Thank you to all my readers for coming back to the new chapter!

Banzi, thank you for the compliment.

Guest, Eliana is the one in the middle in the shop during the Belle song. Adam will have to wait to remove the headmaster until the memories are restored.

Cristianqueenofegypt, yes he has.

Mustard Lady, I'm glad he waited too, would have made a terrible father before.

Guest #2, It might have been arranged, but at the end of the movie you see her happily hugging Cogsworth, while he is trying to push her away, though later he does embrace her. And yes as far as Adam is concerned his career wise fate has been sealed.

ImagineATale, I have something else in store for him. Do like the idea as you know from a PM.

Eternallyenchanted7, considering I am writing this story with the request of my children Gaston and LeFou will not be shipped in this. Personally I have nothing against gay pairing, maybe I should try it once in a separate story.

Ann: with all the misery he's been having he does deserve a break and some happiness.

Chapter 33

Tears were streaming down Eliana's cheeks after Gaston's words. "Gaston, I...I..."

He held up his hand, "It's alright, you don't have to. If I misunderstood you, I would like to offer you my sincere apologies. Besides as your sister kindly pointed out, I would be a burden."

Eliana took a hold of his hand, "You are no burden, she had no right to say that. Do you really mean it, you want to court me?"

Feeling slightly more confident, "I mean it, will you do me the honor?"

Not replying she just held him in an embrace.

"Is that a yes?"

"Yes, yes! You may court me." Eliana never felt happier. With a bright smile she took his hand and guided him back to her sisters, "Come I want to tell the others."

Gaston smiled, "Will you tell me one thing? Which one are you?"

"Does that matter?" She asked surprised.

Gaston laughed, "No but I prefer picturing your face in my mind whenever I think of you, instead one of your sisters."

This brought out a giggle, "We wouldn't want that do we? I am the middle one, Eliose is the oldest one and Elise is the baby as we like to tease her."

"That is better, I was afraid to think of you and see the wrong woman in my mind. I hope I didn't offend you too much with that question." Gaston asked.

"Well maybe a little, before you explained." She admitted. "But I am glad you asked, wouldn't want you to picture my rude sister, would we."

"Not that the nice one would have been much better. I'd prefer to think of you and only you." He was surprised to feel a kiss on his cheek.

"Thank you, now shall we go back?" Eliana really wanted to tell her sisters the good news.

"LeFou will keep them entertained, I want to enjoy this moment. I still can't believe that you are still interested in me, after all the things I've said and done."

"That doesn't matter. You know what I see? I see a good looking, confident man. Someone who is very resourceful when it comes to finding ways to do things that seem impossible. You may be stubborn beyond belief, but it is that stubbornness that has kept you from giving up after you lost your sight." She took his hand with both of hers. "You are stronger than you think, and that is a man to be proud of."

He couldn't believe his ears, well some of it he did believe. "You are right when you say I'm good looking." Gaston gave a teasing smirk.

Eliana laughed, "Ready to go back now?"

Gaston nodded, and as she lead him back he pictured her face in his mind.

When they returned to the group, Eliana was bursting with excitement to tell her sisters the good news.

"He asked me if he could court me!"

"That is amazing, I do hope you said yes." Elise told her sister. "He is all you talk about."

Eloise huffed, "For her sake she should have declined. What could he possibly give her?" Seeing the glare she received from both her sisters, she decided it would be best to say no more.

As the girls were arguing, LeFou turned to Gaston, "Congratulations I suppose."

"Thank you LeFou." Gaston smirked as he looked at his friend. "They sure make a lot of noise for rabbits don't you think?"

"You found out who she is."

Gaston let out a chuckle, "I did for the most part, she just had to tell me which one."

The arguing had finally stopped, Eliana turned her attention to Gaston. "I am going to tell mother the news, will you be at the tavern?"

"Yes, I need to freshen up a bit. Though that is rather obvious."

"What did happen to you, I mean, you look terrible." Eliana laughed.

"I fell into the washing fountain."

Eliana laughed, "No really what happened?" Getting nothing but the pouting face of Gaston she burst out in laughter. "You are not joking."

"No, I'm not."

"You go then, I'll see you in an hour."

Gaston just nodded and took off with LeFou. Eliana looked at her sisters. Eloise had a sour face that she would just ignore, Elise however smiled and looked happy for her.

Her mother would accept her choice she knew, her uncle however was having trouble just with her talking to him...

After returning to the tavern, the first thing Gaston did was make himself presentable again. As soon as he was satisfied, he walked back downstairs for a refreshing drink. He thought of Agathe and the question he wanted to ask her. He knew she followed everything around the rose, his best bet for contacting her would be talking to the flower. He stood up to go back upstairs.

After entering his room Gaston opened the door of the closet that hid the rose. "Agathe I need to ask you something. I was wondering about those that don't know about me, will their memories be returned?"

"That is a valid question. What made you think of it?"

"Madeline, a little girl in the village, she wanted me to read to her. She had no idea I was blind, it made me wonder." Gaston explained.

"They will be fine, they may not know, but they do treat you with decency. Just like with people who do not live here, they never even knew you. How could they treat you differently? As you recall the wording I used, 'Those who have shown respect in the past must continue to do so to regain what has been lost and when the majority has been swayed those on the outside will benefit'." Agathe clarified.

"Meaning those who never knew me will remember if most of the villagers are treating me respectfully. Clever."

Agathe laughed, "I could hardly send you to every village with a relative could I? This will solve that problem."

