"A picnic?" Beast was taken aback. His ears perked, and his jaw dropped for a second, but then Belle repeated her earlier request to enter. However, the unfamiliar situation made him suddenly go bolt straight. It took Lumiere's whispering to make Beast realize what was supposed to happen, and a few twitchy steps later he'd gotten out of her way. He waved at Lumiere to get out of sight, or at least pretend to be a real candle, instead of a person transformed into one--though the servant had already done so. A wave with his other paw, accompanied by a stiff bow, was meant to invite her in.

"Come in," he tried to say, though his weak volume probably made the words almost inaudible. But he waited patiently for her to walk inside, swelling with pride at how nice the apartment looked--and ignoring that it hadn't been his own doing, nor even his own wish. Then he remembered the other part of Lumiere's hurried whispering.

"I...would love...to go with you." The words alternated between hesitant and rushed. If Belle could understand any of them, it would be a quite a feat.