Author's Note: Hello, hello, lovely readers! Long time no update. In sincerely apologize for not updating this story in quite some time, but at long last here is the next chapter! PLEASE NOTE, I have taken the liberty of editing this entire work, so some minor writing from the previous chapters have changed. Two more important aspects of the story have been changed, however:

1) I've given our hero, Adam a courtesy title ("Viscount Savoy") to make the peerage/nobility aspect of this story a bit more accurate. In this case, a courtesy title is a subsidiary title (a secondary and/or tertiary title a peer can hold in addition to their highest ranking title) the peer's heir apparent can use. For the purposes of this story, Adam's father, the Earl of Villeneuve, also holds the subsidiary title of the Viscount Savoy. Adam, being his son and heir, can be known by that subsidiary title as a courtesy (ie. Viscount Savoy, or Lord Savoy). For a more thorough explanation: wiki/Subsidiary_title

2) I've changed the name of Adam's country estate from Theron to Elham. I don't really have an explanation for this. Theron wasn't really working for me, and Elham is an actual town near Chartham/Canterbury so I decided to use it.

As always, thanks for your continued support, reviews, follows, and favourites.

Stay safe, and enjoy!


Kent

March 1917


The world came back to Adam in a blur.

There was a blinding light above him and something soft beneath. He was no longer in his heavy uniform, and it felt as if a weight had been lifted off of him.

He tried to move in this strange new world but found he couldn't without great pain. He must have let out a cry, because a figure came rushing over. The face was a blur, but its voice familiar.

"Captain Savoy? Thank God, we didn't know if you would wake." The voice echoed off the walls, becoming muddled in his ears.

"Where am I?" He asked, but his lips had trouble forming the words.

The words must have come out intelligible enough because the figure answered, "You're in Kent, sir. You're home."

Home. It took a few minutes for the word to register in his ears.

Home. Elham. Belle!

He had to see her right away. Did she know he was here?

"Don't get up, sir," the voice said, becoming a little clearer. "You need to rest your body. The extent of your injuries is not yet known."

Injuries? That must be why his leg was hurting a terrible thing.

"Drink," the voice said, and Adam felt a cold glass pressed against his lips. He drank the liquid greedily, his head swimming with dizziness. He closed his eyelids for a moment… but found he did not have the strength to re-open them.

Adam didn't know how long it had been since he was last awake, but when he opened his eyes again dim lamp lights had replaced the blinding light from before. It was night, he soon realized. The window above him let in the light from the moon, drenching his body in silver.

A white sheet was pulled around his bed, separating him from the rest of the room. He could hear the sounds of laboured and quiet breathing, and he realized was not along in this room.

Footsteps approached, and a head popped out from behind the white curtain.

It was Dr. Nichols.

"You seem much more alert, sir," the doctor remarked. "That's good." Instead of his usual suit and long white jacket, he donned an olive-green uniform adorned with the rank of a major. Dark circles had formed under his eyes.

Dr. Nichols drew near him tentatively. "How do you feel?"

"Ghastly," Adam confessed weakly. His throat felt dry as a desert, but his leg seemed to be the main source of the pain.

The doctor nodded. "I suspected as much." A beat passed. "What do you remember?"

"Remember?"

"How did you receive your injuries?"

Adam thought a moment, a blurry picture forming in his head. It was dark, that much he remembered. There had been a sort of confrontation… a man pulled his rifle on him… he'd been pulled back… he'd been shot… there had been a bright flash, a loud boom… and then nothing.

His eyes suddenly widened so much it hurt.

Percy!

Percy had been with him, but where was he? Somewhere in this room, he must be.

From his position on the bed, he craned his neck painfully from side to side as if he could see through the white sheet and find his batman.

"You were shot in the leg, by a fellow soldier, it seems," Dr. Nichols explained, but Adam was only half-listening. "According to your comrades, you were running back to your trench when a bomb went off behind you and its force sent you flying, luckily, into the trench where you were taken away from the battle to receive medical treatment. The scale of your injuries warranted you to be sent home."

"I was with my batman," Adam breathed, his voice hoarse. "He was in my arms when that explosion went off, where is he?"

Dr. Nichols sighed, and Adam's heart dropped.

"I'm sorry, sir. Private Hayes had died sometime before the explosion."

It was then everything came rushing back to him. Gaston firing his gun, Percy pulling him down and jumping in front of him, using Percy's rifle to shoot Gaston… and the first bomb that sent the man into the muddy pit.

