The dress that had been chosen for me was quite tasteful. I wasn't much of a girl that enjoyed the frills of fashion but I couldn't ignore how the lavender silk hung on my hips or how the darker velvet corset wrapped comfortably around my waist. The question as to why the Beast had so many of these kinds of clothes had filtered through my thoughts, but I never found myself able to say them.

My hair was left down, the pesky bangs in the front puled back by a silk bow that matched the color of the dress. My shoulders and collar were left exposed, exhibiting the white bandages that had been wrapped around my injured shoulder. The overall wound seemed to be healing surprisingly well considering my current situation. But I suppose I wasn't getting too short of a stick in all of this. After all, the room was extravagant, the clothing beautiful, and the food that I'd had was delicious. It was just the fact that I was being forced to remain here that wasn't sitting well with me.

Lumiere led me through the castle to the dinning hall, stopping at the open door to let me enter alone. Admittedly I was nervous, considering how our last meeting alone went. But she seemed to want to be civil (at least that's what I hoped the dinner was for).

The Beast was standing behind her seat when I walked in, looking over me heavily. I wrinkled my nose, bowing my head but letting my eyes swoop up to notice the small amount of clothing on her figure. It was a certain improvement and made me less nervous that I would see anything inappropriate when she was walking.

"You're late," she hissed and I frowned, my head rising again as I settled into my chair, a pair of tall candle sticks pushing it in for me.

"My apologies," I grumbled, watching as plates and serving trays whizzed around, serving the Beast and me food. I was hesitant towards eating it, but eventually my stomach started to beg for the sustenance as silence settled in the room between us.

Only it was suddenly filled with an obnoxious slurping sound. I've never been one for enforcing strict manners, but as I looked across the table with Beast standing on her chair and scarfing down her soup like an animal…I couldn't help myself. "I suppose a pair of trousers can't take away the animal," I remarked as I gave a dainty sip from my soup-filled spoon.

It had been quiet, but enough to catch Beast's attention as she stopped, and looked up with a growl. "Tis what happens when the world refuses to see you as anything else." I couldn't help but chuckle as I rested my spoon back onto the table.

"I believe this is your own doing, if I've hear correctly," the comment had been enough for Beast to snap out of her chair, leaning on the table towards me.

"I was forced to become this," without thinking I stood and challenged her glare with my own.

"I do not believe one simply wakes up a beast. Tis an act that takes time," at that I moved, pushing my chair back as I moved towards the large doors. In a rush of anger the Beast suddenly had my back pinned to the wall, huffing down at me with her snarling teeth.

"I would convict people of treason for what you have said," but I simply smirked, reaching up and tapping the tip of her nose.

"Then you have simply proved my point. Might I go? I'm no longer hungry."

"No!" The Beast snapped, slamming her fist against the wall as I jumped. "You ask to trade your life for your father's and yet are nothing more than a stubborn pest." I frowned, waiting to see what the Beast was getting at. "I glad I left him out in the cold. I'm sure he didn't even make the night," she breathed in my face and I found it impossible to keep my composure as tears rushed to my eyes, glazing over the blue irises. Roughing I pushed her back, turning away and rushing through the door as the tears found their way down my cheeks.

I couldn't care if she was serious or not. The fact was, was that I didn't know if my father was still alive. She could have killed him for all I knew and was just pretending to hold me here in an attempt to get something. But that something only made a nervous shiver run down my spine as I collapsed onto my bed in violent sobs.

"Ma cheri," Lumiere purred next to me as I attempted to calm down my shaky breathing. "Tis nothing to fear. She speaks of such things but means nothing about it."

"Yes," Mrs. Pots continued, pouring a cup of hot tea into Chip the teacup for me. "It has just been far too many years since the woman has seen any form of kindness. She only knows anger."

"Are…are you telling me to be kind to a thing such as her?" I breathed, looking towards the teacup but ignoring it.

"We are telling you that if she was to see that you are willing to forgive and forget for the sake of some sort of…truce." I could tell that the word 'truce' was a mask for another mean, but I couldn't exactly discover what. Instead I looked down at my hands, biting my lip in thoughts before giving a slow nod.

"Only if she is willing to try as well."

"That…that will certainly be a challenge," Mrs. Pots remarked as we all gave a weak chuckle.