Chapter 24 - Building a Bond

Not long after he had eaten dinner with Belle, Beast headed downstairs with a few books to put back in the library, and so that he could pick out some more. It was also an excuse to see Belle, as she would most likely be there. Where else would she be? She loved the library so much that she would spend every waking moment in it if she could.

As soon as he entered and started placing books back on the shelf, he did a quick sweep of the area, and spotted her sitting at a desk on the other side of the room. His assumption had been proven correct.

She was surrounded by stacks of books, and had three books open and sprawled out in front of her, along with several loose pieces of paper. She was practically taking up the whole table.

"Fancy meeting you here." Beast commented sarcastically as he walked over to her.

Belle had her head rested on her arm, and looked like she was ready to drop off. She looked up from the book she had her eyes on and smiled drowsily. "I can't keep away." She murmured.

"Are you sure you have enough books?" He joked, gesturing at the ensemble she had gathered.

She chuckled "I think I could do with a few more." She replied, playing along with his joke.

"What do you need them all for?" He questioned.

"Well, I was doing some research on magic and such." She replied.

"Learn any spells?" He asked.

"No, couldn't find any books on how to actually do magic for some reason. Most of these a just folklore." She explained. He could tell she was partly joking, as of course he wouldn't have any books on how to perform magic spells. "I just wanted to gain a better understanding of the curse that's been put on you all, so that I can be more of a help to you and the servants."

"You don't have to do that. It's not your responsibility to deal with. You shouldn't lose sleep over it." He replied.

"I'm not losing sleep. I'm just a little tired after going through so many books, it can really wear you out." She told him. "And besides, it's something that I'm going to have to deal with if I'm going to be living here. There has to be some way to break the curse, but so far I've come up with nothing." She murmured defeatedly. "Cogsworth was saying something about there being 'one way' but Lumiere cut him off."

"You really shouldn't worry about it." Beast reinforced his earlier point. It was something she didn't have to burden herself with. Plus, she couldn't know that love was the answer, or else it would scare her off. She would think that all his advancements were done just to save himself, when hardly any of them were. All he really wanted was to make a connection with her.

"But I do worry." She responded. "I'm worried about what's going to happen to everyone if I don't do something. There has to be something I can do."

"Even if there was something you could do, it's too late now. Stop trying to carry the weight of our problems on your shoulders. You don't owe it to us." He told her. "You can't fix what I've done."

She glanced down at the table for a moment, avoiding his gaze. "How exactly did all of this start? What cursed you?" She asked. "Was it an object? A wish you made that backfired? A witch? A warlock?"

"An Enchantress." He responded.

"Did it have anything to do with the rose?" She continued questioning. "Did you steal it from her?" She asked, referencing her father's punishment, and how he had treated her father's crime as being very similar to what had lead up to his own punishment.

"No to both of those questions. I used to think that it had everything to do with the rose, that it was all solely down to it. But now... I realise that the only real cause for all of this was me." He explained. Beast then sighed and rubbed his neck uncomfortably. It felt like his clothes were getting tighter, suffocating him. "Look, I really don't want to talk about it. It hurts to even think about it, of what happened that day, what I went through... I'd rather not relive those painful memories."

She gave him a sympathetic look "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to push you. I shouldn't have brought up." Belle apologised.

"No, it's fine. You were only trying to help, that's all. I greatly appreciate that." He responded. He then looked around at the table for a moment, trying to find something, anything to change the subject. That's when he caught sight of a book that didn't have anything to do with magic. He picked it up and turned it around so that she could see the cover. "Leonardo Da Vinci, huh?"

"I was looking at some of his inventions." She explained. "All of his sketches and plans are really quite fascinating."

Beast looked down at the pieces of paper that were littered across the desk, and picked up one. It looked like an exact replica of one of Leonardo's designs. His winged flight machine to be exact. As he looked closer, all of the pieces of paper had sketches of Leonardo's invention on them. "Did you draw all of these?" He asked.

Belle nodded. "Yes. I like to sketch out these kind of things." She replied. "Sometimes I do a bit of inventing myself."

As he shifted through the pile, he noticed one sketch that didn't look like an invention at all. It looked more like a drawing.

"Wait, don't look at that one!" She blurted out.

Too late. He had already picked it up and was examining it. It quickly dawned on him that it was a pencil sketch of him. Well, it was just his head. She had gotten down the mane-like fur, his large ram horns, the fur that surrounded and masked his face, and his too human looking eyes. She had drawn him smiling. It looked like a genuine smile, both corners of his lips turned up. He looked rather happy in this depiction.

