Bienvenue.

The coat-rack was silent for so long that he began to wonder if he would answer her at all.  Of course he had family.  A mother, three younger sisters.  Still at home in Villeneuve, still oblivious to his absence.  Oblivious to his existence.  Such was the way of the curse.

“I do,” he finally said quietly.  “And I understand your concern for your family.”  He sometimes felt the same way about them; but he knew that they were being looked after…in one way or another.

“Thank you,” he replied, a little quieter than usual.  “I believe that you will, mademoiselle.”

It was true; he had little doubt in his mind that she would lift the curse on the castle--he knew that the master was developing feelings for her, even if he was too shy to admit it.  But what about her?  How did she feel?

Quite a punctual one, he thought. It was true that supper was nearly ready, but it would take a little more time for Mrs. Potts and Cuisinier to prepare it. Out loud he replied, “I will inform him directly.  But I also came on my own.”

She has probably heard much from the other servants; Chapeau imagined Lumiere and Chip had a lot to say to her, and Madame de Garderobe deserved a friend after being hidden up here for so long.  “If I may, I would like to ask if you’ve been enjoying yourself here since the master recovered.” Now that the castle seemed like a little more than a lost ruin, that was.

“It’s…” Belle hesitated, considering how to say it without hurting anyone’s feelings. “You’ve all been very kind to me, trying to make me comfortable, and I appreciate it. Truly, I do. But I do miss my father. We’re all the other’s had for so long, and now he’s all alone. I’m worried about him.”

Belle’s comment earned a chuckle from the aide; she wasn’t the first one who thought that.  In all honesty, he never had much to say regarding certain situations.  If he did, the other servants usually beat him to it, and he never minded that.

“No, nothing’s wrong,” he replied, and with a small bow, he followed her inside. He was instantly surprised at the state of the room.  He and the others had seen Belle and the master in the library before, but he never could have imagined that she loved books this much.  How long would it take for her to get through all of these?  

“You’re quite the reader,” he continued.  “I’m guessing you didn’t have much material in Villeneuve.”

“Only the one shelf Père Robert has in the village chapel,” she answered with a sheepish smile as she reorganized the books a little more, looking up at the coatrack. “And your master had quite a few recommendations for me. Did he send you to get me for supper?”

Hello! This is a new Beauty and the Beast Masterlist on account of the other kind of falling to the wayside. This is open to any and all Beauty and the Beast roleplay blogs. You may reblog if you are a canon character, and OC, or a multimuse featuring character(s) (if you are a multimuse, please list the characters in the tags).

This is a new rp blog for Pierre Gringoire of Victor Hugo’s novel, The Hunchback of Notre Dame!

❧@brckenkeys liked for a starter

Chapeau’s hands were careful as he quietly shut the doors to the music room.  The young master’s lesson had already passed, but that never stopped the maestro from playing his harpsichord during other hours of the day. And Chapeau had always been respectful when it came to music, even before he came to work at the castle.

Speaking of, the king and queen were hosting a ball in a few weeks, and the queen had asked him, as well as the maestro and the madame, to provide some music for the evening.  It was a simple enough request, but while Chapeau had exchanged a few words with Maestro Cadenza, they had never played together.  He only hoped that he would be able to keep up with the maestro’s skill.

“Pardon me, Maestro,” he said quietly as he approached, “if you have time, I was hoping we could practice a few pieces together.”

🎼  The Meastro

“Eh…” The Maestro muttered distractedly, glancing up from the harpsichord keys continuing to play the melody he was currently composing. “Mi dispiace. (I’m sorry) Si…” Dante Cadenza stopped playing immediately tiling his head to the side, taking the time to survey the person standing directly in front; finding the man rather intriguing.  “But of course! It’s no trouble.” This was the first time the two musicians had officially met; though they’d exchanged words in passing. He’d heard about Chapeau and the talent the man possessed, with a violin.  “Were are my manners. A pleasure, Monsieur.” The young musician declared greeting the other man cheerfully, pushing the gold bench backwards on the stone floor, coming quickly to his feet.

The aide nodded and went to fetch the prince’s waistcoat and jacket as he beckoned for them.  He held up the waistcoat first and opened his mouth to object to the prince’s statement, but fell silent as he raised a hand to stop him.

The difference between the man the prince was before the curse and the man he was now was growing ever larger.  He would have loved to hear an apology from them, back when he thought highly of himself.  Now he took the blame, shouldered a burden that wasn’t his to bear alone.  Chapeau knew what his fellow servants had said during those dark days: What if we were braver? What if we cared more? What if we were never so selfish?  The cross wasn’t just for the prince to bear; it was for everyone that lived and served in this castle.  They were all to blame for the Enchantress’ wrath.

Even so, a sad smile spread across his face as his gaze met the master’s.  “All right, sire, my apologies.  But you’re not alone in this.  We’re with you.”  And it would be that way for a long time; Chapeau was sure of it.

          Adam turned slipping his arms into the sleeve holes and turned so that Chapeau could button them. Whilst the aide worked, Adam fixed the lace of the shirt before giving a sigh, watching carefully. He only guess what he thought. What all of them thought about the curse and what the consequences of it all. With a turn on his heel, Adam saw a small sad smile spread across Chapeaus’ expression and then his own expression changed into one of worry.

          At the assurance that he was not alone in shouldering the blame, Adam shook his head and slipped himself into the jacket looking over at the mirror. “I wouldn’t resent you if you weren’t.” he said with a sigh. “I am astounded that you all still wish to be here even after spending all these years trapped.” Adam paused and shook his head.