, he said, "It…'s all…right, Belle. Cha…ntal is fine and…" He paused, wiping away her tears with the last of his strength. "At…least I got to see you…one last time." He forced a smile. "You're…fre…" His voice trailed off as he fell unconscious, his paw dropping from her cheek onto the cold ground.

Belle felt her heart stop as she leaned over him, pressing her cloak against his side as though she could keep the blood of life from living him. It did not matter if Gaston was gone and she was free. Freedom meant nothing to her if the beast was not there.

Shaking her head in a despaired denial, she cried, "No…no. Please….I don't want this!" Her fingers dug deeper into her cloak. He had been her strength for all these months and now he needed her. "You can't leave us…." A lump caught in her throat, but she swallowed it and leaned down closer to his ear, whispering. "I…love you."

As the last word left her lips, she felt something inside her snap. She felt his heartbeat as she lay against his chest, but how much longer would it beat? Her body shook as the sadness engulfed her, allowing her tears to flow freely. In the distance, she heard the soft rumbles of an upcoming storm. A chocked half hearted laugh escaped her lips as she thought the irony. He had been able to save her and Chantal so many times, but now she could not even save him from advancing rain shower.

Closing her eyes, Belle forced herself to turn away from him. Now she needed to concentrate on Chantal and the others in the castle. Gentle raindrops fall upon her face, mixing with her tears, as she forced herself to stand on numb legs. She felt her heart sink into her stomach as she stared down at the beast's almost lifeless form. Biting her lip, she glanced back in the direction of the castle. Where was everyone? How far had they been from the door?

Either way…they deserve to know the truth. Belle sucked in a breath as she tried out the impending explanation in her mind, but she could fins the correct words. Somehow she could find the words as though something blocked the impending fact from her mind. Shaking her head, she sighed and turned away from the beast, heading back toward the castle. She tried calling out to the servants and Chantal, but her throat had gone dry as she paused at the threshold, her hand resting on the doorframe, supporting her weakened body.

She shivered as a strong wind blew against her back. Her knuckles turned white as her grip tightened on the doorframe, somehow managing to stay on her feet. The raindrops seemed to dig into her back the struck against her. Her mind raced with the strangeness of it all, but she dared not look back. After a moment, the rain returned to normal while the wind died down as though the whole thing had not occurred at all.

Belle blinked and placed her hand over her heart as it began to slow its rate back to normal. What was that? It…

A loud moan of pain broke into her thoughts. Her heart skipped a beat Old fears began to surface as more shivers ran down her spine. No, it could not him. For a moment, she glanced down at her barren fingers and gulped. She shook her head, forcing her head to remain high. She would not give into him again. Taking a deep breath, she turned around and gasped, her hands flying to her mouth.

Gaston had not moved, but the beast had vanished. In his place lay a slender, furless figure. He forced himself to stand, her cloak falling to the ground to reveal a completely healed side. Belle watched silently as the figure stumbled around, staring at himself in awe as though he could barely believe it himself. Belle gulped, but kept her head high, fighting the urge to lower her eyes as she sensed his gaze upon her. How was any of this possible?

"Belle… I'm all right." The figure said, slowly moving toward her.

Belle's eyes squinted in confusion as he came into the light of the corridor. The figure was a slender man; his cloths were torn and too large for his body. Long reddish brown hair hung around unkempt around his face as though it were a lion's mane. Her heart skipped a beat as he reached out and grabbed her hands. She felt the warm blood from open wounds run over her hands, but she could not look away from the strange man.

"Belle, it's me." His voice was soft and full of awe, echoing her own feelings as she stared at him.

Pulling her hands away, she took a step back. "Where…is the beast?"

The man blinked and took another step forward. "Belle…it's me, really, it is."

Belle felt her breathing slow as the notion kept rolling around in her mind. No, it could not be true. She glanced down at her hands covered in his blood and shook her head. She had felt the life draining from the beast as it had done with her sons at the hands of a man. Where was the beast she loved? Fear suddenly shot through her as she thought of Chantal. Without a word, she turned and ran down the corridor, ignoring his calls for her to return.

She did not know where she was going, but she had to get away and find her daughter. She tried to call out for her, but her throat had suddenly gone dry as more tears began to roll down her cheeks. How was any of this possible? When she had been watching him, she had debated if the whole ordeal was just a dream, but she had felt his warm flesh and blood when he had grabbed her hands. What was happening? Belle shook her head and brushed her tears away as the sound of approaching footsteps caught her attention.

She turned and saw Chantal running over to her, a large smile on her face. "Maman, Maman! They've changed, they've changed!"

Belle blinked. "What…do you mean, Sweetheart?"

