Chapter 4: Delightful

Belle was bathed, her wounds bandaged, and salves placed on her burn marks. Then she was dressed in a simple gown and treated to a full meal with red wine. After that she was sent to bed to rest and heal.

The next week continued in this pattern. She hadn't seen the Queen since the carriage ride. Belle was loath to provoke the Queen by asking after her, but her curiosity and anxiety about the Queen's future plans was killing her. Finally, after two weeks, she was summoned to dine with the Queen.

The dinner table had been set up in front of the balcony so that the cool evening air made the candlelight flicker. Regina was already seated and toying with her spoon in her tea when Belle entered. The Queen looked up at her and licked her spoon. Belle felt her face suddenly go red and she dropped her eyes to the floor. "Your majesty." she curtsied formally.
"Please...sit." Regina gestured carelessly at the opposite chair of the small dining table.

Belle sat and the servants moved forward to serve the meal. There was several minutes of tense and awkward silence before the Queen finally broke it. "So have your wounds healed?"
"They are much better, thank you." Belle looked up from her plate of roasted fowl to find the Queen staring at her intensely.

She fought the urge to squirm in her chair under the focused scrutiny. "Your father...has been most persistent in finding you. But you are safe, no one knows you are here." the Queen promised her.

"However, I cannot guarantee he will never learn of your whereabouts if he searches for long enough. And it would be most inconvenient for both of us if he finds you. What if he were to have an accident?" Regina laid a delicate stress on the word.
Belle's eyes flashed, understanding immediately what the Queen meant. "I wouldn't presume to interfere in matters of state."

The Queen smiled with pleasure, "Well then, what about Rumpelstiltskin?"
Belle sucked in a breath at his mention, but gritted her teeth and spoke with fury, "I don't ever want to lay eyes upon him again."

"Delightful," the Queen snapped her fingers and a servant stepped forward with a bottle, "how would you like a glass of the best apple cider you've ever tasted?"

Please Review. I hope Belle will return in the show. They barely scratched the surface of her story.