(Sorry it took me so long. Exams, writer's block, and losing all your work are horrible things. Story will pick up during spring semester. This was supposed to be a holiday/New Year's special, so happy/merry/joyous belated whatever you celebrated. Or have a good life if you didn't celebrate anything. This chapter was re-uploaded due to a small change I wanted to make to a name.)

Chapter Ten: Just a Little Change

What was keeping her here again? Oh, yeah. It was the non-legally binding contract that her father had agreed to. After hearing both sides of the story and a few snippets from Adam's butler, Belle learned that once her father entered the castle, he was given a meal and was actually invited to stay. However, all of this was done without Adam knowing. Maurice did take the flower without anyone's permission, so he wasn't completely blameless. Adam still kept his empty threats of pressing charges and giving Maurice a life sentence, but he had cooled down a bit since then.

Every since Thanksgiving break had ended, students and teachers alike were getting into exam mode. Belle had kept her promise to Adam until he lost his temper and yelled at her for being a terrible teacher. She was back for a second try after a week of being away. As usual, it wasn't going well.

They were working on unit circles, and Adam was frustrated as usual. She couldn't blame him and she tried to be patient, but it didn't help when he verbally lashed out at her. She was at her breaking point. Part of her wanted to leave and another part of her wanted to stay. She wanted to help Adam and see him succeed, but his temper was unbearable.

"Is this right," Adam grumbled, shoving the paper over to Belle.

She looked over the worksheet before handing it back to him. "Everything's good, but rework the tangent problems."

Belle took out her laptop and went to check her e-mail. She had signed up to tutor a student in exchange for service hours. There it was. Belle crossed her fingers, hoping her student would be someone who sincerely needed help, not someone who was forcibly put on.

Thank you so much for volunteering to be a tutor. We really appreciate students who wish to enrich the lives of others. Attached below is a PDF file with a list of who your student is. Again, thank you so much for volunteering. Have a magical day!

Miss Minerva Mowse

Somewhere down the list, she found her name.

Wendy Darling – Vidia Speede

Belle Merchant – Adam La Bête

Philip Thorne – Aladdin Mustapha

Of course, Belle thought. Only at this school would everything fall imperfectly into place. Just when I thought…

"Here."

She snapped out of her thoughts and took the worksheet. "Everything looks right. We've covered enough for today. We'll meet after school on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. We can get together on the weekends if you want."

"Since when did you think of a schedule? I mean, I knew you were a Type A personality, but come on."

"It's for the tutoring program you're signed up for. That's the schedule." She stood up. "Now–"

Adam grabbed her wrist. "Did I say you could leave?"

She snatched her wrist away and in a huff, she left. What was he thinking, believing she had to obtain his permission? She was not one of his servants! If anything, he had to listen to her and abide by her rules! His fate was in her hands, not the other way around! Belle had a 4.1 GPA, and considering how horrible Adam's study habits and patience were, he was probably lucky to get anywhere near a 3.0. Yet again, when she really thought about it…

No. She was patient with him. She knew about his dyslexia. That wasn't even the problem here. Belle had worked with dyslexic students before, so it wasn't like she was completely clueless. The problem was that Adam had no motivation, but look at his house. The boy lives in a real life, completely updated palace on the hill. The floors were marble, silk drapes hung in front of the windows, and a gold chandelier glittered from the ceiling. And that was just the foyer. His parents could afford to put him through any college he desired, or if he didn't want to go to college, Adam could just lounge around all day surviving off of his parents' great fortune. He didn't have to work for anything; he didn't have to earn a scholarship because of his father's iffy career choice.

Angered and jealous (even though she would never admit the second one), Belle decided to roam the palace instead of returning to Adam. She walked up the Titanic-esque staircase to the second floor. From downstairs she could hear Adam yelling at his dog, Sultan, calling him a stupid mutt. Considering how horrible he treats everyone else, he probably uses the dog as a footrest when he's not yelling at it. Belle continued down the hall even more unwilling to return.

She came across a small spiral stairwell at the end of the hall. She paused, unsure if she should continue. Her anger was still going strong, but there was something about this staircase that made her stop. It was dark, cold, and seemed like no one had stepped foot on it in a while; however, what did she have to lose? She carefully walked up the stairs to the tower of the palace.

This reminds me of my dream, Belle thought. She laughed at her thought but stopped when she remembered what Adam had said the first day she started working. What am I thinking? He told me not to go up here, but what could he possibly be hiding?

Entering the only room, Belle froze. The room was completely destroyed. A cold draft seeped through the open French doors that led to the balcony. On the floor were mirror fragments, scattered amongst the broken and turned over pieces of furniture. The once beautiful curtains and draperies that hung from the ceiling were ripped and sagging. A good layer of dust covered everything in the room. Peeking out from behind one of the curtains was a portrait that hung crooked, and across the face were large gashes. The only thing that wasn't in disarray was a table in the center of the room with a dome-shaped object covered by a white sheet.

