Beauty & the Beast: The Tale Continues

Chapter 3 - Just A Little Change

Author's Note: "Beauty & the Beast" is owned by Disney,"Romeo & Juliet" was written by William Shakespeare, and "The Picture of Dorian Grey" was written by Oscar Wilde.

A glooming peace this morning with it brings;

The sun, for sorrow, will not show his head

Belle and Adam were currently in the library, and she had been reading him her favorite play that was written by Shakespeare.

Go hence, to have more talk of these sad things:

Some shall be pardon'd, and some punished.

Unfortunately, about halfway through the book, Adam ended up focusing his attention on Belle herself, and was simply just watching her read.

For never was a story of more woe

Than this of Juliet and her Romeo.

After reading the final lines of Romeo & Juliet, Belle turned to the person sitting next to her, and noticed that he was looking at her with deep affection and love.

"Are you alright?" asked Belle, slightly blushing, and Adam blinked his eyes a few times, acting as if he'd just gotten out of a deep trance.

"Hmmm? Oh, yes, I'm fine," replied the young prince, who also started rubbing his eyes. "Still can't believe you prefer to choose that bookas your favorite, despite the more better ones that are in here."

"Well, I haven't read them all just yet," reminded Belle, and as she got up to put the book back into its proper place, Adam found himself staring at her again.

I've never felt this way about anyone.

And he wasn't looking at her inappropriately (he knew better than that), it was just that Adam couldn't help but become lost in her miraculous beauty, composed of sparkling eyes, fair and beautiful skin, soft curves...

I suppose I'll never know why a beautiful girl like her ever chose to befriend and love someone like me in the first place.

And I wonder how she would look withou-

"Adam, why do you keep doing that?"

"Huh?" The young prince saw that Belle had returned, and was giving him a questioning look. "Doing what?"

Belle simply raised an eyebrow, and Adam sighed, saying, "It's because you are so... well, beautiful, Belle... no wonder that's what the meaning of your name actually is."

But then, he started to wonder if he was actually making a mistake. "I could stop if it's making you uncomfortable."

"Well... not really," replied Belle, who was still blushing. "I'm just not used to it, I guess."

Adam nodded his head, but he also reminded himself to try and avoid looking at her too long, just until she eventually did get used to it.

Suddenly, to his surprise, Belle let out a yawn, and he asked, "Are you tired?"

"A lot, surprisingly," replied the young woman. "But that's because I always read certain parts of that book before going to bed, so... really, Adam?"

"Sorry."

Belle rolled her eyes, and she chuckled, saying, "I think I can fix that."

"What do you-" began Adam, but then, as he walked over to Belle, she suddenly wrapped her arms around his neck, and brought her lips against his own, while Adam's hands politely went to her sides.

Their kiss soon became more passionate, and it was almost as if fireworks were being set off somewhere in the distance.

Then, once she pulled herself away, Belle asked, "Better now?"

"Um, very much, actually," replied a sheepish Adam. "Er, would you mind if I walked you to your room?"

Belle chuckled, and she shook her head. "No, of course not."

Several Minutes Later...

Once they had reached her bedroom door, Belle gave Adam a quick and soft kiss on the lips before bidding him good night, and after she entered the room, Adam started walking in the direction of the West Wing.

As she began preparing herself for bed, Belle noticed that her hairbrush was still on top of the dresser, and she let out a chuckle, saying, "I guess you really were just a hairbrush."

When Adam entered his own bedroom, he was surprised to find Lumiere and Plumette, who had just finished cleaning it up, and he said, "Thank you, Plumette... it looks wonderful."

"But of course, Master," replied the beautiful maid, giving him a warm smile.

"So, how was your time with Belle as a human?" wondered Lumiere.

Adam gave him a shrug, and he said, "It was perfectly fine, to say the least... although, um, I did share an interesting conversation with Belle's father... and I am not going to say what it was."

"Oh, Master, like I would ever want to know something like that," replied Lumiere, which made Adam scoff at him. "No, really, I am just happy to see you happy, and from what I can tell, Belle has given you plenty of happiness... this is true, no?"

"Well, yes, she has," said Adam. "But now that I am a human again, I would like to take things a bit slowly with Belle."

"Oh, such a gentleman," said Plumette, who started leading her lover out of the room. "Come along, Lumiere, we have other places to be."

"Ah, yes, we do," chuckled the former candelabra, and as they left the room, Adam couldn't help but laugh quietly to himself.

Back in Belle's room, she was about to climb into bed when there was a knock at the door. "Who is it?"

