The Beast watched Gaston for a moment, making sure he was gone, before he turned back around towards Belle. She was laying in the snow struggling against her bonds. The Beast hurried over and undid the gag from her mouth.
"It's about time you found me." she said smiling up at him. He used one of his long talons to slice the rope and around her wrists and break her free. Her wrists were sore and cracked from trying to break free from the last hours. The Beast knew she was kidding, that she wasn't actually mad he had taken so long, but he couldn't match her light hearted tone.
"Are you alright?" he asked her, feeling an overwhelming sense of guilt that he hadn't been able to protect her from all this.
"I'm fine, just extraordinarily chilly." she replied. She wasn't wearing a cloak, just the dress she had been wearing at dinner which was horribly inadequate against the night's chill. Belle stood up and brushed the snow off quickly before wrapping her bare arms and hands around herself in an attempt to keep herself warm. "You know you're quite lucky that you have a fur coat wherever you go," she said teasing him again.
He smiled back at her, at least what he thought was a smile. Smiling felt so strange on his face. It had been a long time since he had any real reason to smile.
"Let's get going. We have quite the walk ahead of us." The Beast said. It had taken him probably 45 minutes to get out here, which meant without running it would take at least an hour and a half. The Beast started to walk and Belle shortly followed shivering behind him.
The pair walked in silence for a moment before the Beast started to speak "Maybe if we talk it won't seem so chilly. You know I was on my way to bring you some books when I found you miss…." The Beast trailed off as he turned back to see her, but Belle was no longer standing and walking. She was laying in the snow about five feet away from him. The Beast hurried over.
"Belle?" he asked trying to shake her awake. She must have passed out from the cold. She had been out here far longer than him with far less fur. When she didn't answer the Beast scooped her up in his arms, hugging her tight against his chest. She did not wake up, but she stirred for a moment and grabbed a piece of his fur to cling to.
The Beast had to be quick now, to get her back to the castle to save her! He wasn't able to run on all fours and carry her, but he went as fast as he could, making his way through the icy forest. His toes had long since turned numb, but his fingers and hands were warm against Belle's body. Off in the distance he heard a lone wolf howl and he prayed it would stay away.
The walk back was cold and dark, but eventually the Beast saw the lights of the Castle off in the distance. All of his servants were gathered at the front door when he entered with Belle.
"Oh dear! Is she hurt?" asked Mrs. Potts.
"I think she passed out from the cold. She was out there a long time without a coat." said the Beast.
"Put her in front of the fire. I'll brew up a nice hot cup of tea and someone fetch some blankets!" said Mrs. Potts dashing off to the kitchen.
As the servants rushed about the Castle, the Beast took Belle to the fire. Her hand was still clinging to the fur on his chest. He stroked her cheek softly, brushing her hair out of her face. If she didn't recover from this it would forever be his fault and he knew the guilt would be unbearable.
The servants brought piles and piles of blankets and arranged them on the floor. The Beast laid Belle down on the hearth, wrapping her in a mountain of blankets. Mrs. Potts returned with a full pot of tea.
"What do we do now?" asked the Beast.
"We sit, we wait, and we drink some tea." Mrs. Potts said, pouring some of her brew into Chip for the Beast to drink. The Beast wrapped a large blanket around himself and sipped at the tea, watching Belle as the night grew later and later.