Greetings my dears! I have deep regret for my being late again, however, I couldn't help it. I had actually finished this chapter awhile ago, but ever since Christmas our internet had serious problems, forcing us to shut it down. We only just got the problems fixed the other day.

Thank you sweet Nimara and lovely ShyandStarryEyed (love your name, by the way), for the fabulous reviews. I've seemed to have received a common theme of hatred for Lucifer, which I like, because it's good to hate a villain.

I, personally, am very proud of his chapter. Enjoy!

…

Chapter 9

The Green-Eyed Monster

Babette ran her duster along the suits of armour, annoyance in her eyes. Where was Amelia? She was supposed to be helping her! The older maid had walked off with Lucifer and had not returned to her duties.

The young woman snorted. It is typical of her. When she is waiting for me, she acts as though I have been absent for centuries, but she takes twice as long to go to her duties! As if on cue, Amelia ran up beside her. "I…I am very sorry I am l-late."

Startled by the apology, Babette turned to her. She was about to speak, but the words were lost. The blonde was paler then usual and clearly shaken, as if she had been through a horrible ordeal.

Seeing her expression, Amelia gave a tight smile. "I am fine."

Not believing her, the younger woman questioned in concern. "What happened?"

Becoming defensive, she snapped. "Nothing! Must I really continue to repeat myself to you?"

Turning away to continue dusting, Babette muttered. "That is much more like her."

When Cogsworth eventually dismissed the servants for a break, the young maid went directly to the kitchens. She found Lumiere almost immediately. He was drying his hands with a white rag, and glanced up when she entered. "Babette! Mon amour, I see that you have wasted no time in coming to meet with me."

The maid walked closer, "But of course."

The Frenchman nodded, placing the rag down, "Bien. I have a present for you, and I wanted to give it to you at the earliest moment."

Babette's eyes brightened, "A present?"

Lumiere laughed softly at her enthusiasm, "Oui. Come, I will give it to you now."

Arriving in her suitor's room, the maid could not contain her excitement. The Frenchman had little money, much like the other servants, so any present that he gave meant he cared deeply.

The maitre'd searched through the draws in his wardrobe. "I know that I did not have to go to such lengths as to get you a gift, but I wanted to apologize for my horrid jealousy." He ceased his searching and turned, holding something behind his back.

Babette, as impatient as a child on Christmas, whined. "Mon cher! Show me, s'il vous plait!"

The young man smiled. "Of course cheri." Not waiting another second, he produced a golden bracelet from behind his back.

The maid gasped. "Oh Lumiere!" she whispered.

He slipped it onto her left wrist. "I am sorry that it does not quite fit. An old beggar woman gave it to me the other day when I was searching for something to give you. She seemed to know exactly what I was looking for."

The young woman hugged her suitor. "Merci beaucoup for the bracelet, mon amour, I will surely treasure it."

"I am glad," he replied.

Later that day, Babette was doing her duties once more, however she wore the bracelet. It felt warm and soothing on her skin, like magic. I cannot believe he gave this to me.

All of a sudden, Cogsworth's voice came from behind her. "Miss Roux! Why, may I ask, are you wearing a piece of jewellery?"

The maid turned, "Lumiere, he gave…"

"I don't care if he gave it to you or not. When working, the servants are not permitted to wear jewellery unless religious or needed for keeping to the time. That bracelet is neither," the Head of Household interrupted.

The young woman sighed, and slid the bracelet off. She handed it to him reluctantly, "Here."

The Englishman nodded. "Thank you. Not to worry mademoiselle, I shall keep this safe until your duties are complete for the day."

Walking down the hallway, the bracelet in hand, Cogsworth glanced up as Lucifer passed. "I trust your stay here has been a pleasant one, Lucifer?"

"Yes," he answered. His dark eyes fell on the bracelet, "Who does that belong to?"

The Head of Household explained. "The maitre'd gave this to one of our maids as a gift. I am merely keeping it safe until her duties are complete."

The Spaniard responded. "I will take it to the señorita's room if you tell me of her name. It shall save you having to hold onto it, for it might become lost."

Cogsworth nodded, "She is Elizabeth Roux."

Lucifer's eyes brightened at the name. "Ah, si, I know of her."

The Englishman handed him the bracelet. "Well, then you will have no trouble in finding her room."

Walking towards the servant's quarters, Lucifer smiled sinisterly. He turned the bracelet in his hands. Luck seemed to favour him, he realized. By pure chance he had gained the perfect tool to tear Lumiere and Babette apart.

Glancing over his shoulder, the nobleman noticed that Cogsworth had moved on. Excellent. Turning around, the Spaniard made his way to the kitchens, slipping the bracelet into the pocket of his coat.

Lumiere whirled around at the voice of one of the serving girls. "Monsieur Lumiere, I have a message for you."

"What is it, Jessica?" he asked.

She replied, "The Spanish nobleman was asking for you."

The Frenchman sighed at the mention of him. He had no good opinions of Lucifer, and the last thing he wished to do was speak with him. However, he attempted to hide his ill feelings with a smile. "Merci mademoiselle, I shall see him immediately."

