Beauty and the Beast

Chapter Four

Chapter Four:

Lumiere led Isabelle, who was so nervous she was silent, down a myriad of hallways, ultimately leading to a grand dining area. Lumiere held the door open for her, "Be our guest, my dear."

Isabelle walked in, and Lumiere quickly and quietly shut the door behind her. Isabelle gulped, her nervousness jumping up a few knotches. Was it only last night that this man had refused her shelter and assistance?

She stepped forward, but immediately realized she didn't quite know where to go. The dining hall was vast, with a large mahogany table in the middle. There were two chairs at the furthest ends. She assumed she'd be sitting at one of them. At the moment, however, the Master was not in either. Isabelle noticed her heart racing and tried to control her breathing. She frantically looked around the edges of the room, noticing the few paintings on the wall. They all depicted heavy woods, and wolves or bears of some kind.

Then Isabelle heard a sound directly behind her. For a brief moment she was afraid to move, and in that moment she noticed that she could feel his ... aura behind her. It was a warmth and a chill at the same time. She stepped to the side and turned to face him.

The Master was in the same attire she had seen him in earlier that day, with a black cloak drawn up over his head to hide his face. The door clicked closed, and Isabelle looked into the shadows of his face for too long. She thought he was looking back at her as well, but she couldn't be sure.

He broke the silence with a huff and moved to the furthest chair from the door, his cloak billowing dramatically behind him. He drew the chair away from the table rather agitated, but did not sit down. From what Isabelle could deduce, his head tilted in her direction.

"Sit down," he said. His voice was not loud, but it was not soft or kind. There was a current of anger laced in his tone.

Isabelle jumped a little and inwardly scolded herself. She would not allow him to notice her fear. She made herself walk slowly, with her shoulders back and head up, to the chair on the opposite end of the grand table. She pulled it out and sat down as gracefully as she could manage. She looked across the table and tried to meet his eyes. Of course, she could not see them.

Adam sat down almost immediately after Isabelle. And almost immediately after he sat down, Mrs. Potts appeared with a line of about four staff members behind her, each carrying what smelled like delicious appetizers and fruits and salads of all kinds.

Isabelle watched the older woman silently place a plate and cutlery in front of the Master. She seemed neither threatened or particularly interested in the man of the manor. Isabelle thought that was peculaliar, considering how afraid she was of him herself.

The lady made her way to Isabelle's seat and said, "My name is Mrs. Potts, dear. If you are unhappy with the food just let me know and I will get you something that suits your fancy."

Isabelle smiled back at Mrs. Potts, liking her immediately. "This all smells delicious. At home we could never have such fine food. I assure you that I will enjoy it immensely."

Mrs. Potts looked a bit surprised, but nodded her head, "Very well, very well. Just get my attention if there's something you don't like." She winked at Isabelle and, after making sure the appetizers were sufficiently places on the table, disappeared into the kitchens once again.

Isabelle leaned forward and scooped some wonderful looking green salad with cheeses and eggs and vegetables of all kinds interspersed in it. She smiled to herself, hoping her Papa would eat like a King because she was here, forced to eat next to a man who thought he was one. She made a mental note to ask Lumiere how that arrangement was coming.