His silence was making her anxious. "I'm sorry, I know it's really bad. It's so crude... I should have just thrown it away. I can draw machines just fine, but anything else I'm just terrible at."

Beast lowered the piece of paper and looked at Belle. He then smiled at her, which judging by her facial expression, it surprised her a great deal. "What are you talking about? I think this a very good drawing." He responded. "And I hate looking at myself, so you should take that as a massive compliment."

"You really mean that?" She asked.

"Of course. You got the details of the fur down, as well as the horns. And the eyes? They're the best part, there's so much emotion in them. I think it's brilliant."

She smiled brightly. "Well, I'm glad you like it."

"I do." He stated. He then turned the drawing around and showed it to her, so that she could compare her sketch to the real thing. "Did you do it from memory?"

She nodded. "Yes. I thought I might try drawing you because... Well, you don't see something like you very often." She explained. "I just thought it was really bad as I'm not much of an artist. That's my father's department."

"Well, I think you're a good artist." He stated. "You captured me rather well. And I'm quite honoured that you'd want to draw me, when... Well, I'm not exactly all that great to look at." He murmured.

"It's not that bad." Belle replied. "You're really not as ugly as you think. If you were, then I wouldn't have drawn you."

It was nice to hear that she thought that about him, but he didn't believe it. He thought she was just saying that to be nice, to make him feel better about himself. She knew from just being around him that he hated everything about his appearance. "Are you sure you didn't take any liberties? Tried to make me look slightly less assaulting on the eyes?"

Belle shook her head. "No, I drew you how you look."

"Is that really what I look like when I'm smiling?" He asked. Maybe she did mean what she said after all. He really wasn't that bad to look at? Maybe she was saying that because she was used to him a little more now.

She nodded. "Yes. Your face just lights up. It's quite sweet." She told him. "You should smile more often."

"Maybe I will." He replied. He thought he had been doing it enough as it is, but when he thought about it, he hadn't really smiled at all for about ten years, so a couple of smiles thrown Belle's way were a lot compared to how long he had spent completely miserable.

Beast put the drawing back down on the desk. "Did you say you like inventing earlier?" He then asked, as he realised that he had completely ignored her while he went through her sketches.

"I do. I don't make stuff like this obviously, but I have made a few things, just to make life a little easier." Belle replied. "Here, let me show you." She added, digging into her pouch that she had wrapped around her waist more often than not, along with a tool belt of some kind. It seemed to be interchangeable with whatever dress she wore. From within the pouch she retrieved a crumpled up piece of paper, which she then handed to him.

Beast stared at it for a moment. It looked like a barrel, on the surface of a small body of water, filled with clothes. There was an arrow pointing that the barrel would be pulled round the edge of the water, while it would rotate in a circulation motion, which was indicated by another arrow. He couldn't really make sense of the contraption, but he was sure Belle would explain it. "What is this?" He questioned curiously.

"I call it a washing machine." She replied. "I made it so that I could wash the laundry without having to do it by hand, so that I could free up more time to read." She explained. "I managed to build it and test it out in the village. The barrel was placed in the water, but wasn't completely submerged in it, and then I used a donkey to pull it round the water, so that the barrel could rotate and all of the clothes could be washed during its spin cycle."

She sounded really enthusiastic about her invention. The joy on her face as she explained how it worked was a big indicator too.

"Did it work?" He asked.

"Yes. But the villagers didn't approve." She replied, looking a little disheartened.

"What happened?"

"While I was doing the laundry, I tried to teach a girl to read. But as you know, the villagers don't like the fact that I can read, so they definitely weren't happy when I tried to teach someone else. So, they decided to publicly humiliate me, and tipped all of my clothes out on the ground. By the time I collected them all up, they were more dirty than when I started." She finished, sighing deeply.

"Sounds to me that they don't like progress." He commented.

"They don't." She confirmed.

"Well, I think it's a great idea." He told her. "Genius in fact."

She smiled. "I'm glad you think so. You're the only one that really understands."

"Do you think you could build something like this here?" He asked.

"I don't know, it depends really. I'd need something to put the clothes in, and a water source, and not to mention something to pull it. I had everything I needed at the village." She explained. "Why, do you need something to wash your clothes?"

"No, I don't take mine off very often. I was thinking more about your clothes." He replied. "I'd just like to free up some of the servants time so they weren't working constantly. They like doing it, to keep themselves busy, but I just think they should spend more time with each other, before they lose whatever time they have left. And if you need your clothes washing, they'd happily do it, but it would only eat up more of their time."

