It had started as an ordinary day and with a bang- literally, with the sounds of Maurice inventing and causing explosions. His yells of-

'BLASTED CONTRAPTION!' and 'I'M DONE WITH THIS HUNK OF JUNK!' could be heard around the castle. Some servants joked that they didn't need an alarm clock to get up early in the morning- Maurice's explosions and frustrated yells did it for them.

As he composed himself after kicking the offending contraption, which was some sort of knitting machine, he realised that his undertrousers were showing. He heard the giggles of Rebecca and Katrine nearby and knowing that showing them would be VERY inappropriate in front of two young ladies, he quickly pulled his trousers up, just as the women walked past.

'Morning, ladies,' he said.

'Morning, Monsieur Maurice,' they said politely and curtseying to him. 'Monsieur Maurice' was what the servants called him, out of respect. Maurice nodded and carried on inventing, despite what he had said before, though he could hear the women giggling about his ridiculous goggles.

'Women,' he muttered to himself.

Also, Remy and George were up early, as they were every morning, to go into the forest to fetch water from the waterfall in the glade for use in the kitchen, laundry, washrooms and for bathing and drinking.

As the men headed towards the door, they ran into Rebecca and for Remy, this was a golden opportunity to get her to be his girlfriend again.

'Hi, Becks,' he said, flashing his big, mischievous smile.

'Hello, Remy,' Rebecca said, uninterested. What annoying thing was Remy going to do today? she thought to herself, sighing.

'What are you up to?' he then said, rather lamely.

'I was going to get breakfast ready for the masters and the princess- I'm making cherry vanilla porridge as it's her favourite, and make breakfast for us, but a certain someone-' Rebecca began, before giving Remy a hard stare, for that someone was obviously him, 'hasn't got the water for cooking and everything else and is wasting time making yet another pathetic attempt to hit on me, so I can't make breakfast!'

'Remy,' she continued, irritated, 'when are you and George going to get the water? You were supposed to get it an hour ago! Do you want us to go without water for the day?'

'Sorry, Rebecca, we were just going to get it, weren't we Remy?' George said.

'Oh, yes, we are Georgie, so chill out, would you?' snapped Remy, 'Hey listen, Becks, if you're not doing anything later tonight, want to hang out with me? I'll teach you how to play twenty-one, you can teach me how to cook and we can get to know each other better- it'll be great! How about it?'

Rebecca didn't say anything, but had a disgusted look on her face. Then she grabbed Remy by his shirt and said-

'Listen here Remy, I'll never be your girlfriend! You're a despicable, annoying creep, who only loves me for my looks and I want nothing to do with you EVER!'

'Aw, Becks, you know you love me really. And I'm not despicable! I'm very loving and everyone loves me! I love you so much and it's genuine! Just give me a chance!'

'No, they don't! And I certainly don't love you! Just leave me alone, Remy and give up on your childish fantasies of being with me! Don't make me go to the master again!' Rebecca said.

'Becks..' Remy said and attempted to kiss her, only to receive a slap to the face instead.

'Just go get the water, Remy!' she said and walked off in a huff, leaving Remy to lick his wounds. He then went after her, but George gave him a look that said 'quit while you're ahead' and Remy grabbed the big tub for the water, while glaring at his older bother-brother, his slap mark stinging his face.

Lumiere, having witnessed the debacle, chuckled at his tormentor.

'Rejected again by Rebecca, mon ami?' he said with heavy, sarcastic emphasis on the word 'ami' for he knew Remy was anything but.

'Shut up,' Remy snarled and, finally, he and George were out the door to fetch the water.

In her grand bedroom, which was in the West Wing and a short distance from her parents' room, so she could be closer to them and easily find them if she had nightmares during the night, Rose was just waking up in her canopy bed, as the sun shone through the double doors that led to the balcony where she liked to sit and read if it was a nice, warm, sunny day and to look out into the forest and gardens, where she had the most wonderful views and was eagerly anticipating what the day had in store for her.

Lila, who was snoozing at the end of the bed, as she usually did, meowed and moved up to Rose, who happily cuddled her and the cat purred in affection.

'Hello, Lila, my lovely kitty,' she said, gently stroking her golden coloured fur. Lila purred and nuzzled against Rose.

