Cogsworth was wringing his hands anxiously as he paced the drawing room. "Whatever will we tell the master?" he moaned. "That while he was out searching for the Evil Queen, she somehow snatched Princess Belle and her friend out from under our very noses, and we have no idea where they are? We were supposed to keep them safe!"

"The guards are scouring every inch of the castle grounds and the surrounding forest," Lumiere reminded him. "Surely they will turn up a clue soon." But he was just as worried as Cogsworth.

Chip tugged at his mother's skirt and asked, "Is Belle gonna be okay, Mama?"

"I'm sure she's fine, love," Mrs. Potts said with an assurance she didn't feel. "She'll be back any minute, you'll see."

Suddenly the front door opened, and Adam, Belle, and the others entered. Chip shouted happily, "Look, Mama! You were right!"

Cogsworth almost fainted with relief at the sight of Belle. "Your Highness! Thank goodness! We have been searching everywhere for you!"

"Are you all right?" Mrs. Potts asked. "We've been beside ourselves with worry!"

"I'm fine. And the Evil Queen has been defeated," Belle assured them. "But Prince Adam, Prince Ferdinand, and Gaston were wounded in the battle. Would you get the royal physician, please?"

"Certainly!" Cogsworth bowed, then ran off to get the castle doctor and to tell the guards to call off the search because the prince and princess had returned.

Several makeshift cots were set up in one of the spare rooms, and the doctor set about cleaning the men's wounds, stitching up the deeper ones, and dressing them with clean bandages.

Gaston winced as the doctor treated the gashes on his chest. "It would've been nice if the Enchantress had thought to heal us with her magic before she left!" he grumbled.

Belle raised an eyebrow in mock astonishment. "Why, Gaston...are you actually complaining that a woman didn't think enough?" she teased.

Gaston opened his mouth to reply...then shut it again. She had him there.

When the doctor finished, Snow White asked him in concern, "Will the men be all right?"

"Oh, yes," the doctor assured her. "They'll all be as good as new in a couple of weeks. I would recommend that you all stay here at the castle for another day or two, so they can rest and their wounds can begin to heal, and so I can make certain there is no sign of infection before Prince Ferdinand and Monsieur Avenant return to the village."

"Oh, goody!" Snow White said delightedly. "That means we can spend more time together, Belle! That is, if you don't mind having us," she added apologetically. "We don't want to impose on you."

"Of course you're welcome to stay," Belle said warmly.

Adam sighed. Great. Another two days of listening to Gaston brag non-stop! But it would be ungracious to refuse, especially since he and Gaston had saved each other's lives more than once recently.

Lefou asked, "Could we maybe let the people in the village know where we are? They must be worried that we haven't come back." He hadn't even told Amelie he was leaving. He hated to think of her fearing the worst, if there was no sign of him for days and she didn't hear from him.

"Certainly," Belle assured him. "We'll send a messenger to the village first thing in the morning to let everyone know what's happening."

Gaston jumped in quickly, "Don't have the messenger tell them everything! Just have him say that we defeated the Evil Queen and we'll tell them the whole story when we get back. Nothing else!" He was already eagerly anticipating the villagers gathering around him, rapt and spellbound as he related the exciting tale of how the heroes had fought so bravely against the Evil Queen-Beast and overcome all the terrifying challenges she had thrown at them...all of it, of course, leading up to the big climactic moment when Gaston's magnificent archery skills had saved the day. He couldn't wait!

"Actually...I don't even know the whole story myself," Belle realized. "Snow White, what happened to you after Grimhilde imprisoned me in the maze?"

"I'll tell you, but first I want to know how you got out of the maze!" Snow White said.

Before Belle could answer, Lumiere entered the room, bowed, and said to Adam, "Master, we took the liberty of arranging dinner for you and your guests in the dining room. It is late, but we thought you might be hungry, since you departed so early this morning."

Adam realized it was true – he was ravenous. They had left right after breakfast, and it was now 9:00 p.m. Not to mention that all the exercise and exertion involved in fighting the queen had worked up an appetite. "Thank you, Lumiere. I'm sure everyone here would appreciate something to eat."

Belle nodded in agreement. "Maybe over dinner we can all compare notes about what happened to each of us."

Lumiere said hopefully, "We servants would all love to hear the story as well!"

