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Chapter 8

"Preparing to Flee for Safety"

Ever since we had swore to defy Napoleon, the preparations were already underway for us to flee Bretagne for the safety of Great Britain. Many of our subjects were willing to lay their lives on the line for the glory of our kingdom, no matter how much it takes. That day, our ambassador to Great Britain made his way to our kingdom and at the same time, Lumiere was in his quarters testing out his old swordfighting skills in the kitchen, just as Cogsworth was coming in only to be greeted by the tip of Lumeire's rapier.

"Lumiere, do you mind?" he gasped, the rapier point resting on his nose. "Arms are to be presented in the field of battle, not in the field of kitchens!"

"Of course, mon ami," Lumiere chuckled. "How foolish of me? But, do you see the field of glory that I once took to the fields of America?"

"Ah yes, the war we had against those savages. You won the hearts of all the women of the kingdom."

Lumiere could see the angst in his friend and confident's eyes. Sure it was a stressful time for all, but for Cogsworth, it was different. Placing his rapier on the kitchen counter, he went to console his friend.

"Cogsworth, my friend," he remarked. "Why the long face, hmm? Don't you see that after all this time we are fighting for the true glory of the true France?"

"Those invaders who were led by that fool, Gaston, certainly were the true France, weren't they?" he muttered. "Imagine, barging in here to murder the master and they would have succeeded had it not been for our crowned princess…before she became a princess, of course."

Now, Cogsworth did have a point in the sense that I was the one who earned my title of Princess of Bretagne by breaking the spell on the castle. Still, there was no spell placed on the kingdom. This was a true threat that was against us.

"Anyways, if you believe that I should fight for the true France…you are mistaken. I mean, look at me!"

Cogsworth then directed Lumiere to study his plump form, clearly a sign that he wasn't fit for military duty.

"Why you are more than fit to fight, Cogsworth," Lumiere said with a small smile. "After all, you did lead the fight against the invaders, didn't you? Not to mention that you saved me from that minion of Gaston's…"

"The one who wants to fight in the amazons?"

"Well, yes. But the people of Scotland are good people and both Lefou and his lover were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"Well, you won't see me caught dead in a kilt, Lumiere."

But Lumiere remained optimistic over his friend's pessimistic nature. Either way, both of them were going to fight. Just then, our cook, Mrs. Potts, arrived in the kitchen with a basket of vegetables.

"All right, you two," she said, laying the vegetables on the cutting board. "The ambassador will be here soon and the master wants everything is ready and…"

She then took notice of the rapier.

"Lumiere, why do you have your old sword in my kitchen?" she asked, clearly not happy that a weapon of war was in her area.

"That's what I said to him," added Cogsworth. "Rapiers belong in the field of battle, not in the kitchen. Try explaining that to the ambassador of our impending sanctuary."

With those words, the three of them returned to their duties as at that moment, I was up in my room putting the finishing touches on my golden ball gown ahead of the ambassador's visit. Just as I prepared to don my long golden gloves, I suddenly had a thought about our impending escape.

"Garderobe, can I ask you something?" I asked, putting the right glove back on the dresser.

"Of course, Belle, what is it?"

"I just had a thought…do you think we are ever going to return here after this war is over?"

I had a very good reason for worrying as we were going to be away from our kingdom for who knows how long.

"Why do you ask that, my child?" asked Garderobe, walking over and placing her hands on my shoulders. "Of course, we will be back here someday. At least that's what my husband told me before going to fight the American Indians."

"Maestro Cadenza said that?"

"Of course he did, your highness," she chuckled. "You go away temporarily, but you come right back."

"My father also fought against the Indians when I was a child and he said the same thing to my mother. But, I was too young to understand the concept of war at that time."

As she spoke, I noticed a small tear in Madame Garderobe's eye. It had been almost a year since Maestro Cadenza passed away from cancer of the stomach.

"But he didn't stay long, as we both know."

"Yes, he didn't," I said, taking my right glove and putting on my right hand and arm. "And yet, my father is still alive and he is living here in the castle with us. Why did God ever spare my father and not Maestro Cadenza?"

Just then, there was a knock at the door and Cogsworth entered.

"My lady, the ambassador awaits you," he said, bowing slightly to me and I turned to the small tiara that I wore for occasions such as this. Placing it on my head, I picked up the skirts of my ballgown and proceeded down the stairs towards the ballroom where Adam, dressed in his blue waistcoat and black pants, was waiting for me.

"Is he here?" I asked Adam.

"He is," he answered taking my hand and we made our way to meet with the British Ambassador, who would help us prepare our escape to England.

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Back in London, the Duke of Wellington was at his home studying military plans when a messenger whispered in his ear.

"Your grace," the servant whispered. "Our ambassadors are meeting with the French kingdoms as we speak."

"Excellent," he said, rolling up his military plans. "Then the ball is rolling."

Thus, our meetings with the ambassadors of Great Britain had begun…

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