Chapter Three: Missing Locket

Ruby flung the door open, a huge grin on her face and fluttered down on her bed. "Victor took me on the best date ever to celebrate my birthday," she said. "For a guy who I know who still checks out other girls, he is quite the good at being loyal."

Belle made a sound of disbelief while she shoved aside the pillows on her bed. Ruby sat up still smiling as she said, "I know you think a guy shouldn't have wandering eyes, but it's not as if Victor would ever cheat on me. He's really sweet and caring, despite that."

"Whatever Ruby, I just want you to be careful, that's all," Belle said as she stuck her hand underneath the mattress.

"Besides, if Victor ever did cheat, I told him point blank I'd cut off his balls," Ruby said confidently.

Belle hadn't reacted to Ruby's comment, and her brow creased she pulled her hand out from under the mattress. She stuck her head under the bed, and after a minute looked up frowning as she pounded her fist on the mattress that was currently bare of sheets and her blanket.

Ruby frowned and asked, "Okay what hell are you looking for?"

"It's my locket that my dad gave me with a picture of him and my mom. It's a sort of good luck charm and it's one of the few pictures I have of her," Belle answered.

"Oh, well, I will help you look for it. Did you check the dorm bathroom? Maybe you left it in there when you took it off to take a shower," Ruby suggested.

Belle scratched the top of her head she scanned the room. "Maybe," she muttered and walked out into the hallway to check the dorm bathroom.

Ruby continued the search for Belle's locket in the room going through her own bedding. She looked at the window sill and started looking through the desk of stuff just as Belle returned. "Not in there?" She asked and Belle shook her head.

The two searched through desk drawers and under the desk as well, but after about five minutes Ruby said, "We'll look again tomorrow. Aren't you going to be late for class anyway?"

"Ah crap," Belle exclaimed, "I got ten minutes. Would you keep looking if you got time?"

"Sure," Ruby said.

Belle gathered up her things and was about to walk out the door when Ruby asked, "Was Gaston a wanderer? Was that why you broke up? I think I recall him looking a few times."

Belle shivered, but luckily Ruby couldn't see Belle's eyes as they clouded with fresh tears. A brief glimmer of a memory of Gaston's violent temper revealed itself, when she questioned him about his wandering eyes, came to the surface of her thoughts. She wiped the escaped tear drops and turned to address Ruby's question. "Yeah just a bit, but it doesn't matter now. We're not together anymore, so Gaston can look where he wants."

Ruby frowned as she heard the tremor in Belle's voice, but Belle had already left. "Okay something's up," she said to herself. She pulled out her phone from her black and red checkered handbag and searched for Ariel's number.

~Page Break~

Beads of sweat were sliding down Belle's forehead and strands of hair were slipping out of the ponytail she had put her hair up in to get it out of the way as she ran down the hall to her Literature class. She caught herself as she slid along the freshly waxed floor, almost slipping, and once she was well balanced, paused in front of the door to relax her body. Belle clutched the part of her chest where she could feel the rapid rhythm of her beating heart. To calm it, she took several steady breaths and taking out some napkins she had stuffed in her purse, Belle dabbed her forehead with them. She turned the knob, but it was locked. She jiggled it hoping that maybe it was stuck, but it wasn't and looking through the window, she saw the heads of her peers were bent over their desks no doubt taking vigorous notes. To her embarrassment a few had looked up, including Mary Margaret, and she glanced over at Professor Gold, who had one brow arched as he stared at her with an annoyed expression. Her cheeks reddened, and she disappeared from view. She lingered for the thirty minutes that were left until the class had come filing out of the classroom.

"Belle, what happened you're never late for class? You're the most punctual person I know. Ever since grade school you have always made sure to be on time, sometimes you even get there an hour early. Are you okay?"

Belle nodded. "I lost track of time while looking for my locket," she admitted.

Mary Margaret frowned. "Oh, I'm sorry, hon. I'll help you look for it."

"It's a stupid necklace," David said putting his arm around Mary Margaret. She glared at him and bopped him on the head.

He winced rubbing it. "Ow! What's the big deal it's not worth getting a lecture from Gold, who thinks tardiness is the eighth deadly sin."

"It's not just a necklace! It was locket given to Belle from her father you idiot. It has a picture of her mother in it," Mary Margaret snapped.

David blushed. "Sorry Belle, I didn't know," he muttered. "I'll help you look too."

"Thanks David and Mary Margaret, but don't worry about it Ruby's helping me looking for it. It's got to turn up somewhere," Belle said trying to sound as if it wasn't a big deal.

"We'll still help you look," Mary Margaret assured her squeezing her friend's arm.

"Thank you." Belle sighed, "Well I better explain what happened. Maybe he'll be nice."

"Doubt it," David said receiving a punch in the shoulder.

Belle walked into the classroom, her face still flushed, as she hesitantly approached Mr. Gold's desk. She waited for him to look up from his desk, all the while trying to hide her expectant expression.

He finished scribbling a note and taking the papers he shuffled them repeatedly. "Yes, Miss French?" He hadn't even bothered to look up.

Belle licked her lips swallowing as she began to address him. "Professor Gold, I'm very sorry I was late to your class. I lost track of time while I was looking for something that is very important to me. It won't happen again, I swear."

Finally, glancing up at her with chocolate brown eyes that were warm, but at the moment very serious, he held up his hand to silence her. "I don't need to hear your excuses Miss. French. Those first few classes ye have been quite prompt, and I'm sure ye have a perfectly good reason for your lateness, but all I care about is you arrive on time for the next class."

Belle nodded.

