Beauty and the Beast: The Tale Continues
Chapter 22 - Wedding Preparations, Part 3
Author's Note: All rights belong to Disney, while I just own the story, which I hope everyone is enjoying right now.
Also, even though no one has complained about it yet, I know someone will, so I am warning certain readers that what happens in between now and the wedding itself may not actually take place in the 18th Century or the Bourbon Era, etc. but in my story, it will.
Belle was now in the dining room, sitting at one of the ends, and had one hand on the side of her face while her other one was being used to finger-tap on the table.
Well, so much for 'happily ever after', I guess.
"Mademoiselle?"
Belle's eyes moved upward at the person who had spoken, and saw that it was Lumiere. "You do not look so good... what is the matter?"
"Nothing," mumbled Belle. "Just an argument I had with Adam, and... once again, I don't really feel like myself."
As she continued drumming her fingers on the table, Lumiere let out a sigh, not liking the fact that Belle seemed so glum, but then, as if a candlelight had flickered on above his head, the friendly servant said, "Well, perhaps you wouldn't mind, then, if I brought you out some food to eat?"
A small smile appeared on Belle's face, and she replied, "Well, I am a little hungry, now that you mention it..."
But then, she gave him a smirk before adding, "I do get to eat the actual food this time, right?"
Lumiere just laughed, and said, "Of course, mademoiselle... but I apologize for the obvious lack of silverware entertainment now that we are all human again."
Then, with a sly grin, he added, "But that doesn't mean I can't do something myself..."
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Laying back against one of the castle towers, Adam looked at the engagement ring in his hand, and sadly let out a sigh.
What am I supposed to do now?
Suddenly, Adam heard the sounds of wings flapping, and he looked up to see several hummingbirds fly from the trees, and up to the highest point of the tower.
Hmmm... that could work, but how would I... huh?
To Adam's surprise, he noticed a rope-like object that appeared to have started all the way up to the window at the top.
This has Belle written all over it.
After finishing her enjoyable meal that Lumiere had provided for her, Belle felt a little better, but she was still bothered by the fact that Adam had lied about his... well, about not having done it with anyone else.
"Maybe we are taking things too fast with the wedding," muttered Belle.
"Would you like a second opinion?"
Belle turned around, and to her disgust, she saw that it was Nathaniel, who was somewhat dry after being speared into the water.
"You have a lot of nerve speaking to me after what you've done since this morning," said Belle, with a frown on her face.
"I know..." replied a guilty-looking Nathaniel. "But, if it's alright with you, mademoiselle, there are a few more things that I would like to tell you."
Belle crossed her arms, and raised an eyebrow, saying, "I am listening... for the moment, anyways."
Nathaniel nodded his head, and he replied, "Well, it wasn't always like this, between me and Adam... when he was a little boy, his face always lit up with happiness whenever I came to visit him and my sister.
"But then, she passed away... and, well... you've seen how it affected my nephew."
Belle nodded her head, but remained silent, and waited for him to continue.
"In my case, mademoiselle... when she was gone, it was like losing my best friend... we always did everything together, and when I was first introduced to the man that would be Adam's father, I was so happy for her..."
As Nathaniel grew silent, Belle finally chose to speak to him. "Was he really that terrible of a person? I mean, I believed what Mrs. Potts had told me, but..."
"Oh, you have no idea, Belle," replied the elderly gentleman. "The way that Adam used to be before his curse? It was ten times worse... in fact..."
"Edward, this is not what your wife would have wanted," said Nathaniel.
After taking a drink from his flask, Adam's father gave him a menacing look, and said, "Do not talk to me about what she would have wanted, you pathetic worm... now, sign this agreement, or else I will make it so that you'll never be able to visit Adam ever again."
"What?! You can't do something like that, Adriana would not-"
WHACK!
"Do not say her name in this castle!" growled Adam's father, while Nathaniel was currently on the ground, the right side of his face now stinging with pain. "Now, sign this damned thing, or else!"
Nathaniel sighed, and he shook his head. "Eventually, he did end up forbidding me to ever return to the castle, and once I had learned of his passing, I quickly came back, hoping to see the young man that my sister loved so very much, but I quickly realized that he'd becomea mirror image of his father..."
He then pulled out a flask from his front coat pocket. "Things like this become your friends, especially when you don't grieve the way you are supposed to..."
"But Adam said that you ruled your own part of France somewhere," said Belle, and Nathaniel let out a chuckle.
"That may be true, but the atmosphere in there compared to the one I am feeling in here is a lot different... well, until I decide to fix it, I guess."