Adam swallowed a lump in his throat and pushed back tears forming in his eyes.

"Your comrades were able to recover his body, however, after the battle," Dr. Nichols continued. "They're sending him across the channel now."

A long, quiet moment passed between the two of them.

"You should get some more rest, sir. You mustn't exert yourself." The doctor disappeared behind the white curtain, leaving Adam alone once again.

He closed his eyes, but found his mind racing wildly with thoughts of Percy. He had been so quick to protect him from Gaston, like he hadn't even given the decision a second thought.

"I just hope we can get back to our family in one piece," Adam had said that evening.

"It is my duty to make sure you do," Percy had replied.

He had done his duty.

And now he was gone.

Another lump welled in his throat.

This time, he allowed himself to cry.


"Two weeks, it's been two bloody weeks and they haven't let me in to see him," Belle huffed into her teacup. It was late in the afternoon, and Belle was taking a break from the convalescing duties in the servants' hall. Both Cogsworth and Mrs. Potts were absent, but Plumette and Jasper were sitting around the table with her, probably quite put out she was going on about the subject again.

But ever since the house had received that telegram from the War Office, it was all she could think about.

Mrs. Potts had gathered the whole staff in the servants' hall early that morning, the rumour mill only beginning to pick up speed when Cogsworth had emerged from the butler's pantry with that dreadful piece of parchment and announced in a grave tone that Adam had been seriously injured in France and was making his return to England as they spoke. It was all Belle could do not to let out a scream of agony. Instead, she dropped onto one of the wooden chairs, feeling decidedly light-headed. It was as if her whole heart had leapt out of her throat.

"But he's not…" Belle could hardly bear to finish the sentence.

"No, not that we know of," Cogsworth replied. "But it is clear that he would not be able to return to the front, in any case."

"Thank goodness for that, at least," Mrs. Potts had muttered softly.

Belle quite agreed.

"And what of Percy?" Jasper had asked.

A low, worried murmur made its way around the room. Cogsworth and Mrs. Potts gave each other a worried look.

"I'm afraid the news concerning Percy is not good," the butler said, his voice deep and grave. The whole room was now as silent as could be, waiting for him to go on. "It seems he passed away during the battle that injured Lord Savoy."

Jasper immediately rose from his chair and escaped out to the hall.

"Percy was a dear friend to this house," Mrs. Potts went on. "And all we can do now is cherish his memory."

Belle blinked away tears now, staring into her teacup. He had tried, desperately tried to see Adam at the village hospital as soon as he arrived, but Dr. Nichols had insisted on having no visitors until he recovered a little more. The pain of having him so close and yet still so far burned in her heart.

From her seat, Plumette reached over and held Belle's hand in hers. "We all want to see Lord Savoy," she said comfortingly. "But we must let him heal a little first."

Belle nodded tearfully. She knew Plumette was right, and God knew she didn't want to do anything that compromised his healing process.

"Do you think his Lordship will come see Lord Savoy?" Jasper asked suddenly, his head lifting from the columns of a newspaper.

Plumette and Belle looked at each other. In truth, Belle had not thought of the Earl of Villeneuve in a long time.

"I don't know," Plumette replied.

"The War Office surely must have sent him a telegram," Belle said. "I can't imagine why they wouldn't."

"Why do you ask?" Plumette asked.

Jasper shrugged, putting down his newspaper. Perhaps, Belle thought, he was just restless, and he missed the gossip house guests brought. Ever since the War Office had declared him unfit to serve, he had seemed both relieved as annoyed at the prospect of staying at Elham while the rest of the house's young men had joined up. Not long after Adam and Percy had gone back to the front Lumiere finally went on to serve. Now it was only Jasper, Cogsworth, and a few hallboys still too young to join up that made up the male population of the Elham staff.

"It just seems as if Cogsworth and Mrs. Potts are being more fussy than usual," Jasper said after a beat. "With the upkeep of the estate."

"Well, you know Cogsworth," Plumette said with a small smile. "Elham was always be prepared to host the King and Queen themselves, at any moment."

"A considering the circumstances," Belle added, fussing with her apron, "I don't blame them for being fussy. They're probably worried about Adam."

Again, Plumette held her hand and gave it a gentle rub. "Of course, they are. We all are. Lord Savoy is home now, not in danger on the Continent. I'm sure Dr. Nichols will allow him to have visitors soon."

"I do hope you're right, Plumette," Belle said.

"Of course, now come. The soldiers have probably just finished up their tea."