"I see. It's nice that you're thinking of them and keeping their best interests in mind." Belle responded. "I'll see what I can do, have a look around the castle to find things I can utilise. Maybe I'll upgrade my design a little so that I can make it work with what I've got. And if not, I'll just wash my clothes by hand myself, that way they won't have to bother."

"Hopefully you'll manage to build a washing machine here, I'd really like to see it in action." Beast stated.

"It would be good if I could build something here where it would be appreciated." Belle agreed.

"Well, if you need any help with it, then just ask and I'll do what I can." He told her.

"Thanks." She replied gratefully.

Beast was quiet for a moment and rubbed his arm. "I was also wondering if you maybe wanted to read Romeo and Juliet to me."

Belle raised an eyebrow in confusion. "But I thought you hated it."

"I do. I just want to give it another chance because you like it so much. I thought if I heard you read it, it might change my view on it a little." He explained.

"I'd be happy to!" She replied. "I've always wanted to read it and enjoy it with someone else." She added. "Now where is it? I think I left it under the pile of sketches." She muttered to herself, reaching over and moving the pieces of paper out of the way to reveal the book hidden underneath.

She picked it up and sat back down in her chair. Beast walked off and pulled over another chair, placing it down beside her and sitting down comfortably in it. "I don't expect you to force yourself to enjoy it just for my sake." She told him as she opened up the book.

"I won't. But I haven't read it in a while, so who knows what will happen. Maybe I will end up enjoying it, maybe I'll end up hating it even more." He replied.

"Just promise you won't scoff at the romantic parts."

"I'll try my hardest." He said with a sly smile.

She frowned at him, and he chuckled in response. "I'm teasing you. I wouldn't have asked you to read it to me if I wasn't going to give it a fair chance."

Belle glanced down at the pages and then looked back at him. "Are you ready?" She asked.

Beast nodded. Colour him surprised, but he was actually looking forward to this. Just the prospect of Belle reading to him was exciting enough. She could read much faster than him, since she didn't have to worry about ripping any pages. And her voice was nice to listen to.

Belle looked back at the pages and cleared her throat before beginning. "Two households, both alike in dignity, in fair Verona, where we lay our scene, from ancient grudge break to new mutiny, where civil blood makes civil hands unclean. From forth the fatal loins of these two foes, a pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life; Whose misadventured piteous overthrows, do with their death bury their parents' strife..."

"...For never was a story of more woe, than this of Juliet and her Romeo." Belle finished. She closed the book and held it close to her chest.

Beast had gotten settled during the reading. He had has arms crossed on the table, with his head rested on them. He had been gazing at Belle throughout the whole thing.

"What did you think?" She asked.

"Honestly? It wasn't as bad as I remembered it." He replied. "I wouldn't say I'm a fan of it, but... Well, it's good. Your narration made me appreciate it more. Just your enthusiasm while you're reading... I think you could make me like any book I hate just by reading it."

She smiled "I'm glad to hear that."

"There are still a lot of books out there that are so much better, though." He stated.

"I can't deny that." She responded. "It might take me a while to work through all these books to find one I like more."

"I'll help you pick out some good ones if you like." He told her.

"I would like that." She replied. "Maybe tomorrow, though."

"Yes, I agree. It's getting rather late. We should probably call it a night." Beast stated, rising from his chair.

Belle stood up as well, closing the three books she had left open on the desk and adjusting the stacks of other books ever so slightly to make her work space look more organised. "What time is it exactly?" She asked.

"I don't know, you'll have to ask Cogsworth. He always knows what time it is." He replied.

"How does he read his clock face?" She questioned.

Beast opened his mouth to say something, but paused when he realised he didn't have an answer. "I... Don't actually know. I've never thought about that."

She laughed "Maybe you should ask him. Sounds like he's got some sort of trick up his sleeve."

"Well, I'm going to head to bed. Thanks for reading to me again, I fully enjoyed it." He said.

"No problem. When do you plan on reading your favourite book to me?" She asked him.

"When I find it. It's hidden around here somewhere." He replied. "Plus I need to get a little better at handling books with care."

"If you're worried about taking too long to get through it, I really don't mind. You can take as long as you need to read to me." She told him.

"Then I'll read to you as soon as I get the chance." He responded. "Now, I really should get to bed."

"Alright. I'll be heading up soon too, I just need to clean up a bit before I go. I'll see you in the morning."

