Through The Rabbit Hole

Chapter Seven: Alyssa

I threw off my shoes, slamming them against the floor, before throwing myself onto the bed. I shoved my face into the pillow and screamed, trying to wake myself up from this dream. I did not just kiss Ryan Chase. The nerdiest, snarkiest, cutest, little jerk to exist. Actually, he had kissed me. I rolled over and accepted the fact that this was, somehow, reality. I sighed and sat up to start changing. No way I was going back out there so I might as well get ready for bed. How would I face him tomorrow?

I was getting into the pajama pants when Belle burst in through the door and began to throw together some stuff into a pile. I stopped and watched her as she fervently changed into her original clothes and started throwing things into a pack.

"Uh, whatcha doin'?" I asked. She froze and looked up at me for a second before continuing.

"My father is in trouble. I have to go save him!" her voice was filled with worry and her hands shook with nervousness. I remembered her father being thrown into the asylum and knew it was not wise for her to go alone. What Gaston and Maurice had planned must've been a trap to get the token from her and keep her away from Beast.

"I'm going with," I stated and began to change back into my own clothes. She nodded absentmindedly and went for the door.

"I'm going to the kitchen for food," she mumbled and left the room. I sighed and knew that I had to get Ryan to help us. He would feel left out if he didn't. I just didn't think I could look him in the eye. I headed out the door and down the hall to where Ryan's room was. The door was open just a crack and I could hear Lumiere talking.

"Oh, monsieur! Don't let this get you down! The woman was probably just scared," he tried to soothe. I heard Ryan scoff and some shuffling.

"But I don't want her to be scared. I want to be the one thing that actually makes her feel comfortable," Ryan sounded distressed and I knew from the shuffling and mumbled voice, that he was face first on the bed. He did comfort me, but when he basically admitted all of his feelings to me in less than a minute, it kind of left me shell shocked. I didn't want to listen anymore or the guilt inside of me would eat me alive, so I lightly knocked on the door before pushing it open further.

"Uh, hey Ryan. Belle is leaving and we need to go with," I stated, trying to sound as normal as possible. His head shot up and a light blush appeared on his face. He probably was hoping I didn't hear their conversation. I would if I were him. Shock was replaced by confusion in a matter of seconds.

"Why?" he drew the word out long, as if to emphasize his confusion. Before I could open my mouth to explain what little I knew, his eyes grew big and he sat up properly. "It's because of Maurice, right? I remember that from the movie." He sounded exasperated and worried. I was kind of worried too because how are were we to navigate this bump in storyline? This doesn't happen on a daily basis for me, so I don't have experience with thwarting evil plots.

"Yeah, so I'm going along to try and keep her safe from

," I whispered the last part and pointed my finger down the hall for emphasis. Ryan shook his head in agreement, but behind him Lumiere looked determined. It had never occurred to me that other characters might be in on the plan, so what if Lumiere was also trying to get rid of Belle? To my surprise, he hopped closer and told me the opposite.

"You are going after Gaston, are you not?" He stared me dead in the eyes and I had no other choice but to respond.

"Yeah," I choked out. "How do you know him?" I also managed to get out. Lumiere sucked in a breath and sighed heavily.

"I know much about who you are and there is still so much you need to know about here," was all he said. That didn't answer my question much, or help me get a better idea for where we were.

"How do you know us? We just got here?" Ryan questioned. In my opinion we hadn't actually 'just got here'. If day and night were correct, it had been months, even if it didn't feel like it. Lumiere hopped to the ground and moved closer to us.

"Why, everyone knows about the prophecy," he scoffed. He fussed with his candles, lighting and extinguishing them in thought. "But, I want you to know that Gaston is the least of your worries. You will have much bigger battles to face in the future, but for now don't lose faith."

Ryan and I shot each other an incredulous look. Prophecy? Okay, maybe this was more intense than I thought. Maybe if I just turned back around I would wake up underneath the tree in the summer warmth. I would have my locket secure around my neck and Ryan would be next to me. If only I believed that could happen because, despite this being a dream like world, I knew it had to be real. Before I could question Lumiere any further, he was prodding our legs in an effort to get us to leave.

"Go! You haven't much time before the rose wilts," he demanded. We obliged and went down the halls to the main entrance.