Chapter One:

"Belle?" Beast questioned while looking up at her. He climbed up the the balcony where she stood and ran his paw through her hair not believing she returned. "You came back!" Beast exclaimed as Belle held his paw against her cheek. Her beast was alive and Belle was glad she got to him without Gaston harming him first. Looking into her beast's eyes she forgot all worries. Her and Beast were together again. Nothing else mattered.

Suddenly, Beast let out a painful roar and Belle stood in shock as she processed what just happened in front of her. Gaston stabbed the Beast from behind. Gaston lost his balance and fell off the castle roof. Beast leaned back about to fall also until Belle reached forward and pulled him towards her. She guided him onto the balcony and helped lie him down. Looking down at her beast, she quietly prayed he would be alright. Belle ran her fingers through his fur and forced a smile when his eyes looked up at her.

"Y-You came b-back,"he whispered.

"Of course I came back! Oh I couldn't-," she paused and studied him for a moment. He was in so much pain and there was a small puddle of blood from the wound. Oh, this is all her fault! If she would have kept quiet about the beast Gaston would have never went after him. She hugged him tightly, "Oh this is all my fault! If only I'd gotten here sooner…"

"M-Maybe it's better this way," he quietly whispered.

"Shhh," Belle stopped him. Did he really think it was best for him to die? Belle didn't want to think of him dying. He'll be alright. If he could save her from a pack of wolves surely he could survive a wound...but tears formed as she watched the puddle of blood grow larger. Was her beast going to die? Belle shook her head, they were together now. Nothing could separate them. She needed to stay positive. "Don't talk like that. You'll be alright. We're together now. Everything's going to be fine. You'll see."

Beast reached up and cupped his paw on Belle's cheek, "At least I got to see you...one last.. time." Belle pressed her cheek against his paw closing her eyes. Suddenly she felt his paw loosen and watched it drop as his head fell back and eyes close. Automatically, her hands covered her mouth in shock. He couldn't be gone...she didn't get to say goodbye.

Crying into his chest, Belle whispered, "No...please, please don't leave me….I love you."

Belle continued crying, as the rain gently fell on her and her beast. Suddenly Belle noticed beams of light falling with the rain like shooting stars. She stopped crying for a moment and backed away as Beast was lifted up into the air. His cape wrapped around him like a cocoon and Belle watched in amazement as the paw that came out the cloak turned into a human hand. A large gust of wind blew across his face, removing the fur to reveal a young man's face. He gradually descended and fell onto the ground.

Hesitant, Belle reached out to touch him but jerked her hand away when he started to move. She watched as he stood and glanced at his hands before turning to look at her. Who was this man and what happened to Beast?

"Belle! It's me!" the man grinned reaching out to her.

She stood in amazement studying the man in front of her. Could he be her beast? He surely was handsome, but it didn't make any sense to her. Slowly she touched his hair which was a similar shade as the beast's fur. She then looked up into his eyes and smiled. He had the same bright blue eyes as Beast.

"It is you!" she exclaimed amazed.

She let him pull her into his arms as he gently leaned down and kissed her passionately. Belle couldn't believe what happened but did not question it one bit. Her beast was alive, and thats all that mattered, She could care less if he was human or beast.

Belle sighed looking out the library windows at the castle grounds below. It was hard for her to believe how much has changed within the past year. A year ago today was when she broke the enchantment and she clearly remembered the day like it was only yesterday. After she realized her beast was now human, he explained to her about the ten year long enchantment placed on him and the entire castle. She learned her beast was actually a prince and an entrantress turned him into a beast until he would learn to love and have someone love him in return. If he did not find love by his twenty first birthday, the spell would be permanent. Now that the enchantment was broken, Prince Adam could rule his kingdom again. Adam proposed to Belle a week later and she knew there was no one else she would rather spend the rest of her life with.

Thinking back over the past year, Belle didn't regret breaking the enchantment and marrying Adam. But Belle didn't know that Adam being king meant she would see less and less of him. After the wedding, Cogsworth began teaching Adam what he needed to know in order to be king. Adam was ten years behind on his studies and Cogsworth was determined to catch him up. That meant studying in the west wing for hours, only taking breaks for meals. Belle only saw her husband late at night when he would finally come to bed. She wanted to catch up with Adam and maybe read a few pages of a book together, but he would always yawn and say he was exhausted from studying. Rejected, Belle would sigh and simply go to bed not saying a word.

Belle felt so alone since she could no longer spend time with anyone in the castle like she used to. Mrs. Potts was always busy running the kitchen. Lumiere was assisting Cogsworth with teaching Adam. All the other servants were busy with the tasks assigned to them. Belle soon got bored of being in the library alone. Her books were not enough company anymore. She began to question if she even belonged in the castle. Everyone had something important they needed to get done while Belle sat and did nothing. She soon began to feel less lonely when Chip would join her in the library. She enjoyed reading fairy tales to the seven year old watching his little eyes widen as she read suspensefully. Belle would tell him her favorite stories as they walked the gardens together. Some days she would let Chip ride on her horse Phillippe with her on the castle grounds. Chip loved to play tag and they would chase each other around the castle giggling. There was something about this boy that was special to her and she loved spending time with him.

After a couple months, Adam's studies began to shorten and she finally began to spend more time with him. Chip was sad he couldn't see his friend as often, but he loved whenever Belle would surprise him by reading a chapter of his favorite book or let him ride Phillippe. Belle and Adam enjoyed their free time together making up the time they had been apart. Having Adam hold her and kiss her again made Belle feel like she does belong in the castle with him. She scolded herself for thinking otherwise.

"Oh my, so much has changed. Right little one?" Belle whispered rubbing her stomach. She jumped when two arms unexpectedly snaked around her.

Adam chuckled kissing her neck, "Sorry to frighten you. How are you and the baby doing?"

"Fine until you almost gave us a heart attack," she giggled.

Adam held her tighter against him and rested his chin on her shoulder, "You're right, so much has changed. If it wasn't for you I would still be a beast right now."

"You remember what today is?"

"Of course. How could I forget?"

Belle didn't answer. She looked out the window as the flashbacks of that night returned again. Adam gently placed a finger under her chin and tilted her head to look at him, "Belle, that night I thought I was going to die. I thought I would never hold you again or spend hours with you in the library reading in front of the fireplace. I thought I would never see you smile or hear your laugh again. The thought of losing you that night terrified me, but knowing that you came back to me gave me hope. I kept fighting for life because I knew you needed me just as much as I needed you. But no matter how hard I fought, I wouldn't have lived if it wasn't for you. You broke the curse and somehow fell in love with me when I was nothing but a beast. You taught me what love really means," He paused struggling to find the words to say, "Belle there are no words to describe how much I love you. No words come close to how I feel about you."

Tears formed in Belle's eyes as she rested her forehead against his, "I will always love you Adam."

Adam kissed her as Belle wrapped her arms around his neck best she could with the baby bump between them. Finally everything was the way it was supposed to be.