Hello ladies and gentlemen! I hope everyone is well and looking forward to the Christmas holidays. I know this is a major lack in an update :S but I do have my reasons...For one my boyfriend joined the RAF in October which was a huge knock to both my motivation and inspiration in being without him all of a sudden and for such a long period of time initially...I was also suffering with some pain, plus the year anniversary since losing my sister, amongst other things has just made me lose all motivation to write. I never gave up, but I think it was a delayed reaction to my initial loss of my sister...I think I almost tried to write again too soon and so, it became a delayed reaction.

But I'm back and ready to get back on track. I hope you all enjoy the chapter and please review! Thankyou!

A month on and as Belle awakened to the dull sound of an alarm; her eyes opening with an expected weariness compared to their usual bright sparkle. With morning's first light shining through a slim crack in the curtains', Belle sighed as she flicked the alarm off and lay out on her back, her eyes adjusting slowly, longing for more sleep. Though in light of her tiredness, Belle found it a difficulty just getting to sleep some nights, with so much playing on her thoughts, she found herself up till the early hours thinking...contemplating, and wondering how long she could deny herself returning home.

It wasn't that she had been mistreated since staying with her Uncle Adam and Aunt Kath, but she felt so detached from her life back in Connecticut, so far from all those she had come to love so dearly. A month without them just felt like torture in itself...yet she had set herself up for the hard training and long hours of the day that she spent working towards become physically more agile and emotionally stronger. Yet as she pulled herself from her bed, Belle still was in a thought track of sheer habit, getting changed into her dancewear that served well for a light morning jog and running a brush lightly through her soft blonde hair, she felt like she hardly recognised the person in the mirror. So much had changed and she was no closer to discovering how she had come to be the person that was before her. Though she wasn't the only one to notice the changes...

Walking down the stairs of her Uncle's stately home, Belle's amethyst eyes hardly averted from the next step beneath her, her gaze only becoming focused when she reached the hallway and saw her Uncle leaning against the door, looking refreshed and awake. 'Tired?' he asked with a coy grin,

'No, I'm fine, honestly,' Belle replied, though her tone and visual appearance did nothing to support her response, Adam smiling softly, his eyes showing some hint of sympathy as he stepped forward and put his hands on her shoulders.

'No, you're not, that's the trouble...you've hardly been okay since a week after you got here...I've watched you push yourself and I can't deny your working hard. But what you need to work on right now, is taking care of yourself, not forcing your body to take on so much...' he offered calmly.

'I thought the whole idea of me coming here was for me to get stronger though? To learn from you and find myself...or at least more of what my strengths and weaknesses are...' Belle responded, Adam thinking over the notion and nodding in some agreement.

'True, but one of your biggest weaknesses Belle...is remembering that you too have to be taken care of every now and then, even if you think others are more deserving...So what I want you to do this morning is go back upstairs to your room, get into that bed and don't come out of your room until you have rested and it's late than ten am...got it?'

'But why?'

'Because I said so...we'll talk more when you've had more than 5 hours sleep...now go on and get back to bed, then when you're ready, come down and me or Kath will cook you some breakfast...and before you ask, no you don't have a choice,' he smiled, Belle giving in, knowing trying to get past Adam was about as easy as trying her luck with Hellboy, especially when she knew he was right. Though whilst part of her wanted to continue on, she knew he was right and her body was aching in agreement, the longing for sleep and the comfort of her bed bringing her to finally agree.

'Okay,' she nodded, 'but only if you tell me why the sudden change in heart later...'

'Deal,' he responded simply, before gesturing her upstairs, Belle not thinking over it too much, her thoughts only swaying as she got back to her room and caught sight of her phone. Sighing inwardly at remembering the lack of contact she'd had since her arrival in California, Belle sat down on the edge of the bed and felt tears of frustration spark in her eyes. As she opened the bedside drawer and pushed her phone inside; she decided it were best to try and ignore it all...Sleep was what she needed, though she knew she couldn't avoid it forever...

