Chapter Three

3.1

As Adam looked to the side of the bed, he realized that Belle had left and that was making him feel a little less prepared. As much self-confidence as he had gained in the past three years, he still had far less than he would have liked. He looked to his hand and then imagined a glove there covering his skin. It was something called phantom limb that he had heard about, that feeling that you could still experience the presence of a lost appendage, well he was feeling the lack of fur and claws and an inhumane strength.

Beast.

He flinched as he thought about that word. Belle hadn't known his name when she had fallen in love with him. She had seen a picture, a portrait of what he looked like, but his name had been something nobody had said. To her, he was always 'beast' or 'the beast'. When had the point come when she had actually considered him human? Had it at least been before he transformed? If he were to return back to that form would she continue to consider him human?

He closed his eyes and took deep breaths before feeling something change. He placed a hand to his neck, something felt like it was easy and soft and flowing. Something had seemed to change for the better. Very slowly, Adam spread his fingers out and dared to touch the outside of his mouth. The strong jaw was gone, his regular mouth had appeared. He touched it in a few more areas before daring himself to open his mouth and touch his teeth with his fingertips.

He wouldn't be sure until he could see them but it felt as if they had gone back to his human teeth. As he ran his tongue over them, he was almost certain. Why had he changed back? Was it because the baby brought that additional gift of love to him? Was this a psychological matter that had to do with love, the first time around it had all been because of love or a lack of it at least. Was he missing something right now?

Adam closed his eyes as he thought about it and the next thing he knew, there was a hand slipping through his hair and onto his forehead. He opened his eyes and gave Belle a loving smile.

"You don't have a fever any longer," she smiled before looking at him. She stayed that way for a moment before slipping her finger under his lips. He opened his mouth and took deep breaths and Belle frowned, she smiled but in a confused way. "It went away by itself?" she asked more than stated. She sat down before cupping his cheek. "I guess we don't need to worry any longer."

Adam sighed. He opened his mouth as if to protest but as he looked into Belle's beautiful eyes he cupped her cheek back and nodded. This was his pregnant wife, he wasn't going to tell her that it going away was terrifying too because they didn't know what had happened to cause it and if that was the last time it was going to happen. He didn't feel that he was free of the form of the beast but on those terms, he never felt that he had let go of the weight of all of that fur.

"How are you this morning?" he asked her and she smiled, letting her fingers stroke through some strands of hair.

"I'd like to visit my father," Belle told him and Adam nodded. He had come to an understanding with Maurice during the time after he had transformed. He still felt nervous about the way he had stuck him into a dungeon and called him his prisoner but that had been a different time. He had changed and Maurice knew his love for Belle, that was something that the two of them shared. It was when Maurice had learned that he had been turned into a beast when only a child that he had really felt the pain from going through life like that.

"You want to tell him about the baby?" Adam asked and Belle nodded, her excitement filling her smile. Adam sat up but pulled her into his arms. He kissed her forehead and she smiled, kissing him again. "Would you like me to come with you?" he offered and Belle blushed.

"If it's not pulling you away from anything else," she said and Adam pushed his hair back and tied it, he would wash it next and then get ready for the day.

"You're not pulling me away from anything," he assured her. "I think I'll even go check on the bookstore," he said and Belle smiled. Adam had really tried to help the town where she had spent so many years with the expansion of the bookstore and wanting to get more people reading to up the literary rate. Belle had been the one who had wanted it and Adam just felt happy that he had at least some power to push for what she wanted.

It was also because of Belle that he had a casual relationship with the bookstore owner. It felt good to be acknowledged outside of the castle as a human and to talk about books. Maybe Adam would never have paid attention to books were it not for Belle but because it was what she loved most, he had wanted to read first to impress her and prove his worth to her but then had been more open about learning and experiencing and one could have plenty of good experiences with the presence of a good book.

"How about I go see my father first," she said, "you can join us afterwards," she told him and Adam nodded.

"You're feeling okay, right?" he asked and Belle nodded in response.

3.2

Adam grinned as he looked through another book that had just come out, he knew that they had thousands of books in the library but he did like seeing the people who were eager to share their passion with writing and how these new writers could influence society. "It's a good philosophy," Adam said as he closed the book and put it on the pile. "I'll take these for today," he told the man who stared at him.

"You do realize that most princes don't come down to bookstores themselves," the book seller said and Adam blinked, standing up straighter as he looked at the older man without the elevated airs of aristocracy. He had been so nervous when he had first left the castle but being seen as a monster and with Belle's influence, he could be empathetic with people and realize their equal footing regardless of social class.

"I'm not like most princes," Adam replied. He saw a few children looking at him through the window and pointing at him. He laughed softly and waved to them before turning to the seller. "Have the books been going to the school?" he asked and the older man nodded. "I want to make the option to read available to anyone. I think that more people need to embrace this passion."

The man laughed, "Nobody who loves Belle can ever avoid succumbing to the passion for the written word," he said and Adam smiled again. He looked down as he thought of Romeo and Juliet. He adored that play. That was what Belle had taught him to read with and with that she had accepted that he had his flaws but he was also more innocent than she thought.

Adam took another breath in before hearing the sound of horns and people gathering together. "Do they know I'm here?" he asked and the seller shrugged. Adam looked down at his hands and then took the books from the seller. "I've got a saddle bag for these, thank you," he said before hearing the seller cough.