"Sorry for coming so late, mademoiselle," said the voice of Madame Garderobe. "But I wanted to give you my thanks again for what you've done for all of us."

Belle smiled, and she replied, "You're welcome... oh, um, Madame?"

"Yes, my dear?"

Remebering what Adam had said about tomorrow's celebration, Belle asked, "Would you mind designing another dress for me, so that I can wear it at tomorrow's event?"

"Oh, but of course, my dear," replied an enthusiastic Garderobe. "I shall get started right away!"

A few seconds later, she was gone, and Belle went back to getting into bed.

I love you, Adam, thought Belle, as she closed her eyes, and after several minutes, she was asleep.

As for Adam, who was also about to fall asleep, he thought the same thing. I love you, Belle, and I always will... for evermore.

The Next Day

The celebration itself wouldn't be held until later in the afternoon, but that did not stop the staff from preparing the castle.

"Ah, you're doing a wonderful supervising job, Cogsworth," said Lumiere, who had found his friend in the ballroom. "But how did you ever get away from your wife?"

"I told her to get whatever things she had in the village," mumbled the majordomo. "Hopefully she won't show up until this thing actually starts."

In the dining room, Adam was about to sit down at the table, and eat his breakfast, but he noticed that Belle was not with him.

Where could she have gone this early in the morning?

"Are you not hungry, Master?"

Adam turned to find himself looking at Mrs. Potts, who had come to fill up his cup with tea. "No... I mean, yes, but I was hoping to eat with Belle beside me. Have you seen her?"

"Yes, actually," replied the former teapot. "I believed she mentioned something about going to where some of the staff wash clothes at, and if we had a donkey."

Adam gave her a confused look, and asked, "Whatever for?"

Society, civilized society at least, is never very ready to believe anything to the detriment of those who are both rich and fascinating. It feels instinctively that manners are of more importance than morals, and, in its opinion, the highest respectability is of much less value than the possession of a good chef.

As her laundry was being done, Belle continued to read her newest book, which had caught her interest, but she was interrupted by the arriving voice of Adam.

"What are you doing, Belle?"

She looked away from the book, and up at the young man's face, saying, "Laundry."

Adam watched the donkey pulling Belle's invention while walking around the washing station, and replied, "This is... an interesting sight to see... but you know, Belle, that the staff would be more than happy to-"

"I appreciate the offer, Adam, but there are still some things I like to do on my own," said Belle, and she was about to continue reading her book, but she heard Adam starting to laugh. "And what is so funny?"

"You are certainly not like most girls that I've encountered before," answered the young prince. "Another reason why I love you... you're so independent."

Belle felt her face begin to warm up, but then, she gave him a questioning look. "Does that mean you were not my first kiss?"

Adam started to laugh again, but after seeing Belle's expression, he did a small gulp, and replied, "Well, I mean, yes, you were, but I cannot lie about the fact that I've had other young women try to make advances at-"

Belle started to frown, and Adam realised that he was starting to mess up. "What I meant to say, Belle, is that I've never met someone like you before, and there is no one else who I can love as much as I love you."

He then waited for Belle's response, hoping that she would not get upset with him.

"Come here..."

Oh, wonderful, thought Adam, as he walked over to Belle, and once he was in front of her, he said, "Yes?"

"Look at your reflection in the water, and tell me what you see," replied Belle.

Giving her a confused look, Adam lowered himself a little, looking at his reflection in the water, and said, "Well, I don't see a Beast anym- whoa!"

SPLASH!

"All right, I deserved that," muttered Adam, and it was now Belle's turn to laugh. "Now, would you mind getting me out of here, and follow me back to the castle to enjoy breakfast?"

"Sure," replied Belle, and she began to pull Adam out of the water, but then, the young prince gave her a sly smile. "Oh, no, no, no, do not even think about-"

SPLASH!

"Adam! Why did you do that?" questioned a nearly soaking-wet Belle.

"I could ask you the same thing," retorted Adam, and the two of them continued to glare at each other, until they both started laughing together.

"I didn't mean to sound like a playboy or anything, Belle," said Adam, giving her an apologetic look. "I really do love you... and only you."

Belle nodded her head, and she was about to climb out of the water when Adam suddenly came closer towards her, and started to kiss her.

Eventually, she returned the favor, with their kiss becoming more passionate, and once they stopped to catch their breath, Adam asked, "Feeling better?"

"Quite," replied a chuckling Belle. "But I think we could both use a towel... and another bath."