'Abe...' she breathed silently, leaning her head back into the pillows as she looked up to the ceiling with a sigh, her eyes closing as she began to think of the merman and the pain it had caused her being without him...but also...the lack of contact...Was he giving up on her? Was he beginning to realise she was too much trouble than it was worth? Or did he just not love her as he believed he did...? With all the mixed doubts running through her mind, Belle had to force herself to believe that it couldn't all be bad. In the times she had spoken to him, he said nothing to suggest any of those things...but in his silence, her mind began to fill in the blanks with nothing but doubtful answers. Though as she lay there, allowing sleep to take her back in its grasp, she knew she had to pull herself together...She couldn't allow herself to be beaten...not now...she couldn't lose herself and thus become a weakness. If she were to have any hope of succeeding in getting through the challenges she faced, she had to be strong...for her family...for Abe...her friends...everyone...

But as Belle was about to discover, there wasn't one person who was going to allow her to succumb to the will of her enemy, let alone be defeated...not without a fight...a fact she was about to be reminded of.

~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~

Meanwhile back at Connecticut; the sound of baby's cries was a much heard noise to Hellboy, Liz and Abe, leaving them tired and restless for the best part. Though as Manning had told Liz, he didn't realise the wrath of Hellboy more, until he met him after a sleepless night...safe to say, early calls from the FBI had been a rarity since...Though Manning wasn't the only one to notice.

'I'm telling you Abe I don't know whose more befitting to the term grouchy...the twins or Red,' Liz sighed as she sat in with Abe, sipping on a hot drink of black coffee. It was five am and after putting the twin's back to sleep for the second time that night, Abe had offered for Liz to join him for a while after the sound had awakened him too. Yet as Liz sat on the sofa watching Abe flit around doing things that had little importance, she couldn't help but wonder why he didn't admit to himself that he was unhappy and at best worried, instead of covering it with t.

'At a guess I'd say Red,' Abe responded,

'So when are you going to actually call Belle?' she said finally, Abe nearly dropping the book he was holding as his gills expanded slightly.

'I...well...'

'Oh come on Abe, you need to be a man about this...Haven't you learnt anything from what happened with the Golden Army? You leave these things until it's nearly too late to do anything about them,' Liz emphasised, compelling him to do something about it. 'Besides, I like Belle...it's nice to have someone who understands you...like you and Red have each other, I finally had a friend who I could understand completely because she's just like me. Now are you going to stop treating her like a child and be a man about this? Or are you going to let her go and watch her walk into some other guys arms because they show her what being loved is all about?' she asked him, Abe seeming to pause for a minute as if lost in thought. 'Abe!' she exclaimed, the merman coming setting the books in his hand down as he finally came to sit beside her.

'I don't want her to find somebody else...' he admitted quietly, 'the longer I'm away from her...the more I feel like I've already lost her. I mean look at me...then look at Belle...it's not the same as it was with the Princess...she was from a different world, but Belle...she grew up so normally. What can I possibly offer her?' he questioned, Liz's tone softening as she put her hand over his, moving up the sofa with ease to sit closer beside him.

'Abe...you don't need to worry about what you can offer her...because your you...and that's the person that she's grown so fond of. You both have so much chemistry its unreal. I know you can put your fears aside, but you can't leave her waiting on your word. With me and Red it was different. I kept him waiting and I kept pushing him away, whereas all Belle has tried to do is get you to let her in...Even in the first week she was here, she was so curious by you...so intrigued...and you tried to push her away like I did with Red. Because you thought it was for the best...but have you ever wondered what is for the best for both of you?' she asked, Abe watching her with understanding, knowing she was right, but being uncertain of how to respond.

'Look, just think about it...' Liz said finally, deciding it would be best to try and get some more sleep, though as she got up to leave, Abe stood and called after her.

'Liz?' he remarked, the pyrokinetic looking back for a moment, seeing his gills still as inflated as the moment she had mentioned Belle, though what she noted more was how his eyes shone in the light. 'Thankyou...' he remarked, Liz nodding slightly with a smile as she left him to think things over, Abe casting his attention back to the book stands, where upon the centre stand in the corner, sat a picture of his beloved angel.

~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~

As Belle joined Kath later that morning for breakfast; she found her Uncle was nowhere to be seen. Though after telling her he was out running an errand, Kath turned the subject to Belle as she distantly ate.

