The days passed quietly and pleasantly, and gradually Gaston and Belle, as a family, settled down to their normal routine. On Tuesdays Belle went to see Marie, and Gaston met Lefou at the tavern, and Maurice visited them. The couple also went horseback riding in the morning and evening and raised a puppy. When it would be eight months old, Gaston could take it hunting.

Sometimes they went on a picnic by the forest lake, and there they met Prince Adam and Paulette several times. The prince invited Belle and Gaston to the castle, saying that all the inhabitants of the castle missed the girl and wanted to see her again. Gaston himself told his wife to go there, but she didn't want to go without him. So one day they came to the castle. Gaston, of course, felt uncomfortable again around this luxury and fragile things that could easily be broken by a careless movement of the hand. But Belle's joy at seeing her friends was worth it - she was being hugged by that fat usher - Cogsworth, the thin man in the yellow suit, his name was Lumiere, and that hot little thing - the maid - who turned out to be Lumiere's girlfriend and knew Belle too. Then there was lunch, God, Gaston told his wife several times that he wasn't hungry, but she insisted on eating.

It was obvious that the prince's servants tried to make the dishes simpler, but still the hunter was stunned by the number of bigger and smaller plates for essentially the same brew, some sauces, God forbid, and a lot of devices to eat it all - big spoons, small ones, forks with four tines, with three, with two... Gaston looked at the prince to copy his behavior at the table, but he just took the plate in his hands and began to drink the soup over the edge. Hmm... So aristocrats just put all those spoons and other things on the table just for beauty. Everyone followed the prince's example and thus they had lunch. It wasn't even bad, Gaston was beginning to like the castle.

There was a fluffy dog underfoot, its name was "Sultan". Who would have to be to call a dog "Sultan"? Oh, yes, an aristocrat. Gaston named his puppy Bruno and was looking forward to training him properly. If a dog can't do anything for a man, it's useless. Like all other animals. Sultan, on the other hand, ignored simple commands such as "sit", "down" and "voice". The hunter thought that the dog was disobeying him because his master was the prince, but Prince Adam laughed and said that Sultan didn't have to obey commands, it just lived in the castle to please His Highness. It's kind of supposed to just run around yapping and jumping around, greeting the prince and letting itself be petted. All in all, a useless creature.

There were special people in the castle who dusted the castle, a special person who cleaned the fireplace, separate servants who dressed the prince, separate cooks, and so on. A bunch of people who didn't do anything useful, but just served the castle and the prince. But maybe Gaston just did not understand what they were needed for. Power is needed, as well as the king, accordingly princes are needed. And Prince Adam treated the simple people well, so why shouldn't he live as he liked and as he was used to.

So the days went by so calmly and interestingly that Gaston did not notice them anymore. He was just happy and used to it.

But one day - it was Saturday, and he and Belle had plans for that day - his wife suddenly asked to go to Marie's.

"Look, you were there on Tuesday, why do you have to go there today?" Gaston wondered.

Belle looked nervous, bit her lip and answered quickly:

"I just wanted to chat. You know, girl talk."

"What kind of girl talk?"

"Well... That sort of thing. She promised to give me some new pie recipes."

The man raised his eyebrows:

"New pie recipes? Woman, who are you, my wife has been kidnapped and replaced by you?"

But Belle didn't appreciate the joke and just insisted on her own:

"Gaston, I just want to come in for an hour for a little chat with Marie. I need it. Why are you being so stubborn?"

"Just tell me why you need it, I don't understand. Why don't you just tell me what you want to talk about? Discuss husbands? Did I do something wrong? Everything was fine!"

"Jesus, it's not about you," Belle replied tiredly and sat back in her chair. "We're not going to talk about you, honestly."

"What will you talk about?" Gaston stepped forward.

"What did you talk to Lefou about last time?" His wife parried.

Gaston accepted the challenge. You're welcome. He had no secrets from Belle, she wanted to listen, let her listen.

