Adam's recovery came quicker than Beaumont could have imagined.
For the past several days, Adam had to stay bedridden in order for his wounds to fully heal. It took a lot of convincing, but he listened obediently.
Beaumont never left his side. Adam nor the servants liked the fact that he decided to bunk on the room's floor, but Beaumont didn't mind it. He liked having company.
Adam never mentioned it, but he did too. Waking up and seeing Beaumont sleeping soundly on the floor always started his day with a smile.
With all the time Beaumont spent there, he started sprucing up the cluttered, barn-like room with help from Marie. Adam couldn't help feeling ashamed by the mess he made and insisted on helping, but when Marie shook her finger at him, he wouldn't dare talk back.
It took a lot of dusting and scrubbing, but the room was practically back to its original state. Minus all the damaged furniture and decor. For the first time in a long time, the sun welcomed Adam in the morning; the windows finally free of their thick layer of dust and grime. It made the desolate room he called home for so long actually feel like a cozy bedroom.
When Beaumont wasn't cleaning, Adam took the opportunity to start giving him reading lessons.
Beaumont was very involved, and soaked up everything Adam taught him like a sponge. By the third day, he could recite the full alphabet and was able to write basic words on paper.
After five long days of staying bedridden, Adam had quite enough of it. The bedsores hurt worse than his injuries. He looked over at Beaumont, who was divulged in a children's story book, and said sternly, "I want to get up, Beaumont. I don't care what you say. I'm getting up."
Beaumont raised his head and looked at Adam. He had his ears tucked back and arms crossed stubbornly, "Alright, Adam." He smiled at him and compromised, "Could I at least check your wounds first?"
Adam groaned, "Fine... but it won't change my decision."
Beaumont unwrapped the bandages from Adam's massive, dog-like thigh. The hole that the arrow left was almost completely healed. There was no sign of an injury at all; just a missing patch of fur where the scar was. Beaumont looked up at Adam with a shocked expression and thought:
How the hell did that heal so fast?
"What?" Adam asked shyly.
"Oh nothing." Beaumont extended his arm out with a smile, "Let's get you up."
🌹 🌹 🌹 🌹 🌹
Marie and Mrs. Potts giggled softly as they walked and chatted down the corridors of the West Wing.
Ever since Beaumont and Marie arrived at the castle, things seemed more active and joyful. Lumière and Cogsworth were always by Marie's side if she needed anything, and when she did need something, the two constantly bickered on who got to help her. Marie could tell they were fond of her, but she wasn't complaining.
"Less work for me!" She explained to Mrs. Potts with a devilish grin.
Mrs. Potts also found an interest in Marie. She finally had someone to talk to who could understand where she was coming from. Two hot-headed butlers, her little boy Chip, and a man-beast weren't the best company in the huge castle.
Having another woman around cleared the air a bit.
As Marie and Mrs. Potts approached the doors to Adam's room, they were stopped by one of the doors slowly opening.
Adam limped out steadily into the corridor while Beaumont held onto his waist, just to be sure he was a stable on his paws.
Beaumont smiled at Marie and Mrs. Potts and said, "Good morning!"
"Look who's walking!" Mrs. Potts exclaimed joyously, "You recovered quickly, master."
"I owe all my thanks to Marie and Beaumont." Adam looked down at Beaumont and smirked.
"Well then..." Marie interrupted with her hands on her hips, "Now that you're walking you better start working."
Adam's ears folded back and he cocked his head in confusion, "Working on what?" He immediately regretted sounding rude and added quickly, "Madame."
Marie chuckled at how hesitant Adam was and then explained, "Mrs. Potts told me for the last ten years it has only been her, Chip, Lumière, and Cogsworth living in the castle. To be completely honest, this place is filthy. No offense, Mrs. Potts."
"None taken, Marie." Mrs. Potts sighed and stared at the dusty windows, "This place is so big we hardly can keep up with it."
"That's precisely why Beaumont and I decided to help out." She smiled at Beaumont as he nodded his approval, "Since we will be living here, why not do our part as well?"
Adam smiled as his tail wagged excitedly, "That's very kind of you two. Thank you."
"And since you're up and walking now, you can start helping too." Marie scoffed and glared at Adam, "Mrs. Potts also told me you liked spending your days locked up in your room."
Adam hesitated and pouted at Mrs. Potts. She shrugged and mouthed, sorry.
"I will have no more of that." Marie ordered, "Prince or not. You'll do your part as well. Understand?"
"Y-yes, Madame." Adam gulped nervously, "Of course."
She smiled and patted his paw, "Good boy." Marie and Mrs. Potts walked back down the corridor.
Adam stood paralyzed and tense as they walked off. Once they were out of sight, he broke the silence and admitted, "Your mother is terrifying, Beaumont."
Beaumont laughed and patted his back, "Trust me, I know. She's my mother."
The two started walking down the corridor. Adam turned to Beaumont with an ecstatic smile on his face and confessed, "There's something I've been wanting to show you, Beaumont."
Beaumont was curious and asked excitedly, "Really? What is it?"
"You'll see." Adam snickered.
After awhile, they finally made it to a new part of the castle Beaumont has yet to see. Standing before them were two beautifully engraved wooden doors with gold plated handles.
"Is this it, Adam?" Beaumont asked, awed by the gigantic doors.
Adam departed from Beaumont's side and stood by the doorway, eager to show him the inside, "Close your eyes, Beaumont. It's a surprise!"
"A surprise? Adam you really don't have to―"
"Please?" He pouted, a soft whimper under his breath.
Beaumont laughed and shook his head, "You're absolutely ridiculous, Adam! Those puppy eyes have no affect on me."
Adam's bottom lip quivered as he begged, "Come on, Beaumont."
