Slowly rising to her feet, Madeleine felt the rain on her, soaking her cape, but she was relieved to have lost the wolves and still be intact.

'Phew, that was close. For a second, I thought I was going to be wolf tucker!' she chuckled to herself.

She couldn't believe that a nice, sunny day that started so well with a journey to get imported silk had ended in a cold, wet night and being abandoned in a dark forest, at the mercy of wolves, nearly being eaten by them.

Shivering from the cold, as she walked across a bridge carefully, for it was surrounded by a bottomless ground and then saw a stone castle unlike any she had seen before. It looked dark and gloomy like the forest and a flash of lightning and boom of thunder illuminated it briefly.

Madeleine was in awe of this strange place, which was similar to the castle that the royal family had resided in, but bore none of its beauty.

Surely, there couldn't be anyone living in this gloomy, uninviting place?

It looked neglected and hadn't seen the light of day and she hadn't seen any people come in or out to greet her. But she needed somewhere to stay and the castle was the only option and perhaps there would be someone willing to accommodate her.

'What a peculiar castle,' she said, 'I just hope whoever lives here will let me stay the night,'

Madeleine had now approached the door, as the rain got heavier and went to knock, only for it to suddenly open, like it was done by a pair of invisible hands. Could it have been the wind, a creaky door rusted by age or maybe..magic?

She quickly ruled that out, as she knew that there was no such thing and soaked to the skin by the rain, making her shiver and hold back a sneeze, she entered the castle, not wanting to catch a cold or pneumonia from the chill and called out to whoever may be inside

'Hello? Hello?' but got no answer.

'Sir? Madame? Anyone here? It's considered rude not to answer!'

She walked along the huge foyer, fascinated and scared by the darkness inside, as beastly looking figures from the ceiling and various locations around the foyer looked down at her.

As she continued walking, she passed a table with a candelabra and a pendulum clock but didn't notice that they had eyes moving back and forth at her and pretending to standing still.

Cogsworth, having noticed Madeleine enter, said to Lumiere

'There's a woman in here!'

'She must have got lost in the forest,' said Lumiere.

'Is anyone here? I'm sorry for intruding but I've lost my horse and was chased by wolves and I need a place to stay the night,' said Madeleine.

'Now, Lumiere, don't get any crazy ideas about letting her in. Yes, she seems harmless, but she still intruded and if you-know-who finds out she's here, there will be trouble! We will not make the same mistakes we made last time!' said Cogsworth.

'But Cogsworth, she's shivering and wet! All she wants is shelter and food and we are the ones to give it to her!' Lumiere said, 'And we should definitely let her in! The mistress doesn't need to know about this!'

'No, absolutely not!' said Cogsworth, knowing that the mistress would not take kindly to an uninvited guest and didn't want a repeat of what had happened with Maurice when he first came to the castle, which had dire consequences.

Lumiere just burned him, like he had always done when Cogsworth was getting on his nerves.

'Ahhhh!' he yelped.

'Of course, madame, you are most welcome here,' Lumiere said to Madeleine, who looked around confusedly to where the voice who had greeted her warmly came from.

'Who said that?' she said, picking up Lumiere and turned around, not realising that the voice was from him.

'Over here!' he said, determined to get her attention.

'Where?' said Madeleine as Lumiere tapped her on the head.

'Hello!' he said.

Startled, Madeleine dropped him on the floor, making a clinking noise as he fell.

'Owww,' he said as he got up, rubbing his head.

'What the... A talking candelabra! How peculiar and amazing!' said Madeleine, who was in awe of the moving object in front of her. She knew for a fact that ordinary candelabras did not talk in a charming voice or were able to move. Was it some sort of magic or were they wound up like a toy? She looked around for a key, but found nothing.

'Now you've done it, Lumiere!' said Cogsworth, 'You obviously haven't learnt anything from the last time! Those who do not remember the past..'

He was soon interrupted when Madeleine picked him up.

'How is this possible?' she said, which make Cogsworth grin at having a woman pay attention to him for once and gave Lumiere a smirk before resuming his authority.

'Madam, I insist that you put me down!' he said, as Madeleine tickled his feet- something that he clearly enjoyed despite himself. It was his weak spot.