Belle was known for being curious and knew the old saying, 'curiosity killed the cat'; however, sometimes she didn't listen to it. This was one of those moments. Underneath the sheet was a glass dome harboring a glass rose. She removed the dome and went to touch the rose when she heard a familiar growl.

"Why did you come here?"

She turned and saw Adam standing in the doorway. He quickly went over and placed the glass dome back on the rose, holding it possessively.

"I'm sorry," Belle said. Her voice was shaking.

Adam moved from the rose and proceeded to step towards Belle, his voice rising. "I told you the first day to never to come here!"

Backing away, Belle said, "I didn't mean any harm."

"Do you realize what you could have done?" Adam thundered.

He ripped one of the drawers from the barely standing end table and threw it across the room before ripping apart and destroying anything he could get his hands on.

"Get out!"

Belle didn't need to be told twice. She ran from the room and down the stairs, stopping by the office to grab her things before going out the door. Never before had she seen that type of anger in Adam's eyes. He was like a wild animal: ferocious, uncaring, and unforgiving. She had betrayed his trust out of spite, but he didn't have to lash out. Just like when her father had entered the palace, no one was completely innocent.

D*H

Up in the palace, Adam was pacing in front of his headwaiter, Lumière, majordomo, Cogsworth, and the head of the kitchen, Mrs. Potts.

"You can't blame the girl," Lumiere said. "You yelled at her and reacted violently."

"Exactly!" Cogsworth piped in. "When you act like a beast, you shall be treated like a beast. You have no one to blame but yourself."

"And you think I don't know that?" Adam yelled.

"Calm now," Mrs. Potts soothed. "You obviously want her back or else you wouldn't be making such a fuss over her."

"Well, how do I get her back? Exams are in two weeks!"

"Do something nice," the three responded in unison.

"How about a dinner?" Lumière suggested. "A grand feast with cake, pie, cider, turkey, all the works! Chef Bouche, start planning the meal! Fifi, prepare the cutlery! Angelique, I want the dining room to look amazing!"

Mrs. Potts rolled her eyes. "Maybe something a bit simpler and personal would be better?"

Grabbing the woman by her shoulders and lightly shaking her, Lumière said, "Mon'Amie, why go simple when we're dealing with matters of the heart?"

Adam quickly stepped in. "This has nothing to do with matters of the heart. I just need to do well on my exams."

He let out an exasperated sigh. Lumière was always trying to bring some life to the dreary place and do everything he could to annoy Adam. When he wasn't helping or annoying Cogsworth, he was always trying to entertain. Adam could hardly count the times Lumière had asked him to throw a party or go to one. It was under his request and Mrs. Potts's doting that Adam had even attended Princeton's party, and he didn't even enjoy himself. To be honest, though, Adam did make a point to have a horrible time just so he could yell at Lumière about it later. With no guests – except for Belle who didn't count in Adam's eyes – Lumière really had nothing to do except serve Adam his meals and manage the wait staff, and Adam didn't really need an extra person to do that. The only reason Adam kept Lumière was because he was good at giving advice and was the only person he considered a true friend.

Before he knew it, servants were bustling throughout the palace, carrying candelabras, boxes of silver, and various decorations to prepare. It had been so long since they had a respectable dinner. Adam took his meals in his room, and Maurice was fed in kitchen. Cogsworth, who could be considered just as rebellious as Lumière but certainly fussier, was yelling at them to stop. Lumière kept yelling at them to go. The two disagreed on many things and watching their arguing was enjoyable to Adam. It almost reminded him of his relationship with Herc, but there was no denying that where Lumière and Cogsworth had a love-hate relationship, Adam and Herc did not.

Mrs. Potts pulled Adam aside.

"As much as I love this idea, dearie," she said, motioning to the bustle, "just one dinner isn't going to soothe everything over. Like I said, you need to do something personal, something to show her that you actually care. Now, think about it."

What was he to do? He could barely remember what Belle liked. She was always hanging around that blonde girl and Princeton's friend, but those two were odd. The only smart one in a group of idiots, just like him. Maybe she would like some sort of written note saying that he understood her feelings on having friends who get on her nerves? Or how about an invitation to leave her useless friends and hang out with him only? Both of those would never work. They're insensitive, Mrs. Potts would say. But it was the truth. Adam actually paid close attention to people's emotions on the very rare occasions when he wasn't looking at his fellow students with disgust. It didn't take much to notice the looks of irritation on Belle's face or the aura of obliviousness that the blonde one had. Always talking, talking, talking. Never listening.