Belle gave her friend a small smile and followed her up the servants' staircase into the main hall of the house. She hoped Adam would be well enough to convalesce back in his own home soon, amongst his family.


"The infection seems to be wearing off," Dr. Nichols said as he inspected Adam's leg the next morning.

The white curtain still separated his bed from the rest of the room, leaving him to only imagine what the other injured soldiers were going through.

"We were able to get most of the bullet fragments out of your tissue, but significant damage still remains," the doctor continued.

Adam looked up from his bowl of broth, more alert. That morning he'd finally managed to ease himself into a sitting position, though the task was still difficult with the amount of pain in his leg. "How significant?" He asked.

Dr. Nichols sighed. "I doubt the muscle in your leg will ever heal to its full strength. You will probably require the use of a cane to walk."

Adam's eyes narrowed. "So, I'll only be half of an invalid."

"You can still live a full life," the doctor replied. "Considering the circumstances, the damage could have been a lot worse."

A guilty feeling stabbed Adam's heart. Of course, it could have been. He could have died. Like Percy. His body was still makings its way over from France, and Adam was anxious to see him again, to speak to him. He needed to give him a proper thanking, since it was impossible at the time. More than that, he needed a proper burial and service. An uneasy feeling settled in his stomach. Did the rest of the staff know about Percy? Would he have to tell them? He didn't think he could bare saying the words.

"However, you'll be happy to hear that you're well enough for visitors. I think some of your staff are on their way over," Dr. Nichols said, smiling.

Adam relaxed, a little. It was one of first bits of good news he'd received since returning to Kent.

The doctor made to leave but stopped just before the curtain and reached into his uniform jacket's pocket. "That reminds me, these were found in the pockets of your uniform, I thought you might want to keep them."

Adam reached out slowly and picked up the three items from the doctor's hand.

His time piece, monogramed with his initials.

The photograph of Belle.

And her rattle, still without of scratch.

"Thank you, Doctor," Adam said, staring intently at the items.

Dr. Nichols bowed his head a little. "You're welcome, sir."

Adam set the objects on the little table beside his bed and closed his eyes for a moment when he heard the sound of rushed footsteps against the hospital's creaky wooden floor.

"Where is he?" A frantic, familiar voice asked.

In his bed, Adam suddenly sat up a little straighter and attempted to make himself look presentable. However, in his rumpled nightclothes with a rather pallor and bruised face, he was sure he wasn't even close to the definition of "presentable".

The footsteps drew closer, and suddenly the white curtain was pulled back revealing a beautiful face covered in tears.


When Dr. Nichols had sent word to the big house telling Adam was finally fit for visitors, Belle could have sworn her heart had leapt through her throat and out of her body completely. She immediately set down her teacup and raced to the door of the servants' entrance to switch her shoes to her boots. With her heart pounding, Belle found herself fumbling with the laces.

A slight laugh caught her ears, making Belle look up in front of her to Mrs. Potts, who stood in the hall arms cross, the corners of her lips curved upwards into a smile.

Suddenly, Belle flushed deeply and laughed. "Sorry – I don't know what I was thinking. You and Cogsworth should see him first, of course –"

The housekeeper held up her hands in protest. "It's all right. You go run along first. I'm sure Cogsworth is still spreading around the happy news."

Belle smiled, tears forming in the corners of her eyes.

"Now go, run! So you two can have more time together," Mrs. Potts insisted.

Belle nodded, reaching for her hat and coat – but stopped short. She'd almost forgotten something. In a flash, in was up in the library, pulling a selection of Adam's favourite books off the shelves. Back down in the servants' hall, she pulled on her hat and coat and raced out the door, buttoning it up as she went. She set the stack of book in her bicycle's front basket and left the big house behind. She pushed herself faster than she had ever before, as if she were outrunning an oncoming flood.

When the village hospital finally came into view, she practically leaped of the bicycle and bolted into the building. There was no stopping her tears, now. Not when she was so close. Scanning the room and all its weary patients, her heart dropped when she couldn't see him. Her mind raced wild with thoughts and she clutched the books in her arms a little tighter.

Was he even here?

Was he…?

No.

Belle wiped away a tear, but soon caught the eye of Dr. Nichols, who was discussing something with a white and blue-clad nurse. "Where is he?" She asked frantically. The doctor smiled and nodded towards one of the beds surrounded by a white sheet.

Heart pounding, she approached the sheet and pulled it back.

There he was.

He was here.