All of a sudden, Lucifer called out, "Señor! May I have a word with you?"

The maitre'd rolled his eyes, "Oui."

Jessica, seeing she was no longer needed, curtsied. "Do excuse me monsieur Lumiere."

He waved a hand, "Of course."

Once she was gone, Lucifer explained. "This will only take a moment, I assure you. A few moments ago, I came across a golden bracelet and I was wondering if you knew the lady that possessed such a treasure."

The Frenchman stiffened, "A…a golden bracelet? May I see it?"

The nobleman nodded, "Si." Taking it out of his pocket, he handed it to the maitre'd.

Lumiere stared at it. It was the exact bracelet he had given Babette. Why would Lucifer have it? He cleared his throat. "Where…where did you find this?"

The Spaniard replied. "I found it lying on the floor in the study. I was drawn to it when I heard someone kicking a small object into a wall. It was obviously the bracelet." Feeling his plan was working, he added, "Whoever possessed it certainly did not care for it in the slightest."

The maitre'd nodded firmly, "I see." Shoving the bracelet into his pocket, Lumiere growled, "Merci. If you excuse me, I have to get back my duties." Without another word, he moved past the nobleman.

Later that day, Babette was continuing her duties, when Lucifer said softly from behind her. "Babette, may we speak?"

The maid turned to him, "Oui."

The Spaniard glanced down to fake nervousness, before looking up at her again. "I…wanted to apologize for my confession earlier. I should have realized that you loved the maitre'd."

She shook her head, "There is nothing to apologize for."

Lucifer moved closer. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Lumiere standing nearby. Perfect. The information Amelia gave me was useful after all. He always comes to see her at this time.

The young maid's voice brought his gaze back to her. "Lucifer, are you alright?"

He locked eyes with her once more. "Si, I just wanted to have another chance to change your mind."

Babette smiled softly, "I appreciate that you care so much for me, but…"

Lucifer cut her off gently, "Maybe this will change your mind."

Before the maid could react, her lips were being covered with the noble's. She had had such moments before, but did not particularly want to recall them. Her only thoughts were to get the man away from her.

Lumiere could not tear his gaze away from the scene before him. Anger flashed in his blood. After everything he had done for her. She had first attempted to ruin his gift, and then had kissed her old suitor! Obviously, she was sending a message quite firmly. Well, if it is what she desires, then I shall be the one to end our relationship.

Babette was in her room that evening, trying forget kissing Lucifer. Why had he done it? Would he think it would change anything? Sighing, she collapsed onto her bed and decided to think of different things. For some odd reason, Cogsworth had not had her bracelet when she asked for it.

All of a sudden, three firm knocks came from the other side of her door. Standing, the maid opened it, revealing Lumiere on the other side.

Her initial smile vanished quickly. Lumiere's eyes were narrowed and burned with anger, his body tense. "Mon cher, what is wrong?"

He snarled, "You know exactly what is wrong. You could have simply told me that you did not like the bracelet."

The maid blinked, "Pardon? I do not understand."

The maitre'd stepped into her room. "Of course you would not, Elizabeth. How could you possibly understand my love for you when you clearly have none for me in return?"

Babette drew a breath at the use of her full name. He had never used it before. "Mon amour, what are you talking about? J'taime."

"No you do not. Why would you remove my gift from your wrist and abandon it on the floor?" questioned the maitre'd.

The young maid glared, "You are making no sense at all. Did you really expect me to keep it on my wrist all day? I think you are just too worried about Lucifer and giving into jealousy."

The Frenchman laughed bitterly, "Moi? How can you say such things when you lost yourself over my purely innocent incident with Angelique? I am being utterly rational in my decision, considering what I witnessed between yourself and Lucifer."

Babette snapped, "What decision?"

He growled, "The decision to leave you."

The words pierced the young woman's heart. Swallowing back her tears, she replied harshly. "You will be lucky to find anyone else who will tolerate you."

The Frenchman turned to leave. Glancing over his shoulder, he glowered at her. "Enjoy Lucifer." Walking out, he slammed the door shut.

Once he had left, Babette simply stared at the door. The situation dawned on her. He had left her. He had really left her. Sinking to her knees, the maid cried, not caring if anyone heard.

…

*sniffs* I'm not going to cry…

I know that this chapter is short and the end is a little sad. I would like to apologize if you didn't like it.

Review please my dears!

-Babetteisawesome

P.S: Today, apart from writing, I have kept myself busy with creating my very own Beauty and the Beast castle out of cardboard (you'd be surprised how much you can find), and paint. I'm doing it in the style of after the enchantment. I'm currently waiting for the painted ballroom to finish drying. I've already painted the kitchen, the dining room, and the West Wing (I guessed the colours because we didn't see it in the end of the movie). After the ballroom dries, I'll start on the garden, then put all the accessories in (the bed in the West Wing, the dining table, the benches and cupboards for the kitchen, etc). Oh, and then I have to glue it all together.

Anyway, I just thought I'd let you know what I was doing today. What do you think?