Over a delicious dinner, the heroes retold the beginning of the story for the servants, and then filled each other in on what they'd missed, starting with the men's discovery of Grimhilde's lair and the magic mirror, Grimhilde tricking Belle and Snow White out of the castle, and the traps she had set for each of them.

"A glass coffin running out of air!" Belle exclaimed. "How frightening! How did you escape?"

"It was all thanks to Lefou!" Snow White told her.

"Lefou?" Belle said in surprise.

"Not that I would normally need help!" Gaston interjected quickly, not wanting her to think he'd been inadequate to the task. "But the key to the coffin was danging from the branch of a tree. Of course, I climbed up there easily. As you all know, I'm exceptionally tall, muscular, powerful, broad-shouldered, massive, able to lift any weight with ease..."

"Yes, you are certainly strong," Ferdinand interjected, realizing Gaston might go on praising himself for hours if he wasn't stopped. "But please, do tell us how Snow White was rescued."

"Oh, right!" Gaston said, dragging his attention away from his sterling qualities with difficulty. "Well, most of the time, being roughly the size of a barge is a great advantage. But when I tried to climb out on the branch to get the key, the branch started to break. It simply could not hold a man of such impressive weight and giant proportions! For once, my size and strength were of no use. To save Snow White, we needed someone tiny and lightweight and puny."

"Like ME!" Lefou burst in proudly.

"Yes," Gaston confirmed. "I have to admit, the Enchantress was right about this teamwork thing – there's something to it after all. I picked Lefou up and climbed back up the tree and put him on the branch, and he crawled out and grabbed the key. But then, he fell!"

"Oh, no!" Belle said.

"But no harm done - I caught him, of course," Gaston bragged. "I took the key and opened the coffin, but the air had already run out and Snow was unconscious. We were afraid we were too late! But then, thank goodness, she opened her eyes. We saved her just in the nick of time." He smiled at Snow White and squeezed her hand.

Snow White gazed at him adoringly. "I always knew you would." Then she smiled at Lefou. "And I was so proud of you, Lefou! It took a lot of courage to climb out on that tree branch, so high off the ground!"

Lefou blushed, looking pleased. "Aw, gee, thanks! But Gaston did most of it – carrying me up the tree and all," he added loyally.

Belle suddenly had an idea. After spending his whole life in Gaston's shadow, Lefou deserves to have his achievement celebrated, she thought. "Lefou, since you were so brave and helped save Snow White...would you like me to write up a royal proclamation announcing that you're a hero, like I did for Gaston?"

Lefou's eyes went wide. "Gosh, really? You'd really do that?"

"Of course!" Belle said, smiling. "You earned it."

"Wow, thanks! That'd be great!" Lefou exclaimed.

Chip piped up, "But where was the Beast when you were doing all that? I mean, the Evil Queen?"

"Prince Ferdinand was fighting her!" Snow White told him. "He fought her all by himself for a long, long time, so Gaston and Lefou could save me and Prince Adam could save Belle."

"Wow," said Chip, impressed. "You must be a really good fighter, Prince Ferdinand!"

"Thank you, young man," Ferdinand said. "I have been training in sword-fighting ever since I was your age."

"My age? Really?" Chip looked hopefully at his mother. "Mama, do you think I could-"

"No," Mrs. Potts cut him off firmly. "I'll not have you running around the castle waving a sword!"

Chip was disappointed, but he perked up when Snow White asked, "Now, Prince Adam, tell us how you saved Belle!"

"It was very difficult," Adam said. "The maze was incredibly complicated, and the walls and ceilings were completely covered with small mirrors. So wherever I looked, all I could see were a million reflections, and it was impossible to tell which way I was going. I told Belle to call to me, so I could try to follow her voice, but for a long time it seemed like I was just going around in circles and not making any progress. I began to despair of ever finding her. But I HAD to find her before it was too late! I didn't know what to do."

Gaston smiled to himself, his ever-competitive nature feeling a bit smug that Adam hadn't been able to figure out how to save Belle. I may have needed Lefou to help me save Snow, but at least I'M the one who figured out what we needed to do! he thought.

"But thankfully, I married the smartest woman on the planet," Adam went on proudly. "She's the one who found the solution."

"Well, I wouldn't say I'm that smart," Belle said modestly. "But I remembered the story of the Minotaur – a Greek myth Adam and I read together. In the story, Theseus went through a maze unrolling a ball of string as he went, so he could find his way out. I reminded Adam of that story, hoping it would help."

