Beauty and the Beast

By Kennie Gajos

A/N

Just a short chappy to get a few things out of the way.  I would post more but I'm sick.  *pouts*  I hate being ill.

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Over the next few days, Willow got to know Georges pretty well.  Rather than leaving her in the hands of one of his stylists he had decided to take her onboard himself, insisting that she was one of the few clients he had ever had who actually exhibited 'style'.  Willow found that particularly hard to believe but opted to let it slide as Georges had also stopped calling her 'darling', something which one of his flunkies confided that he only did to people he held the utmost respect for.  On the other hand however, she barely had time to see Thiery and she found that she missed him acutely.  It was difficult to make the transition from practically a recluse to the hub of attention and she began to understand just what it was that Thiery was sacrificing so that she could be with her friends for Christmas.  Something that he knew would make her happy.

And there was something that gave her considerable pause for thought.  Everything that Thiery had done since she had agreed to stay here appeared to have been done with the sole intention of making her happy.  And if that wasn't a juxtaposition then she didn't know what was.  By imprisoning her he had made her unhappy, but had then attempted to make amends.  The only reason that she could think of was that he had a nefarious plot in mind… something that she really doubted!

Finally it came to the last day of Georges' stay and there was just one room left to complete.  Thiery's.

Willow knocked gently on Thiery's door.  It swung open and there he stood.  Willow gazed up at him, wondering how she could have ever been afraid of him.

"Yes?"  Thiery asked.

Willow shifted nervously.  "So, Georges and co. are leaving tomorrow."

Thiery nodded.

"There's just one more thing I'd like them to do before they go."  She explained.

"What is that?"

Willow peered beyond him into the wreckage of his room.  "I'll supervise them really closely.  Make sure they don't break… anything."

"No Willow."  Thiery told her.

"You can't carry on living like this Thiery."

Thiery frowned.  "I can do whatever I wish."

"Where do you sleep?"  Willow demanded to know.

Thiery glanced quickly at a bundle of blankets in a corner.  Willow followed his gaze and her resolve face softened a little.

"You see what I mean?"  She asked.  "You deserve a bed, like any other person."

"I am not a person."  Thiery reminded her.

Willow smiled gently at him.  "You are to me."

Thiery growled exasperatedly and stood aside.  Willow beckoned and Georges and five of his Team shot inside, quickly followed by Willow.

Thiery growled again and slammed the door shut.

The Team members examined the room, giving little whimpers of dismay whenever they found something that had been particularly destroyed.

Willow positioned herself in front of the Candle and motioned for Thiery to join her.  She positioned a hand in front of her and a glimmering golden shield enclosed the two of them and the Candle.  Once it was in place she relaxed.

Georges clapped his hands for attention.  "Okay darlings!"  He announced.  "This isn't unfixable.  Get to work."

Thiery watched, amazed as the Team members set about repairing the room with magic.  A chair leg shot towards them and he automatically ducked, but it bounced off Willow's shield and reattached itself to the chair.  He glanced at Willow to see if she had noticed but found her attention was focused completely on the Candle.

"There's not much left."  She whispered.

Thiery shrugged.  "There's enough."  He focused on what the others were doing to his room and had to admit that he was impressed.  One of them finished repairing his bed and turned to the portrait above the mantel.  He snarled and then jumped as something touched his arm.  He looked down at Willow's hand then up at her face.

"I'll move it to the attic as soon as they're done."  She told him.

Thiery growled a little. He supposed that was better than it staying there to mock him.

The group finished their work and left the room.  Willow and Thiery turned to face one another behind the shimmering gold of the shield.

"Thank you."  Willow said, staring straight into Thiery's eyes.

Thiery's world felt like it had just gained wings for some reason, like he was floating on air.

"No."  He corrected her.  "Thank you."

Willow blushed as she dismantled her shield and turned to go.

"Willow."  Thiery said, stopping her in her tracks.  "I… It's my turn to make dinner tonight."

Willow nodded and left the room.

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A/N

Hey, guess what!  It's a Scooby Christmas next!