'You know, when I joined this family ten years ago, you were one of the first of Adam's family I met. But even as a child you stood out from the others your age. With those violet eyes and your inquisitive nature,' she smiled, Belle listening silently to her Aunt, being aware of Kath's thoughts as she went seemed to be trying to decide how to approach the questions she wished to ask. 'My point is, you have so much going for you...You shouldn't worry about trying to be someone that other people want you to be. Or who you believe you should be...I'm not trying to talk to you like you're a child. You're far from it...but you are so much stronger than you think. Training can make you physically stronger, sure, but anyone can train to appear strong. That's only half the battle...the really fight is being strong enough emotionally and mentally. I know you are, you just have to believe it.'

'There's a difference in believing your strengths and knowing your weaknesses,' Belle responded, 'I know where my flaws are and I'm afraid of allowing that to be my downfall. Because surely if I know my weaknesses then I should do my best to limit them...I just don't want to be the burden that everyone worries about. I've spent the best part of the last few months, watching people stand up and put themselves in front of me without any regards to themselves for my protection. But that's not right.'

'Belle you can't fight everything on your own...'

'I'm not saying I can Kath, but it isn't even being a team...when I first went to my home in Connecticut, I was just another pretty face to the FBI. But I know I'm so much more than that. I made my friends there...and if I'm going to get through this and come out on the other side, then I have to-'

'Hey, look who's here,' Adam interrupted, Belle and Kath turning to the door to see a beautiful white dog bolt into the room, Belle getting to her feet in an instant in recognition of who it was.

'Chance!' she gasped, the white Samoyed getting up on its hind legs as Belle put her arms around his soft fur, kneeling to the floor as he lowered himself and burying her face in his neck. 'Thankyou...' she breathed looking up to her Uncle with a teary smile. 'You have no idea what this means to me...'

'Oh I think I do,' Adam responded... 'So come on, what do you say we take him for a walk and chat..?' he offered, offering her his hand, which Belle, after a moment, readily accepted.

~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~

It was late that evening and Belle found she was, once again, restless...So upon deciding she had Chance to keep her safe, Belle ventured out into the cold night. As she gathered in the neck of her red coat, the scarlet colour standing out prominently with her blonde hair falling over the shoulders, the rest of her attire consisting of faded blue jeans and a pair of red ankle boots, though only the tips were visible. Feeling the wind picking up as Chance tugged softly on his lead, bringing Belle's attention back to him, she smiled softly as she ran a hand over his head before leaving the entrance to her Uncle's home. Though unbeknown to her, she wasn't alone as someone watched silently in the shadows.

As Belle took her leave around the grounds, deciding it was best to stay nearby; Chance paused after a few minutes and started to look around in earnest, sensing something. Though whilst Belle noticed her dogs alerted expression, he didn't growl or bark...he waited. Though it was in that moment that a familiar voice startled Belle and made her let out a noise in surprise...

'Tut tut Tinks; isn't someone supposed to be keeping to their curfew?' a voice spoke out, Belle turning in disbelief to see a large figure move out of the shadows, the grin on his face evident as his golden eyes shone with mischief.

'Red? What are you doing here?' she questioned with some exasperation.

'Yeah, it's me...unless you know anyone else that has a tail and eyes which the guys in the comics can never seem to get right. Heh. Idiots...' he mused, Belle ignoring his joke and throwing her arms around him.

'You have no idea how good it is to see you,' she remarked, Hellboy smiling as he put his normal arm around her.

'Well, someone's gotta keep an eye on you haven't they? Especially seeing as you have a tendency of doing the opposite of what people tell you, even when it's for your own safety.'

'Uhuh; and you're a prime example when it comes to listening to the rules,' Belle grinned, kneeling down and running her hand through Chance's fur; the dog looking at Hellboy and sniffing slightly as he approached him, the demon running his fingertips through the dogs mane of white fur, offering it the same gentleness that he would his cats.

'Yeah well, that's me, I can still tell you what to do,' he smirked.

'Oh yeah? How do you figure that?'

'Because I'm older, still naturally good looking, but yeah, I'm older, so I get the say,' he remarked, Belle rolling her eyes as she smiled at him. 'So, come on then, what's up? Cause you're definitely not yourself,' Hellboy remarked. Since he had last seen Belle, she seemed even more lost within herself than usual, it being evident that a lot of things were troubling her mind.

'Yeah...love sucks,' Hellboy remarked, Belle looking up to him with some confusion in her expression, though he could see right through it. 'Ah come on Belle, you think I don't recognise it? You're just like I was with Liz...I can see it in ya face...an' you wanna know how I can tell it's there?'

