Then Somebody Bends

The Ball

"Father, please," Belle starts. "This is too much. I don't need to wear this dress."

Father shakes his head. "I insist that you wear this dress, Belle. You look so beautiful in it. Imagine if the prince chose you for his bride. You'd be free from Gaston!"

"Father, I would be free of Gaston but forced into another marriage," Belle reminds.

"A marriage where you'd have minimal work and I'd know you'd be safe and well taken care of," Maurice insists. "Please, Belle. For me?"

Belle sighs and nods. "Alright," Belle relents.

Someone knocks on the door and Maurice answers it. "Belle, our ride is here. Come." Belle and Maurice get into the carriage. Before it closes, someone shoves their hand into the door.

Gaston stands there. "Excuse me, would it be alright if I rode with my betrothed? We are to be wed in the morning and I'm afraid most of the carriages are full."

"Sir," the coachman begins. "Most able-bodied men are riding on horses and as you are not the master of the house for this young maiden, yet, I'm afraid I can't allow you to ride within the carriage. You are, however, welcome to ride on the outside with the footman." Gaston glares at the man but doesn't say a word, knowing that the coachman was sent from the castle.

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As the carriage pulls up to the castle, Gaston pulls me out and keeps me right next to him. "You listen to me, keep your head down. If the prince speaks to you, you are not to talk back. You are also not to leave my side." Gaston leads them to the door and nods to the guards.

The guards stop them. "Sir, we must see your letter in order to allow you and your wife in."

"I'm not his wife," Belle interjects. "We are not yet married."

"Then I'm afraid you aren't allowed in, sir. Those allowed in include only married men with their wives, maidens yet to be married, children with their parents and men who accompany a woman by her choice. Few exceptions are made."

"Well make one now," Gaston states. "I am to be married in the morning, this is my betrothed. I am Gaston, a war hero! I demand entry."

Belle looks at the guards and hands them her letter. "My name is Belle. I am here by invitation. I ask you allow my father, Maurice, to accompany me to this ball."

The guards nod. "Is this man also with you?" the guards asks.

Belle smirks and pulls Gaston's arms off of her. "Sir, although I am betrothed to this man, I have no desire to be near him. Anyone in the village could tell you of what happened and how I have no choice but to marry him. Under no circumstances is this man to be with me."

Maurice smiles. "In fact, I fear this man will ruin the ball if he be allowed in. He has a bad temper, he does!" Maurice states. "He would steal the light off the prince himself."

The guards nod, smiling back. They know what's going on. "I assure you he will not be allowed in without a guard."

The guards part but before Belle enters, Gaston grabs her arm. "I'm afraid if I am not allowed in with my betrothed, I can't allow her to go without me. I fear she will cause trouble that I must deal with once we're wed in the morning. Have a good day, gentlemen."

He starts to pull Belle away but the guards stop him. "Take him to the dungeons if you must," a voice calls. We turn to see an elderly man walking towards us with a pocket watch. "All maidens are required to be at this ball unless previously announced that they'd be unable to attend. As this man is interfering with that, he is to be held until the end of this evenings events."

"Yes sir," the guard replies, arresting Gaston. Belle smiles with her father before walking in.

Instantly, Belle recognizes the castle, having seen more of the inside than the surrounding areas. "Father, this is the castle. This is the enchanted castle!" Belle whispers to him.

Maurice nods. "I can cover for you while you find the Beast. You must stay here. I don't want you to return to Gaston," Maurice assures.

In the rush to the ballroom, Belle slips up the stairs and goes straight to the west wing. Belle gently pushes the door open and shut, looking around the room. "Beast?" Belle calls. "Beast, are you here?" Belle walks further in, heading towards the table on the balcony. "No."

There is no longer a rose on the table under its case. Only petals and a stem remain. Tears come to Belle's eyes as she approaches and table and stands before it. She stands there for a moment before falling to her knees. She sits there, crying as music plays from downstairs.

The doors to the room burst open as a man, followed by two others walk in. Belle runs to hide behind a nearby wall. "Why isn't she here? I thought you personally delivered the letter to her, Lumière," the man says.

"Adam, I assure you that she told me she was coming," Lumière replies.

"Lumière?" Belle whispers to herself. "Adam."

"I saw her earlier this evening," the third man says. "I assure you."

"Cogsworth, did she seem to be leaving or anything?"

"No," Cogsworth replies. "She was entering. Maybe she recognized something and left. Adam, she was wearing the dress she left in."

"Wait a minute," Lumière says. "What's that?"

"It looks like the dress," Adam says. Belle looks down to see her dress sticking out over the edge. "Hello? Who's there?" Belle freezes, barely breathing. "I promise you, reveal yourself now and you won't be in any trouble. We'll let you leave without punishment. Any longer and I'll call the guards."

Belle sighs and steps out from around the corner, kneeling before him. "I'm sorry, Prince. When I arrived, the castle was familiar to me. I thought I'd been here before and that it belonged to a friend of mine. I'm sorry to have been snooping in your castle."

"Belle?" the prince asks. "Please, look at me." Belle slowly raises her head, looking up at the prince. Something is familiar about him. "Belle, do I look familiar to you?"

Belle nods. "You do look familiar and I heard two names of people I also know. May I ask how you know my name?"

Adam walks over to a table and pulls out a letter. "You sent this letter to me when you sent Phillipe with Chip. Do you remember that?" He hands Belle the letter and holds her chin in his hands. "Do you remember me?"

Belle stares into his eyes for a moment before tears stream down her cheeks. She gently puts her hands on his face, to make sure he's real before pulling him close. "Beast," she whispers, laughing. "You're Beast!"