Chantal came to a stop in front of her and called out for Chip. A young boy came around the corner dressed in blue trousers and a white shirt. He smiled sheepishly as he walked over to them. Could he really be Chip? Slowly, she reached out and touched his cheek, his skin soft under her touch. How was it possible and what about the other members of the staff?

Chantal pulled at Belle's hand excitingly. "They…they're all like us, Maman. Chip…he's a boy and everyone is…"

"Human." Belle said softly, the simple word feeling strange on her tongue. She remembered her last words to Gaston calling him out on all his cruelty as a monster. Yet, it did not work the other way around. Did it? She stared at the small boy in front of her with the same large, innocent blue eyes as the teacup had had. His hair was a light sandy brown with a shy smile as he stared back at her.

Chantal nodded. "Well…once they changed, I told them about the beast and they said to go look for you. Are you okay?"

Belle nodded and brought her into a hug. "Oui, I'm fine. Are you, Chantal?"

"Oui, and how's the beast?"

"Is the master okay?" the boy, Chip, asked in the familiar voice she had come to learn.

Belle paused and looked back in the direction of the courtyard. The most lethal wound had healed, but there were still the medium cuts in his hands. She suppressed a shiver as she felt the blood upon her hands. Taking a deep breath, she said, "I'm…sure he is fine, little one."

"Can we go play now?"

Belle let out a small laugh and nodded, ruffling Chantal's hair. "Of course, be good now."

Chantal nodded and ran off back down the corridor to find her friend. Belle watched with awe as the children ran down the passageway and disappeared. After a moment, she pushed herself up and headed back to her chamber, the same question kept running through her mind. What would they do now?

XxX

Everything felt off as the beast…no former beast paced his chambers in the West Wing forth the tenth time in the last nine hours. In truth his chambers felt much bigger now. His three strides compared to one stride from the beast's walk surprised him. Lumiere was bustling around with excitement while Mrs. Potts tended to his wounds and bandaging them; the cloth feelt ruff against his soft human skin. He could barely believe it; the spell had been broken at last. Yet, none of that seemed to matter as he quickened his pace, irritable. The image of Belle's face would not leave him alone. He had been fear and confusion in her gaze when she had looked upon him as she had done when they had first met as the beast. What could that mean?

As though sensing her thoughts, Mrs. Potts looked up at him. "Is something wrong, Master?"

He blinked and looked down at his old nurse. The curse had not affected her much except for one or two extra wrinkles, but she was still the same caring, motherly women he had known in his youth. He sighed. "I…it's just…" He winced as she pulled the cloth tight around his hand. "It's…nothing."

Mrs. Potts and Lumiere exchange a worried glance. A low soft growl rumbled in his throat as he caught the exchange between them. The quality of the growl was pitiful, but that did not cool his slight temper. Beast or human, he hated the concerned way the servants have a code amongst themselves.

Lumiere looked over at him. "Is it Madame Belle?"

The former beast looked up at his servant and friend. How could he explain it to them? The curse was broken, but still the image would not leave him in peace. He turned away from his nurse and walked over to a window, staring out to the empty landscape, the clouds were now turned a light pink, signaling the arrival of dawn, a transformation to the new day awaiting them.

"She doesn't love me."

Lumiere chuckled. "Oh, Master, that is impossible, her love for you finally broke the spell."

He shook his head. She had confessed her love for the beast not for him. He could still hear her almost plea of where the beast had gone unable to see that he and the beast were one in the same. Why could she not see it? He wanted to go after her and explain everything, but that look in her eyes and his wounds had prevented it.

He sighed. "No, Lumiere, she does not love me….at least not the me like this." He placed a bandaged hand against his furless face. His voice was soft as he admitted it to himself. "She's terrified of me."

Lumiere shook his head. "I do not understand."

"Oh, Lumiere, imagine what the poor woman has been through. She was married to that horrible man and now you, Master." She turned to him. "As the beast you made her find true love, but now you're a man again. She has already been crushed by the man she called her husband. Once a woman gets hurt it is not easy to give their heart to someone else."

He blinked as Mrs. Potts ran through his mind. Was that the reason for her to become distant from him after he had transformed? Somehow he had known the reason, but could not admit it to himself. He had only thought about finally his humanity back after all these years. Yet, now he had to think about Belle. Without a word, he turned and headed out for his chambers to find her and explain.

Okay so I know everyone wanted the Happy Ever After right in this chapter, but the change from the beast to the man would have a big impact on Belle I feel which is why I wrote it the way I did. Also I never really liked the fact that the Beast (I know it's disney magic) turned to the prince was completely healed from ALL his wounds fron the fight, so that's why I had him have some of the cuts in his hands remained. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and please review and let me know what you think.