'How?'

'Because it's the same look I see in Abe's face every time your name drops into a conversation...it's like lookin' into a mirror, I see in you what I saw in myself every time...it's like you perk up and suddenly have more of an interest in what someone is saying. Take it from me...I hate Manning, but every time he mentioned Liz, I stopped and listened, whether he was even talking to me or not. Cause that's what ya do Tinks; you pay attention because ya care. Because you want to know their okay...that they're safe, even when they seem to be keeping you at arm's length. But Liz and Abe both do it for the same reason as we do it because we care...they do it because they think it's the right thing to do. Like they're somehow protecting the people they care about more by not being around them. But, it doesn't make a difference...hell, Liz could be in the safest place in the world and I'd still worry about her...' Hellboy remarked, Belle understanding where he was coming from and finding that she related to Hellboy so much more than she had previously realised. Though the situations still remained different to her...

'The difference is you both have a relationship Red...I love Abe...I've loved him for longer than I'd like to admit, but I'm afraid Red,' she responded, a trembling entering her voice as she looked out into the night instead of at him, trying to blink back the inevitable tears as she talked about her difficulty in knowing what to do over her situation with Abe. 'I'm afraid of getting hurt in all this, I'm afraid of getting it right. It's newer for Abe than it is for me and if I have to lead...to show him what love entails...Then I can't help but think I'm only going to get it wrong,' she admitted. Looking down at her hands, Hellboy watched as she tried to distract herself by winding her hands around one of the pleats in her coat. Though he could see how nervous she was...a woman isn't meant to lead the man in any relationship...they're meant to be dominant, protective...and whilst Hellboy knew Abe had those qualities and though he would never admit it, the desires that all men possessed, he knew Abe also wasn't the best at showing it. Yet at the same time, he couldn't help but find it incredulous that Belle doubted herself so much, it being something he mused over as he thought of what to say.

'You really don't give yourself any credit, do ya Tink's?' he remarked with a shake of his head, 'listen to me, you worry about getting back to Connecticut where ya belong, with us, and leave the relationship stuff to Abe...Trust me, though it might not seem like it, he'll know how to handle things when the time comes. But right now, you need to be home where you're familiar with everything. Yeah...your with family here, but ya can't run away from things and it was a stupid idea for anyone to agree with ya leaving in the first place...Besides...I kinda missed having my partner in crime...who else have I got that can drive up there with the best of them and pull it off so easily?' he grinned, Belle laughing as she rested her head against his shoulder, the pair talking about there more light-hearted experiences and their breaking into the FBI base in Connecticut. Though as they sat in shelter and watched the rain fall, Belle knew the time was getting away from them, especially as she started to finally drift off from such exhaustion.

Though as Hellboy quickly noted her weariness, he picked her up, not wanting her to catch a cold from staying out in the dreary weather and carried her to the door of her Uncle's home with Chance staying close beside him, his eyes always on his mistress whom he had been curled up beside whilst she spoke to Hellboy.

'Where will you go tonight?' she asked in a tired tone of voice as she tried to stifle a yawn.

'Ah, I'm gonna catch some sleep then get back to Liz, after all, with twin's, ya gotta get a break,' he responded, 'but before ya go back inside...' he began, Belle looking at him and nodding for him to continue.

'Come back home...to where ya belong to another family...our family...an' take this...' he added, giving her a locator. 'If you need us anytime, just set off your locator and we'll be there...' he remarked. Though before Belle could answer, a light flickered on from inside the house. 'That's my cue to go then, take care of yourself Tink's...an' don't forget what I said...Abe really ain't the same without you there...' he said, pulling Belle into a hug that she felt was too short lived as he had to quickly slip away.

'I'll be back soon Red...' she breathed, looking into the distance as he disappeared into the shadows, Belle lowering to stroke Chance's soft fur... 'I promise...'

So what will happen when Belle returns? Will Abe finally make something of their relationship...? and what of the villains? All coming up in the next chapter.

I just want to take a moment to say thankyou to my ever patient and faithful reviewers who have continually reviewed my work...and a thank you to all my new reviewers who have requested I update and complimented my work. It is all so appreciated and I am so grateful to be as lucky as I am to get so many reviews for my work.

Thankyou and goodnight!

~x-xMasqueradeAngelx-x