Belle just looked at him, and asked, "Why are you being so nice, all of a sudden?"
"Because I finally got some sense knocked into me, and I have the chest pain to prove it," replied Nathaniel, giving Belle an apologetic look. "Plus, when I saw how heartbroken Adam was after you walked away..."
The elderly man sighed, and he added, "Look, I only acted the way that I did because I assumed that he was still like his father, especially since his hands were on your, um... anyway, I know now that is no longer the case here, so... perhaps we could start over?"
Nathaniel offered Belle a handshake, and after a moment of hesitation, she accepted it.
"But when it comes to staying for the wedding, you might want to talk to Adam about that... and I don't think he won't be as forgiving as I am."
"Fair enough, I suppose." Adam's uncle nodded his head, and he began to walk away, but then, he took one more final look at Belle. "Do not take this the wrong way, mademoiselle, but... you do remind me a little bit of my sister."
Belle gave him a warm smile, and replied, "I appreciate you saying that to me... thank you."
"Of course," said Nathaniel, and he continued walking away, in hopes of finding Adam.
As for Belle, she had chosen to simply wait in her bedroom for Adam to offer his apology, but as the night appeared, Belle started to worry about him.
"Where could he be?" She wondered, but then, to Belle's surprise, she heard his voice speaking to her
I take thee at thy word.
Call me but love, and I'll be new baptized.
Henceforth I never will be Romeo.
Belle couldn't help but chuckle as she recognized the words from her favorite Shakespeare play, and figured that Adam was hiding somewhere in her room.
What man art thou that, thus bescreened in night,
So stumblest on my counsel?
Once again, Belle could hear Adam's voice, but she couldn't see him.
By a name
I know not how to tell thee who I am.
My name, dear saint, is hateful to myself
Because it is an enemy to thee.
Had I it written, I would tear the... um...
"Could you help me in now, please?"
Belle walked over to her window, just like she had done her first night in the castle, and she found Adam hanging onto the edge.
"Adam?!" She exclaimed. "What are doing?"
"Well, it's certainly not birdwatching," muttered the young man, as Belle quickly brought him inside before he ended up like Gaston.
I should've climbed a damned tree instead!
"Adam, what on earth were you thinking trying something like that?" questioned Belle. "Do you realize what you could have done to yourself?"
An exhausted Adam collapsed onto Belle's bed, trying to get his strength back, and he replied, "Well, because, Belle... people always do crazy things... when they're in love."
While Belle became silent, the young prince sighed, and said, "Belle, I am so sorry for shouting at you... and for everything else that I've done..."
He then prepared to place his hand on her cheek, like he usually did, but Adam found himself hesitating, not knowing how Belle would react to him.
Suddenly, he felt her own hand touch his own, and watched as Belle pulled it towards her, allowing him to touch the side of her face.
"I'm sorry, too," apologized Belle. "I do want to marry you, Adam... just not the-"
"The person that I used to be, yes," finished Adam, gently stroking her face with his thumb. "I should not have let my uncle get under my skin, in the first place."
Belle then remembered what Nathaniel had said to her, but she decided to wait until he was finished to tell him.
"Also, I did not mean to lie to you about my virginity," continued Adam, with a facial look of regret. "It was a mistake, in the first place, and it's something that I can never take back... but I meant what I said about making your first time be as special and honorable as it's supposed to be."
He then slowly moved away from Belle, in order to show her the engagement ring, and as she looked at it, Adam said, "I never want to go back to being the person I used to be... and I know that, as long as we're together, it should never happen again... because whatever problems may come in the future, we can work it out together."
Remembering what he had been doing a few moments ago, Adam added, "But don't expect me to climb up here ever again... I nearly spent the rest of today doing that, and now, half of my body feels like pudding."
Belle started to giggle, and she said, "Well, I do love and appreciate the fact that you did that for me, but..."
"If you say that I did not have to, Belle, then I promise you that I will never read, let alone look, at that heart-aching book ever again."
Belle rolled her eyes, and then, she said, "Well... now that we've made peace with each other, I think you have something that belongs to me."
Looking at the ring in his hands, Adam smiled as he returned it to its rightful spot, and gently took ahold of her hand into his own.
"I am sorry for yelling at you, Belle, it's just that my uncle-"
"- is an irresponsible fool," finished Nathaniel, who had appeared at the doorway. "Sorry for not knocking first, but the door was already open, and-"
"Yes, I know," interrupted Adam, giving his uncle an unamused look. "What do you have to say to us now?"