'Oh, hee, hee, hee!' he giggled, enjoying it, while Lumiere hid a smirk and snicker at seeing his 'frienemy 'getting his feet tickled. Curious at how this ticklish little clock worked, Madeleine opened up his case and swung his pendulum.

'Madam, close that at once!' Cogsworth said, 'And kindly refrain from twisting me!' as Madeleine wound him up, his face twisting in pain as the handles went round and round.

'Oh, I'm sorry,' Madeleine said, 'It's not often I see a clock that talks..' only to be interrupted by a sneeze which landed on Cogsworth, who wiped the dust away. The cold had finally caught up with her, as she let out another sneeze, her cape not having been adequate enough for the rain.

'Excuse me, I think I may be coming down with something,' she said.

'I'm not surprised, since you are soaked to the bone, madame. Come warm yourself by the fire before you catch your death of cold,' said Lumiere.

'Oh, thank you so much,' said Madeleine, gratefully.

Paying no heed to Cogsworth's protests, Lumiere led Madeleine to the den, only to run into Remy and George, who had heard the commotion from the laundry room and approached them, Remy riding on George, like he was his carriage.

'Oh, no, here comes the idiot,' Lumiere groaned.

'Nice to see you too, Lumsie,' said Remy, sarcastically. Looking at Madeleine, he said

'Who's your new girlfriend? Oooh, Babs is not going to like this!'

'REMY! Where are your manners?' said George.

'You'll have to excuse my brother, madame,' he then said apologetically, 'He has a tendency to talk before he thinks and to behave brashly at times.'

'You don't know the half of it!' Lumiere said, 'This idiot is the bane of my existence! He's always picking on me and is VERY annoying! All too often, I'm on the receiving end of stupid bets he makes, his voice is too loud and he harasses poor, sweet Rebecca who he says he loves but she absolutely hates him. The list goes on,'

'Don't listen to Casanova and Georgie,' Remy said, laughing uncomfortably, ' They don't know what they're talking about. I'm very lovable and bring fun to the castle, now that Lumsie is getting on age wise!

And I know Becks loves me, she just won't admit it!'

'No, she doesn't! She despises you and it's not very hard to see why!' said Lumiere.

'Butt out, Lumsie, at least I'm not a womaniser like you! And I love Becks dearly!' snapped Remy.

'Anyway,' he continued, ' I happen to be very good at card games, even though it's been so long since I played! No hands, you see,'

'Only because you CHEAT and rig the games so that YOU always win!' said Lumiere.

'I DO NOT CHEAT! You're a big, fat, womanising liar, Lumiere!' Remy shouted.

'No, I'm not, you're the liar Remy and an annoying, loud- mouthed little creep!'

'No, I'm not!'

'Yes, you are and there's no denying it!' Lumiere taunted, trying to get the better of Remy.

'NOT, NOT, NOT!' Remy screamed.

'Gentlemen, please!' Madeleine said, which made Remy and Lumiere stop arguing.

'It's very nice to meet both of you, Remy and George,' she said, while the washboard and washtub bowed to her.

'A brash washboard and a talking washtub, how fascinating!' Madeleine said to herself, 'I wonder if there are any more objects here that can walk and talk as well.'

'Thank you, madame,' said George, 'Now, how about we wash that cloak for you? It must be really dirty!'

'Oh, that would be wonderful, thank you. But would it be possible to get it clean really quickly? I'll need it for tomorrow,' Madeleine said, giving them the cloak, which had been half-torn by the wolf that had gotten to it.

'Sorry if it is a bit ripped, I had to play tug-of-war with a wolf to get it back,' she said apologetically.

'No problem, madame, what's a little torn cloak amongst friends? We'll have it clean in a jiffy!' Remy said as he and George headed back to the laundry room, cloak in tow.

'I thought he hated doing the laundry,' Lumiere said to himself as he was puzzled by Remy's enthusiasm for washing Madeleine's cloak.

'As I was saying before the idiot interrupted me,' he said, turning his attention back to Madeleine, 'come into the den, madame and warm yourself by the fire,'

'Thank you, monsieur, you're very kind,' said Madeleine.

'No, no, NO! I won't allow it!' said Cogsworth, 'You know what the mistress will do if she finds her here!'

As he said it, a beastly-looking shadow was lurking near the staircase before fleeing, having seen what was going on. Lumiere just ignored him and led Madeleine into the den, with Cogsworth following them, protesting but to no avail.

