Nestled in a cozy armchair by the fire, Hermione wrapped her hands around the mug of hot cocoa that Mrs. Potts brought her. With amusement, Hermione noted that Adam's mug looked more like a bowl than a proper cup. Whatever works, she thought.
"Well, I'll leave you to it," Mrs. Potts said, after serving both of them, and started to wheel herself away.
"Wait!" Hermione called. Mrs. Potts stopped her cart and hopped around to look back at them. Hermione looked to Adam beseechingly.
"What?" he asked, confused.
"Weren't you going to ask Mrs. Potts an important question?" Hermione prompted.
"Oh, right," he said. He cleared his throat. "Mrs. Potts, could you talk to me about my mother?"
"Your mother?! My dear, you haven't asked me about her since you were a boy and your father forbade us to speak of her," Mrs. Potts said. "But he has since passed and you're the master now, so I would be glad to. Any of us would."
"How did she die?" Adam asked. "I never really knew. It seemed so sudden to me."
Mrs. Potts looked down. "It was no illness, I can tell you that much," she said and sighed. "Your mother liked to make trips to Paris frequently."
Hermione was a bit puzzled by the seeming change it topic, but said nothing, listening to the conversation.
"I do remember that," Adam said. "She was gone a lot. I always wanted to go with her, but she never let me. She promised she'd take me one day, but then she died."
"We never quite knew why she left, but your father never cared much," Mrs. Potts said. "After all, she always came back with new gowns and brought the latest gossip from the court. He assumed she was making connections on behalf of our small territory."
"He assumed, you say?" Hermione asked, that word standing out to her as significant. "Does that mean she did something he didn't know about? Did something happen?"
"Well, I don't know all of the details," Mrs. Potts said, "But I gathered that he learned something about her activities in Paris and disapproved. He…well…he punished her. We never saw her again."
Adam, the Beast, suddenly stood up roaring in rage and pain. His bowl of cocoa smashed to the floor, the contents seeping into the rug. He threw the armchair he'd been sitting in over, stormed across the room, and dragged his claws across the drapes. He roared and roared and paced on all fours.
Hermione thought it best to let him get his anger out, so she sat in her chair, sipping her hot cocoa and thinking. Mrs. Potts cowered and withdrew to a safe place behind her cart.
In the open doorway, Lumiere and Cogsworth peeked around the doorframe looking curious and nervous. Spotting Hermione in the chair and seeing the Beast pacing around in the back of the room behind her, they hopped over to her.
"We wanted to check on you, mademoiselle," Lumiere said to Hermione. "We heard his roar and wondered what it might be about."
"He just found out about his mother's fate," Hermione said. "Or, at least, that she'd been punished and you never saw her again. We didn't get farther than that."
"Oh dear," said Cogsworth. "It's been so long since he asked about her. We were forbidden to say anything before. And then it never came back up."
"I know," Hermione said kindly. "Mrs. Potts said his mother was punished. Do either of you know anything else about what might have happened? Do you think she's truly dead? Why was Adam told that she's dead?"
Lumiere shrugged and said, "I have no idea. I did not have the position I do now to be close to ze former master. Cogsworth?"
Cogsworth had raised his decorative arm to his chin. "We were forbidden from interfering or coming close. However, I do remember the carriage was sent out that night. We can ask the chauffer!"
"What you do mean, she might not be dead?" the Beast's rage had quieted at Hermione's earlier question and he'd approached the group quietly. "Why was I told that she's dead?" he asked, echoing Hermione's question.
Mrs. Potts had also hopped over to the group. "It's the story your father told everyone, including us, dearie. But servants see more than their masters think and we knew he'd punished her. And we never saw a body."
Adam shuddered. "I didn't know he'd ever punished her…" he said. "I thought he only punished… Well, I wish I'd made him pay for that."
Silence fell. Hermione wondered how he'd originally meant to complete that sentence. Had he been punished by his father? Everything she'd heard about his father so far made him sound like a cruel man. She felt compassion for this man trapped in a beast's form.
"Violence only perpetuates more violence," Hermione commented, breaking the uncomfortable silence. She turned to Cogsworth, "you mentioned asking the chauffeur?" Hermione asked.
"What? Oh yes!" said Cogsworth, pleased at the distraction. "Shall I fetch him here?"
"You better go to him, dearies," said Mrs. Potts pointed out. "He's gotten rather large after all and it's hard for him to navigate the doorways."
"Right you are!" said Cogsworth. "Well, let's be off."
"You aren't coming?" Hermione asked Mrs. Potts.
"Oh no," she said. "Responsibilities come first and I must get dinner on the table. You'll be hungry after all of this detective work!"
"We'll fill you in after," Hermione promised Mrs. Potts.
"Thank you, dear," said Mrs. Potts. "I hope you can help the master find some peace."