She then heard her grandfather getting grumpy at his inventions and giggled, then someone else who was also being grumpy caught her attention- it was Remy, and he was arguing with George, as they were coming back from the forest, with the tub now full with water-

'If I were you, Remy, I'd give up on Rebecca. She's not the girl for you, as she's too standoffish, since it took her a long time to trust people again. And there was no need to snap at Lumiere.'

'He rubbed it in my face, George! He thinks he's all that just because he can get the women round here. I mean, he has Babs and Angie once told me that she and Lumsie were an item once. Well, unlike him, I'm a one-woman man and the one woman I want keeps rejecting me! It's not fair!' Remy whined like a child.

'I don't love Becks just because she's beautiful and can cook delicious meals. I love her for who she is.'

'Ha! That's rich! I'll believe it the day pigs fly!' George laughed.

'Oh, aren't you a riot, Georgie! Did you get that from Kitty Kat? I know you have a crush on her!'

'I do not have a crush on Katrine, Remy!'

'Yes you do, you always go to mush when you are near her. Get a spine and actually talk to her, you'll have a better chance with her that I would with Becks.' Remy said bitterly.

'Oh, and by the way, that remark was NOT FUNNY! You know what, you think that you're sooo sensible and mature and that you can tell me what to do just because you're older than me, the responsible brother, in charge of the troublemaker. That's you, George. Why can't you loosen up, like me?'

'Why can't you GROW UP and STOP acting like a CHILD?'

'Don't yell at me, George, I haven't had my coffee yet and you wouldn't like me when I'm caffeine deprived!'

'Well, if you hadn't wasted time hitting on Rebecca and irritating her, we would've got the water earlier and you would've had your coffee!'

Hearing the launderers arguing (it was impossible not to since Remy had such a loud voice), Rose got out of bed, putting Lila down on the floor and grabbing Rebby from under the sheets, opened the doors, walking out onto the balcony and said

'Good morning Remy! Good morning George!'

Hearing the princess call out to them, George and Remy stopped arguing and turned towards where Rose was and bowed to her. Remy nearly forgot to until George nudged him and he did so.

'Good morning, Princess,' George said, politely.

'Hello, Princess!' Remy said, 'You're up early, aren't you?'

'As I am every morning,' Rose said, 'What were you two arguing about?'

George stammered at that question, while Remy just clicked his tongue and tugged at his shirt, which was untucked. Remy didn't take much pride in his appearance, having his brown hair untied and in his face, wearing a light red shirt, with the sleeves rolled up, a dark red vest ,wrinkled red trousers, white stockings and scruffy brown shoes.

In contrast, George was neat and tidy, having short brown hair with a fringe on either side of his head, and wore a tidy light green shirt, also with rolled up sleeves, a green tunic and dark green trousers, with the same stockings and shoes as Remy.

Trying to come up with a convincing explanation for Rose, in case she heard something she shouldn't and went to tell her parents, George managed to come up with-

'Nothing, Princess, everything's fine. Remy just hasn't had his coffee yet and it makes him grumpy and I bear the brunt of it,' he said, as he and Remy entered the castle. Rose just giggled and went back inside.

Remy then rushed into the kitchen, oblivious to the fact that Rebecca was there, complaining about him to Mrs Potts and would later do so to Katrine and shouted,

'Get me my coffee NOW!' leaving George to drag the heavy tub of water by himself.

'REMY! Get back here and help me carry the tub!' he yelled, but it fell on deaf ears.

As she did every morning, before Katrine came into her room to help her get dressed, Rose headed to her parents' room for a cuddle, but not before letting Lila out.

'Out you go Lila,' she said, stroking her, 'Don't let Sultan bother you on the way and make sure you don't go near Uncle Cogsworth, we don't want him sneezing all over the place.' With Lila out of the way, she tiptoed down the West Wing, as not to disturb anyone, even though she and her parents were the only occupants there.

As she approached the room, she opened the door quietly and tiptoed in. She saw her parents tucked up in their grand bed, holding each other close and sleeping peacefully, but that wouldn't last long, for Belle and Adam soon found themselves being woken up by their daughter, jumping on the bed enthusiastically.

'Good morning Mama and Papa!' Rose joyfully exclaimed, expecting a response. What she got instead were sleepy murmurs and mumblings as they groggily opened their eyes but smiled warmly at her.