Gaston was thinking, "There are a few people posing a problem, Clothilde for example, she is married to Cogsworth, but a shrew of a woman. Second is the headmaster, Adam told me not to bother with him anymore, but…something doesn't feel right about that. I came here to try and then to just give up on the man after one attempt to talk with him."

"It is not for Adam to decide who to give up on, do you agree with him or do you think he deserves another chance?" Agathe asked.

"I don't know, he has had a grudge against me for twenty years now. He would have to let go of that for me to get anywhere with him, but I'll think about it."

Agathe nodded, "I'll take my leave, there is someone waiting for you downstairs."

Thinking it might be Eliana, Gaston closed the closet door and walked out of his room to meet her. When he stood at the bottom of the steps he heard Eliana's voice calling him, following the direction of the voice he soon found her.

"Gaston, I've told my mother and she has invited you for dinner. Would you like to join us this evening?" Even though she knew he couldn't see her see gave him her most pleading look.

He gave her his most dashing smile before nodding, "Of course, how could I ever refuse you."

"Would you mind going early, we could talk first. My mother has a few questions for you." Seeing the face of Gaston she laughed, "Nothing bad, I promise. She's mostly just curious what being blind is like."

"You could have told her to close her eyes." Gaston teased.

Eliana punched his shoulder, "That is not the same and you know it. I have wondered myself, mind telling me in advance?"

"You'll just have to wait, it is difficult to explain. I'd rather do it just once, but I might let you in on a little secret later." Gaston teased her. He was planning to at least tell her the truth, at least as much as he could. As he thought about it, he felt himself being pulled and followed the direction she indicated. Besides how bad could it be? Only one of the sisters was giving him a hard time, maybe he could change her mind.

Seeing her house in the distance Eliana started walking faster, her biggest worry was her older sister and uncle who would be joining later. She was sure he would change his mind when he saw how happy she was. Leading him inside she guided him to a chair to sit on while she called for her mother.

"Maman, I'm back and I've brought Gaston with me."

Her mother stepped around the corner, "That is wonderful, where is he? You didn't keep him standing somewhere did you?"

"Of course not."

"Ah, there he is. Eliana will you go help your sisters?"

"Yes maman."

"Thank you. Welcome monsieur Gaston. I would ask how you've been, but that is rather well known these days, isn't it. Would you like some tea?" She asked.

"No, I'm fine. Thank you for inviting me to dinner, that is very kind of you."

"No problem at all…"

As the conversation halted, Gaston remembered Eliana saying her mother was curious about his loss of sight. She was probably thinking of a way to ask about it without it being offensive, he thought. Deciding it might be best to just get it over with, he brought up the subject himself. "Eliana told me you had questions concerning my loss of sight." Hearing the small relieving sigh he knew he had been correct. "No need to be afraid to ask, I understand why you might have questions, especially if I'm courting your daughter."

"She was right, I didn't want to offend you." She admitted.

"No need for that Madame." He gave a reassuring smile. "I'm quite comfortable with it." So much so he'd rather stay this way, he thought to himself.

"Call me Amelie. What is it like?"

"In the beginning it was mostly confusing. I remember waking up and thinking it was still night. When I opened the curtains however, I felt the warmth of the sun, but everything was still as dark as before. That was when I panicked, luckily Adam and Belle were nearby. After that I mostly kept to myself and learned how to move around in my room. After a while I got used to it and tried to find ways to still do the things I liked doing." He sighed. "Of course some things are impossible, I do miss hunting."

Amelie nodded, "That must have been hard for you, it was the one thing you were most proud of."

"Belle and Adam did as much as they could for me. Adam owns a rather large estate and they closed off paths in the garden to make it possible for me to ride a horse on my own. I owe them a lot, Adam has given me my own room to which I will return when we leave here." Realizing how that must sound after the previous time he explained further. "I would like for Eliana to accompany me there when the times comes."

Amelie raised her eyebrows, "Where is that estate? I've never heard of one nearby."

"It is in the forest, only a few hours away. It is hidden and secluded, I'm not surprised you haven't heard of it. I would like to reassure you that Eliana would want for nothing, hard to believe all things considering, I know. Adam has told his servants to obey me as they do him, she would never have to worry herself. Though I would like for you to keep it secret, Adam is a very private man." Gaston hoped this would reassure the Madame that her daughter would be taken care of.

"Mother, dinner is ready. You said there would be a special guest…" Eloise turned around the corner and saw Gaston sitting there. "I wouldn't have bothered if I had known it would be you."

"Eloise! That is enough, set the table with your sister. Remember to set a plate for your uncle this time, he should be here any minute." Turning back to her guest, "I apologize."

"No need, I have heard far worse. She just needs some time to get used to it." Determined to leave the best impression he could, he reassured Madame Amelie.

She smiled, "Thank you for understanding. I think the young ladies are ready setting the table. How would you like for me to help you get there?"

"All you have to do is hold my arm and walk me there, when I'm in front of my seat, squeeze my arm so I know I can sit down." Gaston held out his arms as he explained.

Amelia took hold and did as instructed, and they reached the dinner table without trouble.

"Amelia! My apologies for being late, a few troublemakers this morning unfortunately delayed me today. Some people have no place in decent society." A muffled voice called from the other room.

"Brother, you must try to relax. Besides we have a guest, come here and meet him."

Finding the voice familiar Gaston looked in it's direction, blood running cold at the next word from the now clear voice.

"You!"

Plastering on a weak smile Gaston greeted Eliana's uncle, "Headmaster!"