But Belle was a killjoy. Maybe something scholastic would do the trick? She did make the high honor roll every year and was always studying or reading when she wasn't with her friends. So, a textbook maybe? Insensitive, he could hear Mrs. Potts say. A book of some sort, then. He didn't really care enough to pay attention to what she was reading, but whatever it was, she obviously loved it. How, Adam did not know. How anyone could enjoy a book and read it for hours on end was beyond his comprehension. His dyslexia didn't help his enjoyment, but deep inside Adam knew that he probably wouldn't have liked reading whether or not he had a learning disability.

After thinking about it for a while, Adam thought of the perfect idea, the palace library. He could allow her to take any books she desired whenever she came over. It was any reader's dream. The walls were completely covered in shelves, and various stairs and ladders were set up around the room for convenience. There was no way she would resist it. There was just one problem: How would he get her back? The most obvious way was to ask her, be upfront and honest. Apologizing probably wouldn't hurt his chances. Two little words. That was all. It should have been fairly easy, but this is Adam we're talking about. Admitting he was wrong would probably be the most difficult part because in his mind he was rarely wrong.

Watching the trees sway in the wind, Adam was now leaning on the balcony of the West Wing. Being here brought back painful memories. He had destroyed the room – the West Wing it was called – in a fit of rage after hearing about his inheritance. How could that witch say that he wasn't fit to inherit his family's fortune? He was perfectly fit. It wasn't like he was going to waste it all like some people might think. Great Aunt Fae was wrong; she knew nothing about him. He had never even heard of a "Great Aunt Fae" until she showed up at his house one day asking to stay the night. Didn't even introduce herself. How was he supposed to know that was his relative? His parents surely never mentioned her. In fact, the day Great Aunt Fae his parents weren't home, which wasn't an uncommon occurrence in the La Bête house. His parents were off on another one of their trips. His father went to who-knows-where and his mother to a book signing (it was her idea to build the library). Home alone with nothing but the servants and the lavish gifts his parents splurged on him to make up for them never being there. So, when the news had arrived that his parents died in a plane crash and he was to be put into the care of his Great Aunt Fae, who still popped in only when she felt like it, Adam wasn't that upset. But that was what upset him and made him destroy the former sitting room where he had spent so much time with his parents when he was younger.

Despite the pain, Adam still went up to the West Wing to think or sulk. Being amongst the destruction somehow helped him clear his mind. Today, however, it wasn't helping.

She shouldn't have been sneaking around, he thought. I told her not to go up here and she agreed to that. Why do I have to apologize for enforcing the rules that she agreed to?

He let out a grunt.

She's probably e-mailing Miss Mowse right now asking to switch with someone.

His mood lightened a bit. A new tutor, someone who wouldn't go snooping around, wouldn't be so bad. What was he thinking? Yes, it would. As much as he hated to admit it, he wanted Belle to stay. Other than Eric, Belle was the most practical person his own age he had talked to in a while. Plus, he had gotten A's on his last few tests with her around, so obviously something had to be working.

Someone knocked softly on the door and the door opened. Cogsworth cautiously walked in holding the cordless phone.

"Master, there's a call for you," Cogsworth said warily. "It's Belle. Would like for me to take a message?"

"No!" Adam went and took the phone. "Hello?"

Belle's voice lacked enthusiasm and a hint of annoyance could be heard. "I hit a tree branch and I'm afraid the tire's going to blow. Aurora and Philip aren't picking up their phones and my father's out of town."

They had started studying late today, so the sun was already starting to set even though Belle hadn't been gone for that long. This was the perfect opportunity for Adam to swoop in like a knight in shining armor and help her. He would ask for her forgiveness and a second chance and tell her about the library and the dinner Lumière was planning. It was perfect.

"Hello?" Belle asked frustratingly. "Are you still there?"

"I'm here," Adam said. "I'll be there in a few minutes. Stay there."

Hopefully she would forgive him.

Chapter Fun Facts:

-Exams and winter break were supposed to be divided into at least four chapters, but obviously that didn't and isn't going to happen

-I honestly didn't want to do Beauty and the Beast next but then I remembered that part of their story takes place in winter.

-This chapter started off as being entirely Cinderella's, having her interact with the main three. It then turned into partially Cinderella and partially the teacher's before I had to use a different computer because mine wouldn't charge. Who knows how that story chapter would actually go…

-The actual French word for Lumière's job is Maître d.

-I know Be Our Guest didn't happen after Beast rescued Belle from the wolves, but I had no clue where I was going to put it. He honestly can't starve her.

-How do you modernize Belle getting attacked by wolves? If you have any ideas, tell me because I sure don't know.

-The name "Adam" was never mentioned in the Disney movie. It was only in merchandise and it caught on.

-Great Aunt Fae is actually the Enchantress and a sorceress, making her not a fairy as her name suggests. I didn't look it up and thought she was a fairy. Whatever. Too late now.