Right here, in front of her.

It was real.

Fresh tears resumed, and Belle placed the books on the foot of the bed while she moved toward Adam's side at sat on the bed beside him. He reached out with his hand, which Belle grabbed hungrily. His face was pale but covered in blue bruises that trailed down to his neck. It was also thinner, she realised, almost frail.

Belle leaned forward to kiss him, but stopped just short, suddenly anxious.

"May I?" She asked tentatively.

Adam smiled. "If you would be so kind."

That was all Belle needed to hear, and she pressed her lips against his. His lips were still soft, like before. Before the kiss could go deeper, Belle realised she hadn't pulled the curtain back to separate them from the rest of the room and pulled away for propriety's sake.

"I missed you so much," Belle breathed. "I can't tell you how worried I was… how worried we all were…"

"I'm so glad you're here," he replied, pushing a strand of her brown waves back behind her ear.

"I, ah – I brought you some books. To read," Belle said with a small laugh, gesturing to the stack she had placed at the foot of the bed.

"You're a godsend," he replied. "These past weeks I've longed so much to read something else besides the newspapers." The beat passed, and he gestured to something on the bedside table. "I have something for you, as well."

Belle gazed over to where his hand was pointing, and her breath caught in her throat.

"The rattle I gave you," she said, picking it up gingerly as if it would turn to dust before her eyes. "How…"

"It was in the pocket of my uniform was I was… when I was injured. You did ask me to bring it back without a scratch, didn't you?"

Belle suddenly wrapped her arms around Adam. He winced lightly, making her immediately pull back and apologize.

"It's alright," he said. "It felt right, knowing it was you."

Belle smiled, sniffling back a few more tears. "The others should be along in a few minutes. Mrs. Potts was kind enough to shoo me out the door first."

Adam laughed. "Of course, she would."

Suddenly, the sound of light footsteps broke the silence and Cogsworth's rumbling baritone voice reverberated through the entire room.

"And that would be them," Belle said, sitting up from Adam's bed.

The curtain was pulled back even further, revealing Mrs. Potts and Cogsworth with worried looks on their faces. A few seconds later Dr. Nichols joined the small crowd, flipping through the pages of a small clipboard.

"When we received the telegram from the War Office, we feared the worst," Mrs. Potts said, moving to the side of Adam's bed and taking his hand.

The way the housekeeper moved and spoke, it gave Belle no doubts that she had been caring for Adam like her own son for a long time.

"Captain Savoy has been healing very well over the past few weeks," Dr. Nichols chimed in, reviewing the charts on his clipboard with a smile.

"He's strong, our captain," Cogsworth rumbled. "I never doubted it for a second."

The doctor's smiled dropped suddenly, his expression becoming more serious. Belle's heart banged against her chest.

"However –" Before Dr. Nichols could finished the rest of his sentence Mrs. Potts let out a loud gasp in fear.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," the doctor said, quelling the housekeeper's nervousness. "The muscles in Captain Savoy's leg were quite damaged from the bullet, and he'll need a cane to walk.

Belle relaxed a little, and she could tell the others had too. She fought the urge to reach out and squeeze Adam's hand comfortingly, but Mrs. Potts was already there and that alone gave her enough comfort. Just knowing he was back at home, surrounded by those he loved was a feeling she had longed for since he'd first joined the army.

A jolt of shame suddenly tore through her chest. In the joy of their meeting they hadn't said a word about poor Percy, but Belle had a feeling he was to thank for getting Adam back home. And she knew Adam well; he would give him the proper burial be deserved.

"I hope I'm not too much of a burden on you all," Adam said sheepishly, a little redness flushing his pale cheeks.

Both Belle and Mrs. Potts were about to protest the ridiculous statement when the butler's voice cut in, rather emotionally. "You could never be a burden, my lord."

Belle smiled at Cogsworth, and his eyes were shiny with tears.

"He's right," Belle said. "You've been very lucky."

Adam everted his gaze from the rest of them, looking down at his white bedsheets. His fist was screwed into a tight ball with some of the sheet in its grasp. "I don't know if I'd call it 'luck'… especially for…"

Another round of tears started to well in his eyes, though Belle could tell he was desperately trying not to cry. "We know," she said softly, approaching his bedside next to Mrs. Potts. "It was in the telegram. Adam, we're so sorry."

"Percy was such a sweet boy," Mrs. Potts said. "And brave and honourable."

"He dove in front of me…" Adam started, his voice breaking. Belle's heart was breaking with it.