"I would recommend you find someone you can look over their notes from today," Mr. Gold suggested as he inserted his lecture notes in his brief case.

Belle nodded again and after saying thank you scurried out of the classroom.

Outside David and Mary Margaret sat on a blanket that he had spread out underneath a large oak tree.

"David, stop it. You're distracting me," Mary Margaret said trying to hide the giggles that escaped her lips as David tickled her neck with his mouth. Belle plopped down on the blanket and closed her eyes for a moment as she relaxed.

"So how did it go? Did he let you off easy or was he pretty harsh?" Mary Margaret asked.

"It went okay. You know, just gave me a warning to make sure I get the notes from today's lecture," Belle shrugged. "Is it okay if I look at yours?" She looked at Mary Margaret not even thinking about asking David since she could barely read his chicken scratch.

"Sure, glad he wasn't too hard on you. It wouldn't have been fair if he had been since you're usually there on time anyway," Mary Margaret said sliding over her notebook to Belle.

"Hey, since you're busy copying my notes and Charming over here won't let me concentrate, we're going to take a walk. You don't mind, do you?" Mary Margaret said.

"No, I don't mind," Belle assured her.

Mary Margaret shoved her books that Belle didn't need, to look at for notes, into her bag and threw it over her shoulder. David walked away enjoying the last remnants of summer before the chill of autumn approached. Looking at Mary Margaret's notebook, Belle began to read the pages of notes.

Twenty minutes later, she was scribbling her own version of what Mary Margaret wrote when an unnatural shiver ran up her spine and along her arms. She wrapped her arms tight around her, having not brought a sweater or jacket, to keep out the random chill she felt. She squint her eyes, glancing up at the sun that was still shining garishly on her face, and then she looked around the surrounding area. A light breeze brushed strands of hair along her cheeks and on her bottom lip and she returned to her work.

She had no idea why but something made her looked up again and sight of a short figure, she couldn't tell who it was because of the distance, seemed to be staring at her. Well, that's what it looked like the person was doing as they stood facing in her direction. Maybe the figure was staring at something in front of her or he or she wasn't staring at all. Whoever it was lifted whatever was around its neck and put it against its face pointing in her direction. Belle blinked and frowned and quickly scooped up her things shoving them in her backpack. Trying not to look as if she was suspicious, she walked at her usual pace, but kept glancing behind trying to look discreet as entered the closest building. She did not hear the clicking sound as the figure in the distance took photographs of here.

Once inside, Belle increased her pace to a brisk walk and still kept glancing behind her to see if she was being followed. She hadn't been facing forward when she bummed into another and dropped her notebooks in the process.

"Oh sorry," she muttered and as she looked up and her cheeks turned to a brilliant shade of red.

"What is your hurry, Miss French?" Professor Gold inquired.

"I'm so sorry, Professor. I guess I was distracted and wasn't paying attention." She scrambled to retrieve the notebooks wanting to fade in oblivion. Though, she just bumped into the guy, a guy who happened to be her Professor, her very handsome one who had let her off the hook for being late, and she had just been a little jittery about the person that might have been watching her. Maybe she had just been imagining it, but the object looked like it might have been a camera or binoculars.

"It's perfectly alright, Miss French. I understand being distracted," he said and bent down to help scoop up the papers that had slipped out of notebook. Her eyes grew wide as she saw him holding and looking at a sketch she had drawn a few days ago of her horse Philippe, her father, and her family's farm.

"This is quite a beautiful sketch, dearie. Is this where you live?" Professor Gold asked, not taking his eyes off the drawing.

Her cheeks were even redder. "Yes, I miss being home sometimes, but that also means running into Gaston so I just write to my dad a lot and sketch pictures of home," she said.

"Ah, I take it this Gaston is an Ex friend?" He said handing the sketch back to her.

"I can't believe I just brought that up," she said. "That's embarrassing."

"Your business is your own, and I shouldn't have brought your attention to it," he said.

"I don't know why I let that slip anyway, but I guess, Professor Hopper would call it a Freudian slip," she nervously laughed.

He smiled. "Sounds about right, dearie, but I won't pry anymore," he assured her. He started to walk away, but turned around and said, "You really are a good artist."

Belle's mouth hung open slightly as she stared at his retreating form and couldn't help smiling.

Ariel glanced up just as Belle walked in still smiling at Professor Gold's compliment. "Hey, Ruby wanted me to tell you she hadn't found the locket yet. What locket is Ruby talking about?"

Belle sighed as recalled her missing locket. "It's a locket that my father gave me. It has a picture of my mom, and I lost it."

Ariel frowned. "I'm so sorry. I'll help you look for it if you need an extra pair of eyes."

"Thanks, that'd really help Ariel," Belle replied.

"Of course, what are friends for? You don't remember when you last wore it?" The red head asked.

Belle shook her head. "I didn't even know that I had lost it until early this morning. It's a good thing I had only two classes today, because I wouldn't even been able to concentrate. I can't believe it slipped my mind."

"It happens, Belle. Don't feel guilty, because it doesn't mean it's any less important," Ariel told repositioning herself in the chair to face her roommate.

"I know, but how could I let myself forget," Belle said.

"It's okay," Ariel said. "We'll find it. By the way Ruby told me she asked about Gaston."

"Oh," was all Belle said.

"I know you don't want to share, but she's worried and so am I," Ariel admitted.

"Look, I will talk about it when I'm ready to talk it about, but right now I have more important things to worry about than some stupid guy. The world doesn't revolve having my own Prince Charming," she snapped.

She immediately felt guilty as she saw how Ariel's expression. "I'm sorry Ariel. I'm just a little upset that I lost my locket, and I was late to class looking."