In the den, a roaring fire was blazing merrily and Amelie was there painting, using the brush attached to her and dipping it into the paint on her. Raymond was beside her, humming some tune as some paint bottles and brushes squirted and put paint on him, making different coloured strokes and splotches.

Sophie was busy squirting pink paint from her on a blank easel, hoping that it would shake it off, which had become a favourite trick of hers and she wanted to show it to her parents.

'Sophie, dear, please be careful where you squirt your paint,' Amelie warned her, 'Keep it on the easel, as we don't want it going everywhere.'

'But Mama, I want to show you my trick,' Sophie said, 'Watch!'

Amelie looked as Sophie squirted the paint and the easel shook it off, sending drops everywhere, which made Sophie giggle and Amelie grimace as a blob managed to get on the wall.

'Isn't that neat, Mama?' she said.'

'Yes, dear, it's very nice,' Amelie said, while wincing at the blob, 'If you want paint on the wall, it's going to be a nightmare to clean up.'

'Oh, Amelie, it's just some harmless tomfoolery,' said Raymond, 'Sophie loves it and it can be easily cleaned up. That's part of our job, we inevitably make messes, isn't that right, darling?'

'Yes, Papa, it's so much fun! The easel is really funny!' Sophie said. The door then opened and Lumiere, followed by Cogsworth, entered with Madeleine.

'Here, madame, sit down and make yourself at home,' he said, guiding her to a comfy pink chair decorated with roses in front of the fire.

'Oh, thank you,' Madeleine said, sinking into the chair, feeling the fire's warmth on her.

'Oh no, not the mistress's chair!' moaned Cogsworth. This was not going according to plan and he knew that it was going to lead into trouble, he just knew it.

'Oooh, look Amelie and Sophie, we have a guest!' said Raymond, excited. He waddled over to the chair, eager to greet her only to have a typical moment by tripping and falling down flat on his face.

'I'm okay,' he said, as Amelie helped him up.

'Hi, madame!' said Sophie, also eager to greet the guest, ' My name is Sophie and I like painting! Do you like painting?' Madeleine chuckled at that.

'Well, aren't you a cute little paint bottle?' she said, ' I'm not so much a painter, I'm more of a dressmaker.'

'You're a dressmaker? That's neat!' Sophie said, fascinated, ' That's what Katrine does here as well, she makes the most prettiest dresses...'

'Alright, Sophie,' Amelie said, quietening her down.

'Welcome, madame!' she then said to Madeleine warmly, ' Please do make yourself comfy! Don't mind Lila, just scoot her away.'

'Lila?' said Madeleine, as the cushion crawled into her lap, purring and nuzzling against her.

'Oh, hello kitty,' she said, 'What a lovely, um, cushion-cat,' as she stroked Lila, as she continued purring, wanting attention after not receiving any for ten years.

'This little party ends now!' Cogsworth said, determined to take control of the situation, only to fall down with bolts coming out of him. He then sneezed, as he could see that Lila was in the room.

'And who let Lila in here? You know I'm allergic to cats!' he said, letting out another sneeze.

'No one did, Cogsworth, she came in herself and she's perfectly fine where she is. We're just showing good manners to this nice lady, that's not a crime isn't it?' said Amelie.

'In Cogsworth's case, it is,' said Raymond.

'Amelie's right,' said Lumiere, 'We, as courteous servants must be hospitable to guests, just like we did with Monsieur Maurice, remember?'

'And do you remember what happened then?' said Cogsworth.

'Yes, yes, but that was then and this is now and it is still relevant to this day,' Lumiere said.

Cogsworth couldn't believe it. Just like the last time, Lumiere ignored his orders and let an uninvited guest in, making so much noise and he, along with everyone else wasn't listening to him. It was a recipe for disaster.

'This isn't happening, this isn't happening, history can't repeat itself!' he said to himself. At least he took comfort in the fact that the mistress hadn't heard them yet and the woman, who for some reason, was becoming attracted to, hadn't been offered tea and food.

Madeleine was beginning to enjoy herself, as the fire warmed her up while she stroked Lila. If only she had a footstool to put up her feet, a nice cup of tea and some food, then she would be quite content, not having eaten since her lunch at the valley.

As if on cue, Sultan entered, yipping happily down the steps and found where Madeleine was, expecting a pat from her.

