AN: Thanks for reading this fanfic. I actually just reread it myself and that's how I came to this idea. I wanted to include some interactions and possible plot development so thank you for reading.

Chapter Nine – What I'd Usually Do

The images were getting stronger in her dreams and Belle felt so helpless to stop them. As she woke, she could see Gaston skinning Adam and then roasting the meat from his body. It hurt her to see this and she wondered if she had been cursed by that slimy man. She sat up and sighed as she realized that Adam hadn't gone to bed with her that night either. He had been hiding the majority of the day and Bella was getting worried about him.

Usually she and Adam shared the parental responsibilities. He was a good father and he always prioritized her and Bella but in his mind, the way he was prioritizing them was to keep away from them. Belle sighed and then looked at the sunlight through the window. Isabella should be waking up soon.

Belle got changed into a simple dress as she stepped out of their bedroom and went to wake Isabella. She froze as she opened the door and saw that the little girl wasn't there. She looked around panicked. If Adam had been his human self, she could imagine the two of them off playing together or trying to make her breakfast but Adam wasn't here, he was still trying to heal internally.

"Bella?" she called out nervously before hearing laughter from where the bath was. Maybe Maria – Isabella's nanny – had woken her to get her ready for something that had slipped Belle's mind. She would check it out. As she made her way to the room, the little girl's laughter got louder and she stepped inside.

She froze, choking out in relief at what was before her. Adam was giving her her morning bath whilst being in the form of a beast and Isabella was laughing at the way they were interacting. "Good morning," she smiled as she placed a gentle hand on Adam's back and he glanced at her, tensing a little.

"Belle," Adam whispered as he looked at her nervously and Isabella tugged on his hand. His fur was wet and a little matted but he was here with their daughter.

"Daddy, you have to finish my hair," she said and Adam nodded nervously as he grabbed the conditioner and put some on his paw before letting his paw rub it in. He smiled to her, his fangs showing a little but she grinned back. Belle felt tears in her eyes as she saw the two of them interacting as if nothing had changed.

She knelt down beside Adam, being careful of his tail and kissed his cheek trying to help him keep his confidence. "It's so good to hear the two of you laughing," she commented and Adam tensed again. He played with one of the bath toys as Isabella finished washing her hair. Adam stood, grabbing her robe as well as a towel and put a paw on her shoulder. As the little girl finished playing, he scooped her up with his paws and wrapped one towel around her, using the other to gently dry her hair.

"Daddy's making it really fun," Isabella told her with a grin and Belle took Adam's paw in her hand. She saw how he tensed and his eyes widened but she was happy. He had taken a step forward and instead of hiding, he was being with his daughter. "Thank you," she said to him with an adorable smile.

"No, thank you," Adam replied as he helped her with her robe and pulled her into a loving hug, the same expression on his face as when he enjoyed being a father as a human. Belle put a hand on Bella's shoulder as the embrace came to a close.

"Bella," Belle said softly as the little girl turned to her, "May I have a little time with Daddy?" she asked and Adam hung his head. "Do you think you could go to your room and select some clothes?"

Isabella nodded and skipped off, Belle moved closer to her husband.

"I just wanted to pretend I was normal," Adam told her sadly as he looked at the towel in his hands. He kept his head bowed as if expecting to be reprimanded and Belle hated the shame he was experiencing. He had just done something that a parent should be doing, he hadn't done anything wrong. "I wanted to interact with her as if I were still her dad."

Belle blinked hard, she looked at him shocked. "As if you were still her dad?" she repeated before throwing her arms around him. "You are her dad. I am so proud of you, Adam," she said and he gave her a weak smile before looking down again. "You're not giving up. You're moving forwards. I love you so much."

"I…I arranged for us to have breakfast together," Adam told her and Belle tilted her head with a smile. "I wanted to apolo-" Belle reached forward and softly put her hand over his mouth and he looked at her with those stunning blue eyes that just told her his emotions so well.

"No apologies," she told him as she put her hands on his cheeks and kissed him passionately. Adam hesitated at first but then pulled her closer to him to deepen the kiss despite his much larger jaw than hers. Belle pushed her head into his shirt, feeling the warmth underneath. "I'm so glad that we'll be eating together. Thank you, thank you for having so much courage, for loving us so much," she told him and he smiled, nodding silently.