"You don't have to talk about it now," Cogsworth said. "You should only be focusing on getting better." He turned to the doctor, whom Belle had almost forgotten was present. "Has Lord Villeneuve been informed, Doctor?"

Dr. Nichols's solemn look faltered slightly. "A telegram's been sent to his posting in Yorkshire, but it seems as if he's left for the Continent."

Shock creeped onto the butler's face, but Adam didn't seem surprised in the least. If anything, Belle sensed the tiniest bit of relief ease his rigid posture.

"The Continent?" Cogsworth sputtered. "Without so much as a word?"

"According to the War Office, his regiment has gone to the front, but they have redirected the original telegram there. Though, there's no telling when or if his Lordship will receive it," Dr. Nichols explained. "Now, I shall let you catch up for a few more minutes, but Captain Savoy needs his rest."

The doctor promptly left the curtained room, pulling the white sheet tightly closed behind him.

"I'm sure his Lordship will receive the telegram," Cogsworth said after a beat of silence.

"The thing is," Adam said, "I don't know if I care one way or another. I have my family right here."

Against her better judgement, Belle leaned in and kissed Adam on the temple. "Of course, you do," she whispered. "Of course, you do."

Adam was able to sleep much better over the next few days, perhaps because he'd finally been able to see Belle and Mrs. Potts and Cogsworth.

As they had left that day, Adam had urged Belle to take back her rattle, but she'd insisted he keep it. For luck, she said.

Such good luck.

Adam didn't know of he believed in luck, but it certainly brought a strong comfort to him. Even sitting on the small nightstand by his bed, just knowing it was there felt like he hadn't parted with Belle at all.


They'd continued to visit him periodically as he recovered, and more of the servants checked up on him as well. Plumette brought her little daughter and read him letters from Lumiere, who was still stationed in France, Chappeau who even in his convalescence had Adam's uniform pressed and mended, but it was Jasper the footman who'd been the most emotional. He'd been close with Percy, so of course he'd been devastated to learn of his passing. Adam tried to offer a few words of encouragement, though their visit most became sharing stories about Percy – Jasper spoke of before when he'd been a footman, and Adam of when he'd been so loyal and proud during the war.

As the days passed, Adam was finally able to get up and walk around the small hospital room, though his surroundings never offered much encouragement. More and more soldiers were coming in from the front, some with missing limbs or terrible burns or who couldn't stop moaning in pain even with the medication supplied by the nurses. So, after more than three weeks at the village hospital, he was glad to receive the news he'd be able to leave and spend the rest of his convalescence and Elham Hall. It had been almost a year since he'd last stepped into his home, and it still felt somewhat surreal that he was home at all. Or that he was staying at home.

He was no longer fit to serve in the army, and even though he should feel disappointed to no longer be able to serve his country, what he felt instead was a huge wave of relief that he would no longer have to be away from Elham, Belle, or the rest of the staff.

Adam was just packing up the rest of his belongings and put Belle's rattle in the inside pocket of his uniform jacket when Dr. Nichols peeked into his small curtained-off room.

"Captain Savoy," he began, swallowing. "Private Percy Hayes's body has just arrived. It's in the morgue if you like to see it."

Adam's heart suddenly sank into his boots, but he nodded.

The morgue was in the basement of the hospital, so the only source of light were the cold electric lights lining the walls. Percy's body – still in his uniform that had clearly been cleaned to the best of their ability, lay on a concrete slab. His eyes were closed. He was at peace.

Adam's grip on his cane was turning his knuckles white, but it was the only thing preventing him from sinking to his knees in grief.

"I never thanked you," Adam said, the words echoing in the silence of the room. "I never got the chance to thank you. The thing is, you should be standing with me, and in a better world perhaps you would be. But that's not you, Percy. I regret I didn't know you well before the war, but now that you're gone, I want to honour your memory in every possible way I can."

Tears started to well in his eyes, and he let them fall in the emptiness of the room. "You provided me a great comfort and solace during those dreadful days at the front, and you allowed me to come home to my family. For that, I can never truly repay you. Know that your memory lives on at Elham Hall, and so many cherish you, and we all thank you for your valour."

Adam stayed with Percy for a long while, he'd lost track of the time until Dr. Nichols reappeared to tell him Booth was here to take him back to Elham. With one last look at Percy, he left the coldness of the morgue into the warmth of the late March air.

Even from the roads outside the small hospital, he could see the estate looming large in the distance.

Home.

Finally.