"Goodnight." Beast said to her.

"Goodnight." Belle replied.

Beast walked out of the library and headed up the stairway towards the West Wing, but paused halfway when a thought came into his head. Belle knew about inventing, and mentioned something about her father making clocks. He recalled his old, forgotten playroom, and his broken music box that was still sitting in there. The music box had crossed his mind of few times over the years. Whenever he had thought of his mother, he wished he could have listened to the music box, so that the tune would sooth him, and help him miss her a little less.

Maybe Belle would know how to fix it. He'd like to listen to it again, at least once. Even if she didn't know, it was definitely worth asking.

He'd have to look into it tomorrow. For now, he just wanted to go to bed, after such a tiring, eventful, but joyful day. He had never felt so alive.

Once he got back to his room, he removed his jacket and climbed into bed immediately, eager to end the day so that he could wake up early in the morning, and start all over again. Tomorrow was another day. Another he could spend with Belle.

The thought of possibly having a music box to listen to tomorrow night lulled him to sleep. He could almost hear the long forgotten tune as he drifted off into slumber.

Beast woke up early the next day. Normally, he would lie in bed for a while and refuse to get up. But that wasn't the case now the Belle was here. She was the reason he got up in the morning. She was the reason he kept on living.

He got out of bed straight away, donned his jacket and headed downstairs. He then ventured to his old playroom to retrieve the music box.

The playroom was just the same as he left it. It must have been about eight years since he went in there, and during that amount of time it had collected even more dust, as well as some more cobwebs. The music box was located at the back of the room, where he had put it. He avoided the toys that littered the floor and approached the music box, picking it up and blowing off the dust that had landed on it.

Beast held it in his paws for a moment and smiled fondly. The thought of getting it fixed was rather exhilarating. He couldn't wait to show it to Belle.

He wondered if she was awake yet.

"Morning." A voice behind him said, catching him off guard and startling him a little.

He turned around, and saw Belle standing in the doorway, adoring her red dress once again. She was lacking her cape this time, but had her tool belt and pouch strapped to her waist. She glanced around at the playroom for a moment, and then looked directly at him. "I saw you come in here and I thought I may as well greet you." She told him. "How are you?"

"I'm good, thank you. What about yourself?"

"I'm good too." She replied. "I also wanted to let you know that when I went to bed last night, I stayed up for a bit and worked on my washing machine design. I've updated it quite a bit, but I'm still not sure if I'll actually be able to build it."

"Oh well, even if you can't, at least you have an upgraded design now which is at least something." He responded.

Belle lingered in the doorway, her eyes darting around the room again. "What is this place?" She asked curiously.

"It's my old nursery and playroom." He replied. "You can come in if you like." He then added. He could tell she didn't want to intrude. Last time she went into one of his private areas, he screamed at her and attacked her. He wondered if that played on her mind, if she was a little wary of him because of it. Was she worried about him snapping?

Belle stepped inside and bent down to take a closer look at the rocking horse beside the door. "It looks like its seen better days." She commented, taking her eyes off the rocking horse and looking at the other toys, as well as the rest of the room that was lacking any sort of care.

"Yes, it has. I haven't had much use for this room in some time." He responded.

"Why did you come in here then?" She questioned.

"I came to get this." He stated, holding up the music box.

Belle came over to examine it more closely. "I thought you might be able to fix it, since you're good with machinery. You also mentioned that your father makes clocks, so I assumed you might have picked up a few things, like how to repair a broken clock, or in this case, a broken music box. It's all just cogs and springs, right? Well, I assume so, I don't really know that much." He explained.

She looked at the music box and then looked up at him. "My father likes to make music boxes." She told him. "I help him with construction and repairs. I pass him the tools and pieces he needs, and sometimes I know what he needs before he does."

"Really? Well, that's brilliant. Your skills are even better than I hoped. Do you think you'd be able to repair this on your own?" He asked. "If you want to that is, you don't have to, not if you're busy."

He didn't want her to feel like she had to.

Belle took the music box from his paws and ran her fingers along the sun pattern that had been painted on it. She took hold of the handle and gave it a quick turn. She then held it up to her ear and listened to the sound of the inner mechanisms as they attempted to turn. "I could definitely take a crack at it." She responded.

"How long do you think it would take?"

"An hour. Maybe two, it depends if I can find what's wrong with it. It sounds like the cogs are stuck, maybe one of them can't turn properly." She muttered. "I might have to skip breakfast."