Beaumont groaned from his defeat and scoffed, "Fine, Adam! You win!" He covered his eyes with one hand and grinned excitedly.
Adam waved his paw in front of his face to make sure he wasn't peeking. He was delighted to see Beaumont wasn't and guided him through the doorway by the shoulder.
Beaumont smiled, his eyes still covered. He wanted to peek so bad; the anticipation was killing him.
"Can I open my eyes now?" He asked.
"Wait one moment..."
Beaumont heard cluttering all around him and waited patiently, humming a tune under his breath.
The noises stopped and Beaumont asked again, "Now?"
Adam stood proudly beside Beaumont with his hands behind his back and a silly grin on his face. He exclaimed, "Alright now!"
Beaumont opened his eyes and almost fell back in amazement at what he saw. He gasped and turned to Adam, "Is this a library?"
Adam chuckled, amused by Beaumont's reaction, "Yes it is. Passed on for decades."
The gaping room was covered floor to ceiling with books.
Two stories of ancient text.
Extravagant spiral staircases led the way to the upper balcony. The railings were shaped and engraved to look like tree roots. Each bookshelf had a tall movable ladder, which aided in reaching taller books. Beaumont has only ever seen a couple in his lifetime, but here there were shelves upon shelves of them.
When Beaumont was finally able to pick up his feet, he began walking down to the very far end of the library. Where there was a massive fireplace with a velvet couch and reading chair in front of it. Along the walls hung landscape paintings and marble statues of past family members. In between each wall with art were cozy book nooks with even more shelves marked clearly with Roman Numerals.
"What are the those for?" Beaumont asked curiously.
"Oh, they are Roman Numerals."
"And that is?"
Adam chuckled. It wasn't easy teaching Beaumont, especially when Adam was the one who was always the student not the instructor, but he enjoyed having someone who listened so intently as he did. He smiled down at Beaumont and explained, "They're numbers, Beaumont."
Beaumont groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose frustratingly, "First the alphabet and now this."
Adam rubbed Beaumont's head with his paw, messing up his hair. He laughed as Beaumont scoffed and fixed it. Adam consoled, "It will come in time, Beaumont, don't get frustrated. You're doing very well."
"Thank you, Adam. I couldn't do it without such a great teacher." Beaumont smiled warmly up at him and Adam returned it.
They caught themselves staring and turned away, blushing wildly.
Beaumont coughed nervously and diverted their conversation back where it left off, "So what are they for?"
Adam guided Beaumont to a big book resting closed on a podium. With a big huff, he blew the dust from the cover. The bindings creaked when he opened it up, revealing lines upon lines of titles. Beaumont stared at the book intensely, trying his best to figure out the words, but it is way beyond a couple days of lessons.
"This is an index of the entire library. Each number represents a type of book, like fiction, fantasy, music—"
Beaumont's heart leaped when Adam said music and stopped him mid-sentence, "Wait, music?"
Adam's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, "Um... Yes, would you like to see it?"
"Please!"
Beaumont followed Adam to the section and immediately started pulling books of all kinds off the shelves. He had no idea what the titles said, he just scanned and chose the ones with drawings.
At least fifteen books were stacked in Adam's arms so far. Beaumont just kept climbing higher on the ladder, scanning more books and handing them down gently. He finally climbed down and Adam set all the books on the table with a loud thud.
Adam scratches his scruff and watched as Beaumont ripped away at them, "What are you looking for, Beaumont?"
Beaumont scanned the books, attempting to uncover something intriguing. He glanced and Adam and asked distractedly, "Huh?"
"Can I help you?" He offered.
"Yeah yeah, sure."
Beaumont stubbornly cursed under his breath and frustratingly slammed one of the books shut, moving onto another.
Adam persisted, "Well, what are you looking for?" Beaumont said nothing and it pushed Adam over the edge as he roared, "BEAUMONT!"
"WHAT?!" Beaumont looked up at Adam, tears stinging the edges of his eyelids.
Adam frowned as his ears folded back. He felt guilty for shouting and shifted his frustration to compassion, "Are you alright?" He reached out his paw to Beaumont's shoulder.
Beaumont shoved away his paw and wiped the tears from his eyes. He returned to the books and sniffled, "I'm fine, Adam."
"You're not!" Adam guided Beaumont to a reading chair and sat him down. He knelt down in front of him and asked sincerely, "What's wrong?"
Beaumont hesitated and stared at Adam. He let out a sigh and said, "I once had this instrument called a guitar. It was my father's." He paused for a moment before continuing. It was painful to share this with Adam, "My father passed away when I was very young and that guitar was the only thing I had of his left. I played it every waking moment of the day, it was the only thing I ever cared about besides my mother in Villenueve." Beaumont choked up and hid his face from Adam, "Edon destroyed it."
Adam's fur rose with anger as he growled, "He what?"
"When he first confronted me, he...he beat me with it." Beaumont shuddered at the memory. A pain emitted from his scar, the memory just as painful as the injury was, "That's why my face looks like this."
Adam walked away from Beaumont and growled lowly. He tried to suppress his rage, but his hatred for Edon was too strong. Beastly thoughts took over Adam's mind:
I should have killed them all...
Why shouldn't I kill them?
Beaumont noticed his shift and watched in horror. He hesitated for a moment, but gained enough courage to approach him. He spoke gently, "Adam... Please calm down."
Adam gasped and relaxed immediately, breathing heavily as he shook away the rage. He paused for a moment to clear his mind, then turned to Beaumont sadly.
"I wish I could do something for you, Beaumont."
Beaumont managed a soft grin and said, "It's alright. I'll rebuild one someday."
Adam's ears perked up at this. He asked in bewilderment, "You know how to make one?"
"I'm pretty sure I can. Why do you ask?"
Adam rushed towards the massive double doors smiling joyously, "Follow me!"