It was 2:00 a.m. Gaston left the tavern to the usual accompaniment of his friends waving and calling goodbye.

He was in a good mood as he walked home. Things were finally going his way. So certain was he of Belle's answer that he had bragged about it to all who would listen. "She was just playing hard to get," he'd explained. "She didn't want to seem too easy. But secretly she was in love with me all along." The villagers had nodded. Of course, that explained everything. No girl in her right mind would turn down Gaston.

I always get what I want in the end, he thought cheerfully.

His thoughts were interrupted by a sudden, blinding flash of light, and a magical shimmer in the air. Instinctively he reached for his gun. But as the glow faded, he saw before him a beautiful, golden-haired woman in flowing robes.

"Fear not," she said. "I am an enchantress. I perform wondrous spells, dispense justice, and reward the worthy."

Gaston was intrigued. "Reward the worthy, eh? Well, no one's more worthy than me," he said, bowing modestly. "I'm a hero. I personally saved the village from a monster!"

"Really?" said the Enchantress. "Pray, tell me all about it."

Gaston sat down on a large rock and prepared to awe his listener. "It was a ferocious beast, with sharp claws and dripping fangs. It would have killed everyone in the village! But I tracked it to its castle and captured it."

"Impressive," commented the Enchantress, raising her eyebrows.

"Isn't it though?" agreed Gaston. He had always known he was special and destined for great things. And now, a beautiful enchantress had chosen him on whom to bestow magical rewards! Things were just as they should be.

"I'm surprised that you didn't simply kill this beast, if it's so dangerous," the Enchantress remarked.

Gaston shifted uncomfortably. How to cast this in the best light? "There's a girl I want to marry. She's giving me her answer tonight," he explained. "And she...well, she's not totally in her right mind, to put it mildly. She has lots of strange ideas. For some reason, she cares about this monster. Doesn't want it to die. She's soft-hearted that way. So, I let it live, just to make her happy." Not bad, thought Gaston, admiring his own cleveness.That sounded really convincing.

"I see," said the Enchantress. "Tell me, young hero: if you were granted one wish, what would it be?"

Gaston thought about it. Things were already going so well for him. Was there a way to make his life even more perfect? He smiled as he imagined marrying Belle, with all the villagers cheering, always knowing that he was bound to win the most beautiful girl in town.

Then he frowned. He pictured Belle spending her evenings in the cage in the basement, choosing the Beast's company over his, leaving him alone as though he were still single. She might marry him, true, but in the privacy of their home, would she really act like a devoted wife?

He had promised that if she married him, he wouldn't harm the Beast, and she could spend time with the creature and keep it comfortable. Maybe it wasn't such a good deal after all. Thinking about it, he realized that he had practically given her permission to be unfaithful to him. Gaston didn't like that idea at all. He wanted his wife to pay attention to him, not some filthy animal. He should be the center of her world.

"Well?" prodded the Enchantress.

Gaston chose his words carefully. "To be honest, Enchantress, I'm really not comfortable having that thing in my house. I let it live to make my girl happy, but really, it's very dangerous. What happens when we have babies? The Beast eats babies, you know."

"I understand," said the Enchantress. "So what exactly do you wish?"

"Well, there's two things, actually," said Gaston. "First, I would wish that after we were married, maybe the Beast could meet with some kind of fatal accident. Just to keep my family safe, you understand," he added quickly. "And second, maybe you could help my girl see reason. Like I said, Belle is soft-hearted. She's caught up in saving this monster - she doesn't understand how dangerous it is. Maybe you could turn her attention to more important things, like her wifely duties to me," he finished hopefully.

The Enchantress looked thoughtful. "You want the Beast to die, without you personally being involved, and you want Belle to be a loving, devoted, obedient wife to you despite his death."

Gaston was amazed at her insight. "Yes! That's exactly right! But I guess that would be too complicated, huh?"

The Enchantress smiled. "You are quite a singular individual, Gaston. I think you're worthy of an elaborate spell that will bring you everything you so justly deserve."

Gaston preened. "Really? I've always thought so myself, but it's nice to hear you say it."

"I will meet you tonight at your home, when Belle comes to give you her answer," the Enchantress said, and vanished.

Gaston grinned. He could hardly wait for the next night to arrive.