"You shouldn't miss breakfast just for my sake. How about I help you repair it? I can pass you the tools you need or the pieces you end up taking out. And if we do end up running into breakfast, I can arrange for the servants to bring us some food while we work." Beast suggested.

"That sounds like a good idea. I'd appreciate the help, that way I can get it fixed quicker." Belle replied. "Let's head over to the library, we can start work on it there. We'll sit at another table so that I don't have to clear the one I was working at yesterday."

And so, Beast and Belle headed over to the library and got settled down at one of the tables. Belle set to work on the music box, taking it apart piece by piece, laying every cog and spring on the desk until the music box was completely empty. She had a tiny set of tools that she carried around set out in a row. She asked him to pass her a specific one each time, which he was obliged to do so.

Eventually, after examining the pieces, she came across the source of the problem. Her theory had been correct, there was a cog that had become worn and bent, meaning that it couldn't turn properly, and ended up jamming the whole thing. But she managed to bend it back into shape, and all that was left to do was to put everything back in.

They had missed breakfast at that point, but Beast had gone to quickly fetch a plate full of biscuits, which they shared.

After passing tools and pieces over and over again, their combined efforts led to the music box being complete. Belle stood up and took a step back from her work. "I think I've done it."

Beast shot up, as he had been leaning lazily forwards for the last half hour. But despite his position, he had been invested in her work the entire time.

Belle closed the lid and held it up to him. "Would you like to give it a turn, see if it will work?" She asked, offering it up to him.

"I think you should do the honours. After all, you did all the work. I just passed you things." He replied.

"But it's your music box."

"Why don't we do it together then?" He suggested.

"That sounds reasonable." She responded.

The two took hold of the handle and gently turned it three times. They then let go and Belle placed the music box on the table as the crank began to rotate backwards. They waited with bated breath, hoping and praying that their hard work wasn't all for nothing. A soft, soothing tune began to play.

Beast felt his mouth stretch into a large smile. It was like he was being hit by a wave of calmness, that washed over his body and left him feeling refreshed. He flashed back to the days of his youth, where he felt young and alive. He felt that way now, hearing that blissful tune. He stared at the music box and couldn't stop himself from quietly humming along. That hum quickly developed into singing, and he uttered the words under his breath. "Days in the sun, where your life has barely begun. Not until my own life is done, could I ever leave you..." He then turned to Belle, who was smiling up at him, and how happy he was. His smile was so wide that his cheeks were starting to hurt. He felt a little embarrassed about breaking out into song in front of her. He should have known she would have been able to hear him, as he was standing right next to her.

"That's a sweet song." She commented. "To go along with such a lovely melody."

"It is." He agreed. "Someone I deeply cared about used to sing it to be before bed." He told her. He felt like he could share that information with Belle. He just didn't want to state that it was his mother he was referring too. It would be too painful for him to bring her up, as it would be like opening up old wounds.

"It's a nice lullaby. They must have really loved you."

Beast nodded. "More than anything."

"I caught my father singing a song about my mother. It was touching, just like the one you just sung. But as soon as I entered the room he stopped." She opened up to him. She seemed deeply troubled by it. There was clearly some suffering she and her father had endured at one point or another.

He was about to ask her about her mother, but stopped himself. He didn't like to talk about his own, and whatever had happened to Belle's must have been something traumatic. He didn't want to talk about it, and he doubted she would either. So he remained silent.

The music box stopped playing. The two shared a glance after the music died.

"Thank you for fixing it." He said gratefully.

"It was my pleasure." She replied. "Is there anything else around the castle that's in need of repair?"

"Where do I begin?" He chuckled. "The whole place is falling apart. Are you sure you're up to the task?"

"I'd like to work on something. I'm not really doing anything." She responded. "Maybe put a smile on the servants' faces."

If she was keen on fixing something else in the castle, then he'd be able to provide her with something. But what?

Then it hit him. "There is one room you might like to work on. It will be a bit of a challenge, but if you think it will be worth it, then I can show it to you."

"Sure, I'd like to see it." She agreed. "Lead the way."

Beast led her out of the library and in the direction of the entrance hall. He left the music box there, but intended on collecting it and putting it in his room later.

Belle seemed to be monitoring his walk pattern, and how confident he was in his stride. "You've gotten a lot better at walking." She commented "How are your injuries doing? I forgot to ask you earlier. I haven't given you a check-up since yesterday."

"They're doing just fine. They've completely healed." He replied.