"And it did," Adam confirmed. He explained how he had scratched lines on the floor using his sword to find his way.

Snow White clapped her hands. "Oh my! How clever of you both!"

"Thanks," Belle said. Then, glancing at Gaston, she added innocently, "It's certainly a good thing I've read so many books. The knowledge I found in those books saved my life!"

Gaston shuddered in distaste. "Ugh! If the only way out of that trap was to know about books, I'm glad I wasn't there."

Adam casually leaned over to pour wine in Belle's glass and discreetly whispered in her ear, "If Gaston had been in that maze, he would have stopped to preen at his reflection in all those mirrors, and forgotten about the mission entirely!"

Belle covered her mouth to stifle a laugh. She could so easily picture that happening. "Like Narcissus," she whispered back, and Adam grinned and nodded.

"What happened next?" Chip asked eagerly.

"Belle and I followed the lines out of the maze," Adam said. "But when we got outside, I saw Grimhilde, the Beast, about to kill Gaston."

Gaston winced, hating to be reminded that he'd needed saving. "I saved Ferdinand before that!" he hastened to add. "And I fought Grimhilde for a long time while you were in the maze. But then she got my rifle and bow away from me."

"Right. As I was saying: you were unarmed and she was about to kill you," Adam said. "So I stabbed her in the side. You're welcome, by the way."

"And then I had to save you," Gaston reminded him pointedly. He turned to Chip, who was listening raptly. "Adam stabbed the Beast, so she went after him. I had to stop her, but I was unarmed. But then Belle had the good sense to run and get my bow and bring it to me." He gave Belle an approving nod, much to her surprise. Was Gaston actually complimenting her intelligence? Gaston went on, "She knew that I was the only one with the skill to save him. It was all up to me!"

Belle sighed. That explains it - I'm just smart for recognizing that HE was the only one magnificent enough to save the day! Well, it's better than nothing, I suppose.

"I aimed, and I could have gotten Grimhilde easily...but Adam kept getting in the way and ruining the shot," Gaston continued.

"She was trying to kill me!" Adam reminded him, annoyed. "Excuse me for trying to dodge away from her claws!"

"Yes. And like I said, you needed me to save you," Gaston retorted.

Ferdinand put in diplomatically, "Everyone saved everyone else at one point or another. Whenever one of us was in danger, someone else was always there to help out. That's why we all made such an excellent team. And that's why we were able to defeat Grimhilde - by working together." The other two subsided, realizing he was right.

Ferdinand added, "Remember, there's no 'I' in 'team'!"

Gaston and Lefou were startled. "There isn't?" Gaston whispered to Lefou.

Lefou frowned. "I dunno. I thought there was, but I guess not."

"What happened next?" Chip yelled, almost beside himself with excitement. "The Beast was about to kill Prince Adam and Gaston couldn't aim, and then...?"

Snow White picked up the story. "And then Belle did SUCH a brave thing! She ran right up to the Beast and started throwing rocks at her and taunting her! She got the Beast to leave Adam and chase her instead. I was so afraid she'd catch you, Belle!" She turned to Gaston. "Wasn't that brave of Belle?"

"Yes," Gaston had to admit. "Belle was very brave. For a girl," he added.

Belle was torn between feeling pleased that he'd acknowledged she was brave, annoyed at the qualifier, and amused that no matter how much he learned, Gaston was always just so...so Gaston. "Gaston, you are incorrigible!"

Gaston beamed. "Why, thank you, Belle!"

Snow White continued, "And then...Gaston did something truly incredible!" She gazed at him worshipfully. "Tell them!"

Gaston grinned. Finally! "Belle led the Beast straight to me, knowing everything depended on my legendary skill at archery," he told Chip and the servants. "She ducked out of the way so I would have a clear shot. Of course, I could have easily hit the Beast herself...but that would only injure her further, and she could still have torn Belle to shreds. No, I had a much more difficult goal in mind: to hit the tiny amulet on her chest, the source of her power. I only had a split-second to aim, but for someone of my exceptional skill, that was all I needed. I pulled back the arrow and let it fly...and it hit that amulet right in the center and split it into pieces!" Gaston puffed out his chest with pride. "Immediately, her magic was gone, and she changed from a rampaging Beast into a helpless woman, just like that. The Evil Queen was defeated! I saved the day!"