'Hello ma petite,' Adam mumbled, rising up. His hair was sticking up and he had sleep in his eyes, but was still happy to see Rose and gathered her up in a big hug.

'You look funny, Papa!' Rose laughed.

'That's how I look in the morning, petite, especially if I get woken up early,' he said, pretending to be annoyed.

'I'm sorry, Papa,' Rose said, putting her arms around him and kissed him on his forehead.

'It's alright, petite, I love you,' Adam said.

'Hello, my sweet darling,' Belle then said to Rose. Even in the morning, with her hair messed up, she still looked beautiful. Adam smiled at her and gave Belle a deep kiss.

'Hello Mama,' Rose said, crawling into Belle's arms for a cuddle. Belle smiled and held her close, giving her a kiss and stroked her hair.

'My sweet girl,' Belle whispered.

'What got you up so early, petite? We would have expected you to be still in bed! You'll want to be there when Katrine comes and she'll be wondering where you are!' Adam said, 'Provided of course, she hasn't fallen asleep in the dressmaking room again.'

'I wanted to have my cuddle with you and Mama and Lila wanted a cuddle as well, so I gave her one and I heard Grandpapa working on his inventions and he made an explosion and yelled some funny things!' Rose said.

'Did he just?' Adam said.

'Yes, he was really grumpy! Remy was too, when he went to get the water, but only because he hadn't had his coffee!' Rose laughed, as did her parents. She then climbed into the bed and snuggled up to her parents, who held her close and drifted off into some sort of slumber.

'Laundry!' a familiar, loud voice interrupted, 'I'm here to collect your laundry!'

'Come in, Remy,' Adam said, with a hint of irritation in his voice. Remy entered to collect the hampers filled with the laundry to take down with him. He sounded like his usual self and, remembering his manners, bowed.

'Good morning, Master, Mistress and Princess,' he said in his most respectful voice which he used when he was around his masters, as he collected Belle and Adam's hampers.

'Good morning, Remy,' Belle said, 'Have you had your coffee yet?'

'Sure have, Mistress and I'm feeling great and ready to take on the day!' Remy said, grinning, concealing the fact that his day had started badly with Rebecca slapping him in the face, Lumiere taunting him and arguing with George.

'Thank you, Remy, that'll be all,' Adam said, dismissing him, 'And try not to harass Rebecca!' Rose giggled, as Remy hastily bowed and left the room.

Less than two minutes later, Katrine's voice could be heard and it sounded like she was worried about something. Madame Armoire's voice joined hers.

'Katrine, what's wrong, dearie?'

'Aunt Estelle! I can't find the princess! I went into her room and she wasn't there! What if something has happened to her? I mean, really bad? What will I tell the masters?'

'Calm down, dearie, I'm sure the princess is still in the castle. She couldn't have gone far. Wait, why don't you check the masters' bedroom? The princess usually goes in there in the mornings.'

'Oh, of course, how silly of me! Thank you, Aunt Estelle, I seem to have a head like a sieve today!' Katrine laughed.

'I'm not surprised due to the lack of sleep you're getting. It's wonderful that you're so dedicated to your work but please remember to take breaks and go to your own bed at nights, instead of sleeping in your workroom! I don't want to constantly worry about you, dearie.' Madame Armoire said.

'I'll try, Aunt Estelle, but I just love my work so much! It keeps me busier than a one armed paper hanger! And after all, busy hands are happy hands!' Katrine replied. Her speech was usually peppered with clichés and metaphors which some didn't understand or took literally.

And it was true that Katrine was a hard worker, hardly ever stopping for breaks and would do all-nighters with garments that she would forget to go to bed, instead sleeping in the workroom.

Pushing her reddish brown hair out of her face, wiping sleep from her eyes and smoothing down her green dress with its layer on top, to make herself presentable and not looking like she slept in her clothes, she approached the bedroom and knocked on the door.

'Enter,' came Belle's voice. Her cue to enter, Katrine did so and to her relief, found Rose snuggled up in her parents' bed. Katrine smiled, gave a quick yawn which she hid and, nearly forgetting her manners, quickly curtsied.

'Good morning, Master, Mistress and Princess,' she said, 'Forgive my tiredness, I stayed up late last night working on a new dress and fell asleep in my workroom and Aunt Estelle has already lectured me about it, so I don't really need to hear it again.'