"Your recovery time is remarkable." She commented. "Do you know how you managed to do that?"

"I honestly have no clue." He responded.

"Well, I'd say it's a blessing."

They reached the entrance hall, and Beast continued to lead her over to the ballroom. "Have you seen this room before?" He asked.

"No, I don't think so. I haven't had a chance to look around all of the castle. There's just so much to see."

"I don't think I've seen all of it and I live here!" He responded. He was joking obviously, there were just some corners of the castle he didn't visit very often, and for the life of him he couldn't remember what they looked like. "It seems to go on forever. A maze of corridors and rooms." He added, as they reached the ballroom. "Why don't you go take a look inside?" He suggested.

Belle nodded and headed into the ballroom. She stopped directly in the centre and spun around, taking all of the scenery in with a quick twirl and a sweeping look. She then glanced back at him, and raised an eyebrow when she saw that he was still standing outside.

"Aren't you coming in?" She asked.

"No, I uh... I'd rather stay here, in the doorway. Something traumatic happened in this room that I want to avoid reliving." He responded. "Sorry, I just... I just can't."

"It's fine. I understand." She replied. He was grateful that she didn't push him to explain himself, she saw that it pained him, so she moved on and didn't pry.

He just couldn't stand to be in that room, where it happened. Where he turned into this... Thing. He thought about that dreadful day enough as it is.

His only reason for being there was that he thought Belle might like it. He would have stayed well away if she hadn't showed an interest in giving the castle some tender loving care.

Beast could see the inside of the room well enough from where he was anyway. Some of the chandeliers were lying on the ground, covered in sheets of cloth and layers of dust. The windows were dirty, hardly allowing any light to shine in. The floor was filthy, it hadn't been mopped in over a decade, and the corners of the room had candle wax dripped down the walls and on the floor from the burnt out candles, there wicks were barely visible. The whole room smelt musty, and was dark and dimly lit. The room that had once held events of mass celebration had the life sucked out of it, leaving it an empty, hollow shell.

Belle gazed up at the windows, and then looked over at the fallen chandeliers. "What was it like before?" She asked.

Beast watched her as she walked around, examining some of the candles. He closed his eyes tightly and tried to picture the ballroom in its heyday. "It was magnificent." He stated, the image in his head becoming clearer. "Everything was cleaned to perfection, the floors, the walls, the pillars, making the whole room sparkle, in the sunlight and the moonlight. Whatever time of day it was, light would always shine through the windows, making the room glow brightly, even without candlelight. The crystals hanging from the chandeliers would sparkle, sometimes giving off a rainbow affect. Other times, they would almost resemble stars, twinkling in the night sky." He described it to her. "But it wasn't just the room that was special, it was the feeling that it gave you when you were in it. You could dance in here, and the music would take over your body. You would lose yourself in the music, and yet you would feel in complete control at the same time. You have such a wide space to use, to be free to do whatever you want. The moments that you spent in here would make you feel truly alive."

Beast opened his eyes, and noticed that Belle was now standing in front of him, her eyes wide and sparkling in amazement and wonder. "It sounds wonderful. I wish I could have seen it." She murmured.

"I wish you could have seen it too." He replied.

He saw a spark of ambition in her eyes. "I'm going to do all I can to restore it. I want to make it look exactly like it was, how you just described it to me. I want to see it look like that with my own eyes." She declared.

"You're welcome to do that. I'm sure the servants will gladly assist you." He responded. "But I can't have any part in it I'm afraid. I'd like to help you clean it up, but I can't. What happened in this room haunts me, I can't be in it."

"I completely understand." She replied. "But I promise you that you will be able to admire it just as much from the doorway once I'm finished with it. You'll be able to see it shine from across the hall."

There was a fire in her, there was no doubt about that. "I believe you. I know you'll make it look just as good, if not better than it was before." He responded.

"Now I have to see it through to the end and live up to expectations."

He knew all about expectations. The servants had high expectations for him, they strongly believed that he could break the curse. Although their expectations were impossible to meet as they seemed to keep growing, always out of his reach. Now that Belle was here, their expectations were even higher.

"You put that on yourself. So no pressure." Beast told her. "I'll leave you to it." He stated, turning and walking away.

Despite the fact that he had grown to strongly dislike the ballroom, he couldn't wait to see how Belle would do it up. But whatever she was going to do, he knew that she would do it justice.

A/N - Thank you so much for over 100 reviews! I've never gotten this many on my own before, but I once did when I was in a collab. The support is just amazing and can never thank you enough.