"I think that the tavern is opening again," he said and Adam turned to him. He nodded but his stomach dropped at that point. "Did you ever come to know Gaston?" he asked and Adam smiled weakly. He rubbed his jaw and was relieved when his teeth continued feeling normal.

"No, I was….unaware," Adam said and the seller looked at him as if he knew something about Adam that he wasn't going to say. The prince took a deep breath in and then released it before giving his thanks for the bibliophile and left. He walked over to his horse who was drinking from a bucket that the bookstore owner had provided. He slipped the books into the saddlebag before hearing the boastful voice.

"I am back, you may rejoice in the name of Gaston," the man said and Adam looked at him. He sighed. He couldn't really do anything. Unless there was some law that was broken, he couldn't target this single man. Adam had given a blanket pardon for anyone involved in the castle siege and that did include this man who had come back from the dead. "Your dreams of passion, of glory, of such a handsome man are answered."

There were more shared words and excitement and Adam rolled his eyes. He was about to climb onto the horse when he heard the attention directed towards him. Gaston laughed and dismounted, walking towards him and Adam heard the whispers of 'prince Adam' 'the prince' 'it's the prince'. He stood there with one hand on his own horse.

"See, we even have royalty excited to see me, " Gaston said as he placed a hand on Adam's shoulder and the prince stared at him, a fire starting to burn in his expression. Adam looked at his rival's hand and shrugged so it slipped off his shoulder. He took a step backwards knowing he was starting to look paler. He saw Gaston's hand come to his chest and felt his heart beat strangely but soon tossed the man off of him.

"Please do not touch me," he said trying hard not to show his anger at that moment. "I wish you success at the tavern. Everyone deserves to have a place to call their home, a place to succeed and find life's fulfillment. I will take my leave now. Thank you for your respect," he told them and Gaston gave him a slightly sinister grin.

"So," the black haired man said before rubbing his gloved hand over his own jawline, Adam stared at him but looked away. He just wanted to leave and go and see Belle and Maurice. He had done so much to overcome the pain of the curse. "You don't want to let them see how vicious your bite is?" he said emphasizing that word.

"I'll find out exactly what you're capable of," Adam said in a hushed manner as he glared at Gaston.

In response, Gaston laughed and gestured to the gathered crowd of townspeople. "I dare to say that soon they'll find out what you're capable of."

"If that is a threat then I will caution you to be careful," Adam told him with a firm look whilst still trying to control his own anger. He mounted his horse and rode off without another word.

3.3

"So, I'm really excited to find out what you're keeping so secret, what inspired a visit here," Maurice said as Belle got him to sit down and prepared him some tea. She had wanted for him to come live with them in the castle and Adam said he was more than happy to do so but there were memories of Belle's mother in this small house and at least they had been able to hire a maid and cook. Belle had told them that they could have the remainder of the day off now that she and Adam were there.

"I want to tell you, Papa, I do, but I want to do it with Adam," she smiled as she sat down. "I might be able to give you a hint though," she teased him and Maurice laughed, bringing the teacup up to his lips.

"I'm guessing that he's going to whisk you away to some foreign trip, maybe on an elite boat," he said and Belle raised an eyebrow before shaking her head. "Not going off to see some foreign land."

"Not for the foreseeable future," Belle commented and Maurice hummed.

"Well then maybe you're hosting someone," he said, "someone with some grand plan that he's trying to show you of something unbelievable," he said and Belle shook her head and smiled.

"I've come to find that the most unusual things can be true, I mean…you have known my husband," she said and Maurice sighed. Belle kissed the top of his head. "You'll learn soon enough, Papa," she told him before hearing the sound of galloping hooves. She blinked as she saw Adam stop. He was shaking again. Had something happened whilst he had been in the village?

"Excuse me, Papa, you wait here," she said before going to the door but Maurice looked out the window. He saw Adam pacing and trying not to panic, something strange was going on and when it came to the prince and his son-in-law, something strange befalling him might be terrifying.

Belle approached her husband and saw he was rubbing his jaw again, his eyes were wide and before he fell down, he walked over to a wall and lent against it, using his palms to keep himself standing as he faced towards the wall. "Adam, what is it?"

"How did he know?" Adam asked as he looked at the grass beneath him. "How did he know to say that?"

"Say what? Someone said something to -" Belle asked and Adam looked at her completely terrified.

"Gaston is here, in the town," he said and Belle took a deep breath in. She nodded and sighed. It made sense, before everything had happened at the castle, Gaston had been here amongst his fans, his beer, his hunting weapons. This, sadly, was his home as much as it was hers and she couldn't just stop him from being there despite their own dislike of him.

"Well, he doe-" Belle tried to reply but saw that Adam looked more panicked than she had ever seen him in either his former beast self or his now human self.

"He said how viscous my bite was," Adam said as he started shaking almost paralyzed with fear. "How did he know about my teeth? He's responsible for -"

"You're saying that he knows what happened to you?" Belle asked, her voice was also reflecting the fear that she had for him. Gaston hadn't had powers before but then again, they did believe that he had died from falling from the castle.

"I'm saying that he knows what's going to happen to me," Adam said as he looked at his hand and he could imagine it turning into a paw. He pulled it off the wall and looked at it. It was still his hand, just a human hand.

End of Chapter Three

Thank you for reading

Thank you to the reviewers of Chapter Two

Batblover93, Bgrangerweasley