"You did," Belle admitted. "It was a great shot."

"I know!" Gaston agreed happily. Snow White discreetly nudged him. He glanced at her and quickly added, "Thank you for the compliment, Belle," which earned him a warm smile and a squeeze of his hand from Snow White.

She's doing a good job training him, Belle thought in amusement.

Ferdinand then told Chip and the assembled servants about Grimhilde's deal with the demon, her death, and how Gloriana had used magic to put her soul into the mirror, freeing the imprisoned John Stone and sealing Grimhilde inside in his place. "The evil villainness was vanquished, and the forces of good reigned triumphant!" he finished dramatically.

"Wow, that was a great story!" Chip said enthusiastically. "Tell it again!"

"Not now," Mrs. Potts said. "It's past your bedtime." Chip pouted.

Belle said kindly, "I'll tell it to you again another time, Chip. It's actually past ALL our bedtimes! It's been a long day and we all need our rest."

Snow White stood up. "Wait – before we leave the table, may I say something?" She looked around at the group. "I just want to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for saving me and defeating my stepmother. For so much of my life, I was all alone, with no one who cared about me. Now, to meet such wonderful people, and to know that you all risked your own lives to help me..." Her lips trembled, and her eyes filled with tears. "It means more to me than I can ever express. Thank you all so much – I can never repay you enough for your kindness."

"It was our honor and our pleasure, Snow White," Ferdinand assured her.

Belle stood up and said, "I want to thank you, Snow White. All my life, I've dreamed of having an adventure. And now, because of you, I had one, and it was the most thrilling experience of my life!" She raised her wine glass. "I'd like to make a toast: to the bravest group of heroes in the world! We all made a fantastic team. So...here's to us!"

"Hear, hear!" Adam agreed, and they all drank.

On that upbeat note, the heroes got up from the table in high spirits and with a feeling of good fellowship and camaraderie.

-o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o -o

"Well, that all worked out well. Grimhilde is gone forever and you never have to worry again," Gaston said cheerfully as he walked Snow White to her room.

"Yes," Snow White said.

But he saw that she looked a bit troubled. "Is something wrong?"

"Oh, no! Not really," she said. "It's only that...well..." She blushed in embarrassment.

"Go on," Gaston said, curious now. "What is it?"

"Well..." she said hesitantly. "I was just thinking...Belle is so brave and adventurous. And you did want to marry her once." She looked up at him shyly. "Do you ever wish I were more like her?"

"What?" Gaston was horrified. "No! No, no, no," he said emphatically, shaking his head. "If I had to spend my life with a girl who talked about books all the time, I would die of boredom! And she's so headstrong and opinionatedI'm sure she argues with Adam all the time. She's not sweet like you. And you can bet your life she can't cook or clean even half as well as you can!" He shook his head again, then took Snow White in his arms. "You are the perfect woman, Snow White. Promise me you won't change a thing!"

She smiled gratefully. "I promise."

Gaston kissed her. Then he drew back and added sternly, "One more thing, and I am dead serious about this: don't you ever go running into danger the way Belle did! Adam may be willing to risk his wife's life, but I absolutely will not risk yours! You're too precious to me. And there's no need for you to ever put yourself in harm's way when you have ME around. That's my job: to protect you and take care of you." He looked into her eyes seriously. "So if there's ever any danger again, you just run as far away from it as possible, and let me handle it! Is that clear?"

If Belle's husband had ever made such a speech to her, she would have been furious. But Snow White sighed in relief and hugged him. It was exactly what she wanted to hear. "Thank you," she said gratefully. "It makes me feel so secure and loved, knowing you're here to protect me. I know that Belle likes adventure...but honestly, I don't! It's scary! I don't want to be in danger! I just want to be home with you, warm and cozy and safe, baking delicious pies, and making our house sparkle and shine, and taking care of all our sweet little babies, when we have them..." She smiled dreamily at the thought.

"Like I said: the perfect woman." Gaston grinned. "And I'm the lucky guy who gets to marry you!" He kissed her again, more deeply this time, and she melted against him. After some more kissing and cuddling, she reluctantly wished him good night, hating to part from him, and went into her room. Gaston watched her go, congratulating himself on having found such an amazing woman. Thank God I didn't marry Belle! he thought. That would have been a total nightmare. What the hell was I thinking?