"First, Lefou talked about Stanley's scandal with his wife. His wife's a bitch, takes all his money and won't give him a single ecu. She's afraid he'll drink it all away. He always takes out beer on credit. So they got into a fight and she beat him up. Then we discussed that Jan, the butcher, was cheating on his wife. Don't tell anyone. It's kind of a secret, but everyone knows, except his wife, of course. So, I say to Lefou, has Jan given himself two centuries? Have you seen Jan and his wife? She could take him down with one stone. Then Dick was drinking beer on a bet, but he lost and... That's hilarious... ha... ha... In short, he had to run naked around the tavern. Well, we were laughing.." the man coughed after laughing and looked at his wife. "Well, that was all we talked about."

Belle flapped her eyes, comprehending what had been said. She was getting visibly nervous.

"Gaston, I'll be out for an hour, just an hour. We'll just chat about family life, relationships..."

"Look, Belle, you're starting to act the same way you've been acting before. If I've done something wrong or if you want to tell me something or do something, you don't have to read "How to Seduce a Man" or go to Marie for any advice. God, what could you possibly have in common? After all, you're married to an attractive man and Jacques the baker is fat. What can Marie advise you that I can't tell you?"

The girl threw the knife with which she was slicing bread on the table with a clinking sound.

"I! I! I! Gaston, do you hear yourself? I'm not going to talk to Marie about you, how many times do I have to tell you! I... just want to go to my friend's house and talk about women's things."

Gaston frowned and looked at Belle, whose hands trembled and eyes glistened as if she were about to cry. God, what was the matter? He decided to shut up, and not press any further.

"All right, all right, Belle. Go see Marie, but not for long," the hunter finally said.

Belle didn't say 'thank you' or 'sorry for arguing with you', she just said 'okay' and started to change outside. Her hands were still shaking.

Gaston had originally planned to hunt that day, but had decided to stay home to wait for Belle after this women's talk. He tried to remember what could have been wrong, but he couldn't remember anything. They were just normal good and happy days. But, come to think of it, for the last week his wife had been a little aloof, sometimes answering offhand or remaining silent in response to his questions, as if she were thinking about something. But Belle had always been a dreamy girl, so Gaston paid no attention to it.

Time passed terribly slowly, Gaston chased Bruno around a bit, chewed some bread, did a few squats and push-ups, but there was still no Belle. The hunter finally came and sat against the window, waiting for his wife to return.

Just then, her figure in a blue dress appeared on the path toward the house. Belle walked rather slowly, as if trying not to get home at once. Gaston could not stand it, and went out on the porch to meet her. She had to quicken her step. Her face was pale and confused. The man looked at her face and Belle's with a trying look, and she took his hand and led him into the house. The girl leaned against the wall and said:

"Gaston, I am expecting a baby. We're going to have a baby. That's for sure."

For a while the meaning of her words came to him. A baby? Actually it was expected, logical, they were married, but...

It had been too quick.

Many people, he heard, lived for a year or two and nothing, but they got it right away. Gaston, of course, dreamed of children, but it was one thing to imagine an idyllic picture with strapping boys playing on the floor with dogs, and another thing to imagine the reality, and...

"Is that a sure thing?" He asked dully, and, maybe, all the thoughts that had flown by must have somehow reflected on his face, and Belle frowned.

"That's right. You're not very happy either, are you?" She asked and cried.

It was as if Gaston had woken up and put his arms around her, reassuring both her and himself:

"Belle, how can you say that? I'm glad, of course I'm glad," as he could not find words, he just hugged his wife tighter and kissed her face. "I'm... I'm just confused. This is a great joy, I always wanted you to give me a baby. It was my dream."

The girl pulled away a little and wiped her eyes.

"I must be a freak, not a woman but a beautiful doll. Instead of joy, I feel fear and anxiety. I don't know if I can be a good mother, I've never cared for anyone but Daddy and myself."

"Belle, what are you talking about? Of course you're a woman. You're just worried, that's all right. After all, we've both got plenty of time to get used to the idea of there being three of us. We're hardly going to be worse than the other parents in town."

His words calmed Belle a little, who still looked confused. Gaston spoke confidently, but he too was confused. Dreams were coming true, but it was both joyful and unsettling.