The Way to a Man's Heart [Completed]

[beautiful-tale.livejournal.com]

Character(s): Belle, Beast, Lumière!
Content: Belle invites Beast to a picnic.
Setting: Starting in Iriela Apartments and ending up in Jogo da Crianca
Time: Noon-ish, Week 21
Warnings: None.

Belle finished tucking in the blue and white checked cloth over the food in the basket, checking off a list in her head. Since Beast was French as she was, she'd decided to prepare something wholly French for the outing -- pan bagnat, a sort of seafood sandwich; crudites with lemon oil; gougeres, a light, delicate cheese pastry; and the pride of her picnic basket, the item that she'd stayed up late to create, meringue calissons. With a satisfied nod, she reached up to tuck an errant strand of chestnut hair behind her ear, ignoring the surge of nervousness that lurked just below the surface.

Yes, she mused as she gathered up a bottle of wine to round out the meal, she was surprising Beast with this and he was clearly not a fan of surprises. It was very possible he'd turn her away the door, growling and snarling like an animal. But Belle had missed him more each day she couldn't find him and a good meal was the best way to deepen any bond.

She exited her apartment and quickly headed towards Beast's, thankful she didn't have to carry the big basket too far. When Belle drew up to his door, she hesitated for the barest moment...then, ducking her head and inhaling a steady, deep breath, she knocked.

Comments

[burningamour.livejournal.com]

Lumiere gave a silent sigh of relief when Beast withdrew his paw from the basket. Yes, that was good. Very good! Patients were in fact key and, until now, something he was surprised to find his master actually had. He nodded at the prince in approval, all the while wearing knowing smile. So far Beast was off to a good start. Hopefully he would be able to maintain this behaviour for the rest of the picnic and, most importantly of all, control his temper. Thankfully nothing had happened yet to trigger it but Lumiere knew better than to assume it would not become a problem. All it took was for Belle to pull something the master disliked out of the basket. He really could be a picky eater.

At the thought, the candelabra’s eyes immediately turned to the basket. With her back to him he could not see what Belle had pulled out, however after quickly hopping over to the side he was met with a rather pleasant sight. Ah, gougère! It had been too dark in the basket for Lumiere to recognize any of the food Belle had packed but from the smell? He had known there were fresh gougères packed away in there somewhere. Many of the enchanting aromas from inside had made Lumiere wish he could still eat.

He watched quietly to see what Beast pulled out of the basket next in anticipation, all the while keeping a careful eye on Belle in case she turned around and caught sight of him.