'That's alright, Katrine, you're forgiven, but you should take breaks and you don't have to work at night. You're a hard worker and you make the most wonderful garments, but please don't overdo it. It's not good for you.' Belle said.

'Yes, Mistress,' Katrine said.

'I'm sorry I made you worry, Katrine,' Rose said.

'That's alright, Princess, I don't seem to be thinking straight. I'd lose my head if it wasn't attached. Now, let's get you dressed and ready for breakfast. Rebecca's making your favourite today- cherry vanilla porridge!' Katrine said.

'Oh, I love cherry vanilla porridge! Come on, Katrine, we need to get going!' Rose said, jumping out of the bed and literally dragging Katrine by the hand to her room. Belle and Adam chuckled.

'What a sweet little girl we have,' they said.

Back in her room, with Katrine's help and wanting a comfortable, casual outfit suitable for playing games outside, as she was planning to do so with Chip later on, when he was done in the kitchen, Rose picked out what she wanted to wear.

She chose a white long-sleeved shirt, a dark blue bodice with a light blue rose and little green leaves on it, a knee-length sky blue skirt that was not too long or short and would make running around outside playing tag much easier, white stockings and flat brown shoes with bows on them.

Katrine then did up her hair in a half-ponytail held by a dark blue bow to match the bodice.

Dressed for the day, and with Katrine leaving to do her work, Rose straightened out her bed, placing Rebby in the middle and headed off to the small dining room where she, her parents and grandfather had breakfast.

On the way there, she met her father, who was wearing a loose white shirt, his black trousers and brown boots, which was his own casual outfit, and he effortlessly hoisted her on his shoulders and ran down the stairs, with Rose shrieking with laughter and to be met at the bottom by Cogsworth, who had a disapproving look on his face.

In the dining room, Belle was already there, waiting for them, wearing her pink dress, with Mrs Potts just coming in with the tea tray.

Maurice appeared briefly to give his wife a warm hug and kiss, say hello to his family, give his granddaughter a hug and kiss as well, before grabbing his bowl of porridge and a cup of tea that had already been prepared for him and going back to his workroom.

Rose took her place in the middle of the table, with Adam on one end and Belle on the other as Rebecca came in, wheeling a trolley with the porridge, sugar bowl, cream pitcher, a bowl with diced cherries in it and three serving bowls on it. The delicious smell of cherry vanilla entered Rose's nostrils, making her sigh in pleasure.

'That looks so good,' she said to herself, eager to dig in, but, as she knew well, she had to wait until everyone had been served, as a proper princess should. Cogsworth had stressed that enough before.

'Would you like your cocoa, dear?' Mrs Potts said to Rose. She, Chip and Sophie were the only servants that didn't call her 'Princess' or 'Mistress' (the latter was used when she was left in charge of the castle when her parents went away), as they were family and Sophie was her friend.

Apart from Remy and Sophie, Rose was also the only one who didn't have tea, preferring cocoa.

'Yes, please Nana,' Rose said, polite as ever. Mrs Potts smiled and poured the hot water out of the teapot and mixed it with the cocoa powder in the cup.

'Here you are, dear, nice and hot, just as you like it,' Mrs Potts then said, 'Be careful not to spill it, you don't want to get burnt like Raymond did yesterday when he had his tea.'

'Thank you, Nana' Rose said, taking the cup gently and took a small sip.

'Such a sweet girl,' Mrs Potts said, before giving Belle and Adam their tea and going back into the kitchen.

'Your porridge, Princess,' Rebecca said, serving it up and putting some of the diced cherries on top, 'Would you also like some of my cherry sugar? How about some cream as well?'

'Just the cherry sugar, please Rebecca,' Rose said. Rebecca nodded and sprinkled some on the porridge, before placing it in front of the princess, who looked at it so hungrily.

'Thank you, Rebecca, it looks so delicious!' she exclaimed.

'I'm glad, Princess, I know it's your favourite,' Rebecca said and went on to give the king and queen their porridge.

Once the porridge was served, Rose, at long last, could eat and she did, savouring every mouthful, listening to her parents' conversation and thinking about the fun day she was going to have, not knowing that in a few hours, her life would be changed.