….

….

Belle watched Adam closely as she sat at the table and turned to see him pick up the plate of food and very slowly start to eat as an animal might. She saw Isabella smiling at him but she wasn't laughing at him like before. She picked up some of the egg with her fork and lifted it to her mouth. "So, you have your studies today," she commented as Bella looked at her, "but I was thinking maybe the three of us could spend a little time together tonight," she turned to Adam who nodded nervously.

"Would that be okay, Bella?" he asked her and the little girl nodded excitedly.

"Anything that I can help you with today, my love?" Belle asked Adam as she reached out for his paw. It was a little as if he were blind or deaf, he would need help performing certain tasks until they had managed to come up with a plan on how to do it.

"The kingdom, the…there has to be more spending and balancing the budget," Adam said nervously before staring at the table. "I want to do my best for as long as they'll allow me to rule."

"I'll help you with that," Belle told him as she squeezed his paw. She was scared that he wasn't going to be able to write anymore. He wasn't going to be able to do calculations because he had trouble holding a pencil. Hopefully his dexterity would improve in his paws. She looked at her loves, happy that she could see the two of them at the same time. She just hoped that Adam would stay this way, attempting to have as much of a normal life as possible.

…..

…..

Adam took a deep breath as he looked up at Belle who was staring at the calculations he had made. He was using his own money for this two week period so that the villagers wouldn't have to pay taxes and then he was refinancing the smaller businesses. This wasn't the first time he had done something like this but it had always been on a smaller scale. She hoped that he had thought this through.

"Are you sure about these numbers?" she asked him and Adam nodded, "Your parents."

"I want to be able to go to the village one day," he told her and Belle smiled sadly. She knew that he wanted to create a feeling of gratefulness but she wasn't sure if they could ever outweigh the fear that they were being ruled over by a beast. He wanted to create harmony but if people saw him they may still be frightened. "As for my parents, this is my money and not theirs. I have plenty."

Belle sighed and sank down next to him, wrapping her arms around him. "Maybe we should take some of the guards with us, have them protect you. Have you come out and be honest with everyone," she said as she gently stroked his horn and heard him purr. She knew he didn't mean to make that feline-like sound but it made her love him even more.

"Sire," one of the guards spoke as they came to the door, "We heard someone has entered the grounds unannounced. Do you wish us to take them to -"

"It's fine, could you bring them in?" Adam asked before looking to Belle. "Could you go see them in my place?" he asked and Belle kissed the top of his head before gently caressing his horn again and left with the guard. Adam kept his head bowed. Go into the village? Put himself in danger? Put his family in danger? There were benefits, yes, but the risk seemed to outweigh those.

A short while after Belle had left, he heard her return to the room and this time she wasn't alone. Adam raised his head before his eyes got wider and he stood up before dropping into a bow and then pushed himself against the wall of the room. He had a suspicion that Maurice despised him, especially when he was in this form but wouldn't anyone despise someone who had imprisoned them and then imprisoned their daughter.

"Adam?" Maurice said as he took in the form of the beast, "I see. Wish I had some kind of invention to cure that condition of yours, eh?" he asked and Adam choked not sure whether to smile or not.

"Ye-Yes," he nodded and Belle came over to him. Belle took Adam's arm and led him over to the chairs again as well as pulling one out for her father. "It's…it's good to see you in good health," he growled out and Belle looked at her father who seemed to pull back slightly.

"I wish I could say the same but the castle still looks nice," Maurice chuckled and Adam nodded slowly. "New guard didn't recognize me. You should tell them that."

"I will," Adam choked and Belle kissed his cheek, she reached up to touch him behind the horn and he relaxed. Maurice had to admit that he looked as if he were a deer or some kind of dog with the more relaxed emotion by just that simple action. He turned to Belle. "I'm sorry, there are some natural impulses that I can't control," he said and Maurice nodded as he looked between the two of them.

"I get it, you don't need to apologize," he said before Belle touched Adam's shirt, straightening his collar a little.

"We've been thinking about going into the village," she said as she saw Adam's shame, she kissed his cheek. "With guards of course," she said and Maurice nodded slowly.

"Just make sure you have them," he commented, "the guards, I mean."

Belle nodded shakily. She just wanted Adam to be safe, his happiness mattered a lot of course but he just needed to be safe.