"Well, actually, I already gave my apologies to Belle," answered Nathaniel, as he pulled out a folded piece of parchment while walking over to him. "And this is my way of apologizing to you, nephew."
To Belle's confusion - and Adam's surprise - Nathaniel started ripping it into several pieces, and after putting it inside a nearby waste basket, he said, "You were right about what you said earlier... as was I all those years ago... your mother would have simply wanted you to be happy."
Then, he added, "I would also like to apologize for the way I have acted towards you, Adam, since my arrival... I just assumed that you hadn't changed, that you were still a mirror image of your father."
"Why would you assume tha... oh, right," said Adam, now wishing that he'd known about his hands. "Well, if it had not been for Belle and her father, I probably would, but that is no longer the case... and while I accept your apology, I am still debating whether or not I should allow you to-"
Suddenly, Belle punched him in the shoulder.
"What? You think I would just-"
"Well, he is your mother's brother," pointed out Belle.
Adam frowned, and he added, "That may be true, but he's also the reason why I ended up drinking that wine, and-"
"Um, is this a bad time?"
Lumiere was now at the doorway, along with Plumette, and Adam replied, "Not exactly... um, is there anything wrong, my friend?"
"Oh, no, of course not," said Lumiere. "I just wanted to... well, actually, Plumette wanted to say-"
"Tomorrow, me and Belle are going to spend the day together," said Plumette. "While you, Master, have to spend time with Lumiere and, um... well, whoever else you can find."
Lumiere nodded his head, and added, "Uh-huh, it is what the French call, um... Enterrement de vie de fille, in regards to Belle... for you, Master, it is garçon instead of fille."
"Oh?" said Belle, now curious. "Well, that does sound interesting... and I even know where we can go to, Plumette."
"Wonderful, mademoiselle," replied the beautiful maid.
Adam had a slight frown on his face as he said, "I hope you do not plan on having Belle do anything ridiculous or embarassing, Plumette."
Belle rolled her eyes, and she said, "Oh, come on, Adam, what's the wor-"
"Ahhhhhtiddhshdttt!" cried Adam. "Do not say what I think you're about to say."
"I was only going to say what was the w-"
Adam shook his head, and muttered, "No, no, no... everytime you have said that sentence, something happens the next day, and I do not need anything else to happen that could have any sort of effect on the wedding."
Belle started to laugh, and she said, "You're being silly, Adam. What could possibly hap-"
Before she could finish speaking, Adam quickly covered her mouth with the palm of his hand, and said, "Belle, promise me that you will not say or think about any of those things for the rest of tonight... understand?"
Belle nodded her head, and Adam moved his hand away.
"Good... now, then, I would like to say a few words to you, Nathaniel, in my study regarding... things..."
"Of course, nephew," said Nathaniel, and while he walked out of the room, Adam kissed the top of Belle's head, giving her a warm smile.
"Just come back in one piece, alright?"
"Says the one who got attacked by wolves," replied Belle, giving him a smirk.
"Says the girl who got herself surrounded by wolves in the first place," reminded Adam.
"Says the beast who caused me to run away all because I looked at a rose."
While the two of them were playfully arguing, Lumiere and Plumette decided to leave them alone, not wanting to ruin their moment.
"Well, if you hadn't sneaked off to the West Wing in the first place," reminded Adam. "Then, I would not have had to-"
"Well, if you would have had better control of your temper," exclaimed Belle. "Then, maybe I wouldn't have had to-"
"My temper was just fine before you came in there," replied Adam.
Belle scoffed, and cried, "Are you joking or something? You nearly screamed at the top of your lungs that if I did not eat dinner with you, then I could not eat at all!"
Adam rolled his eyes, and replied, "That was because you said that you would rather starve than eat dinner with me."
"You took me as your prisoner!"
"Well, what did you think I would have you eat? A loaf of bread, and glass of water?"
"I wouldn't have been surprised."
Adam gave a sarcastic groan. "Oh, yes, of course... coming from the girl who thinks Romeo & Juliet is her absolute favorite."
"It is!"
"How have you not changed it after all of the books you've read so far in your library?"
"Maybe I just haven't found the right book just yet! There are still plenty of books that I haven't even..."
It's safe to say that this would continue on for quite some time, and once they finished laughing about it, Adam kissed Belle good-night before leaving her room.
As she started preparing herself to go to sleep, Belle began to wonder about what tomorrow would be like.
And, what is the worst that could-
"Belle! Don't think about it!"
"You don't even know 'what' I was thinking!"
"I'm serious, Belle, don't say or think what could possibly go wrong because... oh, come on!"