The Adventure Continues
To make a long story short, Gaston found out about the beast and decided to "lay siege to the castle and bring back his head." Chip, a small teacup who had stowed away in Belle's bag, used Maurice's wood chopping machine to destroy the door to the cellar where Maurice and Belle had been locked inside. By the time we arrived at the castle, Gaston was about to finish the job.
Hearing Belle's voice, the beast regained the will to fight, and he defended himself well (no surprise there). I have no idea what happened, but a few minutes later, I saw Gaston fall from the castle roof.
(No one tries like Gaston to tell lies like Gaston. No one falls off a castle and dies like Gaston. Is his demise sad? No! How exhilarating! I say goodbye to Gaston!)
Anyway, not long after Gaston fell to his death, there were lights over the castle. The harnesses, pitchforks, brushes, etc., that had been taking care of me suddenly became men. I didn't know the details, but I was guessing the spell was over.
Everyone knows what happened. Maurice came to live at the castle. Belle got married and became a princess. Shortly afterwards, the king of France abdicated the throne to his son, Adam. Belle had gone from peasant to queen in less than a year.
I'll never forget the day Belle confided in me that she and Adam were going to be parents. She was excited, but also a bit nervous. The servants were (as usual) a bit sarcastic.
"If it's a boy, they should name it Gaston," Maestro Fife would joke.
"The masters are going to exile you!" La Plume always replied.
Cogsworth would always end any sort of jokes or debates by telling the other servants to get back to work.
The royal children were extremely frustrating when they were younger. Whenever Belle or Adam held them up to pet me, the little heathens used to tug on my ears or try to grab my nose. From what I hear, they were even harder on Sultan, Adam's dog. They used to throw things at the poor dog and try to pull his tail.
Fortunately, they became nice children after a few years. The servants dote on them. Sometimes when the children have nightmares and don't feel like going all the way to the West Wing, where their parents sleep, one of the servants will hold the prince and princess, telling them a story or singing softly to get them back to sleep.
It must be hard for the young royals. There aren't many children their age in the castle. Chip's coming to the age when he's almost ready to transition from childhood to early adulthood, so he isn't as eager to play with them as he would have been a few years ago.
After all this time, I still haven't adjusted to life as one of the royal horses. I remember all those years living as a peasant, but now I sometimes help pull the royal carriage. I have the finest care and everything else I could possibly want, but it gets a little dull at times.
I suppose it won't be boring for long. The servants say if Lumière doesn't get married pretty soon, they'll plan his wedding behind his back and force him into it.
Then there's that secret friendship between Adam's cousin and one of the servants who takes care of the forest. You heard right. King Adam has a lovely female cousin who is close friends with one of his servants; the beast's cousin has befriended one of the wolves. So far, it's just friendship, but the look they get in their eyes when they're together sort of makes me wonder where this friendship is headed.
Above all else, I know my life will get exciting next week. Belle and Adam have decided their children are old enough to learn how to ride a horse, "a gentle horse who has experience with carrying novice riders." That means me.