'Oh, hello there, boy,' she said, petting Sultan, who panted and yipped excitedly. Lila hissed at him, as he positioned himself at the bottom of the chair, as Madeleine put her feet up.

A coatrack came and put a warm blanket around her to protect her from the chill, making her feel dry and comfy.

'What service!' she said as the coatrack bowed, removing its hat and left. She couldn't help but be impressed by how they were able to give her shelter, a comfy chair, warm blanket and something to put her feet up.

Remy and George then entered, carrying her cloak, which was now washed and pressed, but was still torn.

'Your cloak, madame, washed and pressed,' said George, 'although I'm afraid we weren't able to repair it. We would've got Katrine to do it, but we couldn't find her.'

'Oh, don't give it a second thought, I can fix it myself, but thank you so much for washing it so quickly.' Madeleine said.

'We don't muck around when it comes to laundry!' said Remy.

'I'd like to believe that, Remy, I really do,' George said.

'Alright, this nonsense has gone far enough!' snapped Cogsworth.

'Oh, Cogsie, stop being such a spoilsport!' said Remy.

'Don't call me Cogsie, Remy! You must address me by my full name! I'm in charge here!' said Cogsworth, only to get run over by the tea trolley with Mrs Potts, Chip and Rebecca on board.

'How would you like a nice spot of tea, madam? It'll warm you up in no time,' Mrs Potts said, as she poured the tea.

'And would you like a nice, hearty meal of chicken, roast potatoes, peas and carrots? You must be starving!' Rebecca said, holding up the plate of hot, steaming food which was impressive considering she didn't have any fingers and her arms were floppy.

Madeleine picked up the cup of tea and sipped it, feeling the sweet, smooth taste go down nicely, unlike the malty tea she had back in the village and let out a sigh of pleasure.

'Ah, a nice refreshing cup of tea and a hot meal, just what I needed, thank you,' she said, as the cup moved which was Chip.

'Her lips tickle, Mama!' he laughed, as Madeleine took another sip.

'Oh, hello there!' she chuckled, finding it amusing that a little teacup had the voice of a teenage boy.

For Cogsworth, this was the last straw. He had to do something to remedy the situation before it got completely out of hand, which it was fast becoming.

'We're playing with fire here,' he said, 'It's only a matter of time before we get caught,'

'Cogsie, will you stop moaning!' said Remy, getting fed up with Cogsworth's negative attitude and fussiness, as was everyone else, 'This is what we do to guests! We feed them, shelter them and offer them tea! And we're NOT going to get caught, so stop being paranoid!'

Realising that he was fighting a losing battle, Cogsworth said,

'Alright, Remy, I won't say another word. But if the mistress finds out we have let an uninvited guest in, DON'T say I didn't warn you!'

'Anyone going to let me in?' Katrine called from the doorway, 'It's only fair that I should join in this little shindig you're having.' She entered, but due to her size and the doorway being narrow, she got stuck.

'Little help?' she said. Rebecca jumped off the trolley and with the help of Lumiere, Remy and Amelie, pushed her out.

'Thanks,' Katrine said sheepishly.

'Thank you all so much for your wonderful hospitality,' said Madeleine, grateful for their kindness, ' You've made me feel very welcome after the day I've had with getting lost in the forest, being thrown off my horse and being chased by wolves.'

'It's the least we could do,' said Rebecca.

'You're the first guest we've had in ten years. This is a great time to celebrate!' said Lumiere.

'It would've been cruel to have left you in the forest to catch a cold and die and we wouldn't want that on our conscience!' Amelie said.

'But what about your mistress?' said Madeleine, having seen how worried Cogsworth had been about her.

'Cogsworth, if that is his name,' she said, as the servants nodded.

'Or Cogsie, as I like to call him,' said Remy.

'..seemed really worried about what would happen if she found me here. He even referred to be as an 'uninvited guest,' Madeleine said.

'Oh, don't listen to Cogsie!' said Remy, 'He just gets wound up really easily about silly things! And don't worry, what the mistress doesn't know won't hurt her!'

'I wouldn't say that,' said a low, silky, sinister voice outside the doorway. Suddenly the happy atmosphere turned dark, as a huge gust of wind blew in, putting out the fire. A low growling noise could be heard which made Rebecca and Raymond squeak in fear and the servants shake nervously.

'Uh oh, this can't be good,' said Chip.